S$2 million M'sia bungalow near gas pipeline fire up for auction at S$991,000

After a massive fire caused by a gas pipeline leak ravaged a neighbourhood in Subang Jaya, Malaysia, some were quick to notice that a luxury freehold bungalow in the vicinity had been put on auction for half its previous price.

The coincidence aroused speculation about falling property prices in the neighbourhood in the wake of the disaster.

The fire

The fire that started in Jalan Putra Harmoni, Putra Heights on the morning of Apr. 1 severely damaged 237 premises in the neighbourhood, including homes and shoplots, The Star reported.

The fire was emanating from a leaking gas pipeline, with an estimated 500m of pipeline aflame, The Malay Mail reported.

The fire was contained by 4pm and no fatalities were reported.

However, 125 victims required medical treatment.

Luxury bungalow going at half price

On the same day, Apr. 1, a post was shared to the KL Selangor Lelong Properties Facebook page advertising a two-storey freehold bungalow at Putra Heights, which boasts an area of 15,604 square feet, with a basement and a swimming pool.

The post noted that the bungalow's market value was RM6.7 million (S$2.013 million), but was being auctioned off at just under half price, RM3.33 million (S$991,566).

Based on satellite images, the property is situated off Jalan Putra Harmoni. It has not been sold off in spite of six previous rounds of auctions.

No other pictures of the bungalow were provided.

The next auction is set to be held on Apr. 30.

Previous posts on the page and a corresponding website highlighted upcoming property auctions in Selangor, and the sites are ostensibly run by a property agent "Chris Yap".

'Very hard to sell': Online commenters

Online commenters were quick to air their suspicions in the comments that the bungalow up for sale was in close proximity to the gas pipeline where the Subang inferno started.

Other users opined that the unit would be hard to sell after the news of the fire.

In response to queries about how close the property is to the said pipeline, the page administrator replied that the bungalow appears to be "in the same line" based on satellite images.

He added that the gas pipeline could be seen in the map.

Top image from Ting Wei Yao/Facebook & KL Selangor Lelong Properties/Facebook