JB Court Orders R&F to Pay RM10.56M to Princess Cove Condo Owners Over Delayed Handover

When Crystal Ng collected the keys to her family's 18th-floor unit at R&F Princess Cove in October 2017, she found construction debris everywhere and a fence across the road that was supposed to lead to her block. Nine years later, a Johor Bahru court has ruled that, in the eyes of the law, her unit had not really been handed over at all.

The Johor Bahru High Court has ordered R&F Development Sdn Bhd to pay RM10.56 million (US$2.58 million) to owners of 84 units in the waterfront development beside the Woodlands Causeway. Some of the owners are Singaporeans. The court found that the developer breached its agreements with buyers by splitting the original first phase of the project into two, called Phase 1A and Phase 1B. As a result, some buyers got their keys while parts of the development, including some shared facilities, were still unfinished.

The dates drive the calculation. Buyers in three residential blocks, A1, A2 and A7, received keys on Oct 25, 2017, but the original Phase 1 was only completed in November 2018. The court treated November 2018 as the true handover date. Compensation for late delivery was set at 10 per cent a year of each unit's purchase price, and compensation for delayed shared facilities at 10 per cent a year of one-fifth of the purchase price. Buyers were awarded roughly RM34,000 to RM196,000 per unit for late delivery, plus RM6,900 to RM39,000 for the facilities. R&F must also refund maintenance fees, sinking fund contributions and water deposits collected before Nov 8, 2018.

Not everyone won. The court dismissed claims for another 39 units and ordered those buyers to pay R&F RM10,000 (US$2,454) in legal costs per unit. According to lawyers involved, these buyers signed their purchase agreements after the developer had changed the building plans. The lawsuit was filed in 2019 with 145 named plaintiffs. In 2021 the purchasers first won a ruling without a full trial, but R&F successfully appealed. A 10-day trial ended in 2024, and the latest ruling came on Sep 10, 2026.

R&F's lawyer Josiah Tea told CNA the developer intends to appeal. Fellow R&F lawyer V Mavin Rajah said the developer disputed some complaints about facilities, calling a claim that the squash court fell short of Olympic dimensions "ridiculous". He argued that although some facilities were unavailable, others were operating. Buyers' lawyer NG Vinod said his clients whose claims were dismissed also plan to appeal.

The owners describe the years in plain terms. Ng, 49, semi-retired, said the unit was bought in her mother's name and has since been sold, leaving "a sour taste". She said the collective suit was worthwhile. Hong Wei Zhong, 45, a manager whose family bought a 10th-floor unit in his mother's name, said swimming pools were not ready when keys arrived, and it felt like living in a construction site. He said the developer refused to engage him, so he organised other owners in person and on Facebook to hire a lawyer together. If the appeal over the 39 units fails, he said, successful claimants plan to pool part of their compensation to cover the costs owed to R&F.

Property consultant Samuel Tan of Olive Tree Property Consultants said that awarding compensation separately for shared facilities reinforces that a condo is not delivered merely when its walls stand. He said buying after a plan change has been formally integrated makes a later claim of ignorance legally difficult. Vinod urged foreign buyers to check a developer's track record, rely on what is written in the sale and purchase agreement rather than sales pitches, and inspect units at handover with a developer representative, recording any defects.

Separately, 167 owners sued in February 2023 over delays in obtaining strata titles. Free Malaysia Today reported that the court ruled for them and awarded RM10,000 in costs but no damages, since the titles had been issued. With both sides planning appeals in the main case, the final outcome is still open.