Media Statement by Research for Social Advancement (REFSA) on 5 September 2025
On 5 September 20265, Research for Social Advancement (REFSA) released its latest research brief titled “The case for Office to Residential conversion in Kuala Lumpur”. In conjunction with discussions in relation to urban rejuvenation, REFSA offers a separate angle to regenerate Kuala Lumpur’s urban core through analysing why and how the government and the private sector should explore converting the abundance of vacant offices available in the city centre into housing options.
Kuala Lumpur is currently in a very ripe stage for conversion projects thanks to several existing elements. Firstly, the city centre boasts the highest accessibility to public transportation through the MRT, LRT, Monorail, KTM as well as RapidKL buses. Secondly, recent and ongoing non-residential projects have and will increase the cultural value of the city centre. The designation of a Warison KL core had further enhanced the heritage of the city centre and highlighted its identity and attractiveness. If poorly performing offices can be converted into residential spaces, urban spaces may be utilised even more efficiently, making it easier to conduct sustainable urban revitalisation that includes returning residents to the urban core, contributing to a more liveable city.
“Kuala Lumpur’s city centre has long been a business core, but age is catching up with many previously Grade A buildings,” stressed Tan E Hun, Executive Director of REFSA. “As companies move to more state-of-the-art office blocks, a cluster of once fully occupied but slowly decaying supply of offices is made available. Upgrading them for the latest office needs could be done, but it’s not a guarantee of returning clients given the current competitive nature of the market. However, the housing shortage in such a well-connected and attractive part of the city opens a new possibility for these buildings.”
In 2023, there was an estimated 30 million sqft of vacant office space in Kuala Lumpur, which is 10 times the total floor area of the Merdeka 118 tower. As new office buildings such as TRX, Merdeka 118 tower etc gradually gets filled up, the city centre should also seek to provide decent housing for those who work in these buildings. “Land scarcity makes the old CBD an area that suits smaller households or non-attached individuals,” says Tan E Hun. “Ready-built housing stock subjected to appropriate retrofitting could focus on rolling tenants with a need to live near their workplaces, reducing commuting time and car reliance. Its proximity to many still-occupied offices, widespread connectivity through public transport, and abundance of entertainment, lifestyle and dining venues would make it an attractive proposition for young single workers or working couples looking to position their living environment in the centre of work-life balance.”
This could be where vacant office blocks fill in the demand gap, as given the right conditions, it could be a highly cost-efficient way to create new residences out of unoccupied offices. There are of course, various factors that would influence decisions whether an office block could realistically be converted. Considerations into building conversion should include the existence of manually operable windows, adaptable façade openings, appropriate sunlight entry into living areas, distance between lifts/stairs and housing units and water supply volume among other things to fit residential use, to name a few. To aid this process, there are existing “scorecards” used globally that helps evaluate multiple factors for the conversion of old office blocks, e.g. the Gensler scorecard. “Given the emphasis on infilling as a development strategy in the Kuala Lumpur Structural Plan 2040, DBKL could commission local urban planners and architecture firms to revise the Gensler scorecard for localised use”, expanded Tan E Hun.
The case to rejuvenate vacant, Grade B or Grade C office buildings is compelling to avoid hollowing out of Kuala Lumpur’s central business district (CBD), which may result in the area at risk of becoming a ghost town in the evenings, deprived of economic and social activities. Amongst the buildings cited in the report that could serve as potential conversion from office to residential purposes include Wisma SPS, Imbi Plaza, Wisma New Asia, Menara Maybank, Loke Yew Building, Menara Raja Laut, KH Tower, Bangunan Lee Yan Lian etc. These buildings are mostly office buildings which have high vacancy rate, are more than 30 years old, and are in areas which have great accessibility to facilities and public transportation.
To conclude, Kuala Lumpur has a good supply of underoccupied office blocks located in prime locations. Converting these buildings into residential units can be part of the solution to solve several issues facing the city centre without needing to break the bank or create grand new plans. It could give life back to unused buildings and reactivate urban spaces while providing attractive housing in an area deemed unaffordable for a majority of young workers. That being said, it is not as easy as just picking a building and starting the converting process. Thorough preliminary work has to be done in order to confirm the viability of such projects, as it could be the case that a number of buildings are not structurally suited for residential function. There are successful cases both locally and internationally showing the possibilities of retrofitting old office buildings into housing options. These should be studied in detail by the government and city council.
“Demolition and decay are not the only options for hollowing Grade B or Grade C office blocks,” stressed E Hun. “While not 100% of them would be suitable for residential purposes, it would be well worth the effort to at least give them a thorough evaluation and potentially a new lease of life that could help rejuvenate a historical and iconic part of Kuala Lumpur. The last thing the urban core needs is a cluster of decaying vacant office buildings sitting around until they’re no longer fit for any kinds of usage.”
“Featured in Malay Mail and FreeMalaysiaToday“