Building defects are defined as building or house flaws, or design mistakes, that reduce value and cause dangerous conditions to their occupants. According to the National Building Agency, defect occurrences are caused by poor design, low-quality workmanship, and the quality of materials. The purpose of this paper is to identify the types of building defects that frequently occur in low-cost housing. In order to do so, this paper looks into the major causes of these defects. The case study selected is at Taman Bandar Perdana, Sungai Petani, Kedah. The methodology used in this paper utilizes a literature review, interviews, and visual inspections involving both public and private sectors, in decreasing defects in buildings. The findings show that most low-cost housing defects are caused by cracking, peeling paint, dampness, leaking pipes, timber decay, sagging, fungi, termites, broken tiles, and electrical faults. It is widely accepted that the contributing causes of these defects include weak designs, poor workmanship, and the quality of the material.

The new economic policy for low-cost housing in Malaysia was undertaken by both public and private sectors. The objective of this programme was to provide particularly low-income categories with accessibility to affordable housing. The government’s commitment towards the low-cost housing programme began during the First Malaysia Plan (1966-1970) and the private sector’s involvement began during the Second Malaysia Plan (1971-1975); after the government realized the need and importance of the private sector’s role in ensuring an adequate supply of low cost housing for the country [1]. This policy was mainly aimed at providing accessible, adequate, affordable, and quality housing for all Malaysians; particularly for those from the low-income group. However, the success of the housing policy was reduced due to reports of quality problems and defects. Building defects are defined as building or house flaws, or design mistakes that reduce value and cause dangerous conditions to their occupants. Many complaints were received from buyers involving low-cost houses [2]. These owners reported many defects, ranging from minor to major, such as the misalignment of walls and beams and leaking pipes that led to high water bills.