This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on February 21, 2019

SEMENYIH: Housewife Hafiza Abd Rahman, who attended the FundMyHome+DepositKu launch yesterday, burst into tears when she shared how difficult it has been for her and her husband to realise their dream of being homeowners.

The 34-year-old, who was present at the press conference after the launch of the scheme as organisers mistook her for a reporter, was asking Housing and Local Government Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin about applicants’ eligibility when she shared her experience.

She said she and her husband, a self-employed programmer who earns less than RM3,000 a month, have tried to secure a housing loan for 15 times in the past but to no avail, as they have not been able to show any repayment records without credit cards.

“My husband and I always wanted to own a home after renting for more than 10 years here, but we have problems in getting a mortgage loan as we do not have any track record.

“We pay our utility bills on time, making sure we never owe any money. We have done nothing wrong, but we just can’t get a loan because we do not have any credit score track record,” the mother of four said.

According to her, she pays for everything by cash. The only item she paid by instalment for was a sedan car which has already been fully settled many years ago. “I just told my husband, ‘Abang, don’t give up, this is the new government we can trust,” she said.

After the press conference, Zuraida had a private chat with Hafiza to further explain the details of the scheme.

Hafiza later told reporters that her homeownership dream will finally come true with FundMyHome. “With FundMyHome+DepositKu, there’s a chance now that my family and I can own a house. I have long awaited for this day to come,” said Hafiza.