Martapura is the seat of Kabupaten Banjar (Banjar Regency). It sits right next to Banjarbaru, and Jalan Ahmad Yani, the main road out of Banjarmasin, runs straight on into it. So people often treat Martapura as an extension of Banjarbaru. It isn’t. The town has a feel of its own.

Martapura is known for two things: Islamic schools and diamonds. It has large pesantren (Islamic boarding schools), a diamond and gem market, and the Sekumpul area that draws pilgrims all year. This guide is for anyone thinking of buying a house or land in Martapura, whether to live in, to house parents, or to rent out.

The town’s character: pesantren, diamonds and the river

A few things shape everyday life in Martapura.

The first is religious education. Pondok Pesantren Darussalam Martapura has drawn students from across the region for a long time, and many other pesantren and study circles have grown up around it. Students, teachers and visiting families all need somewhere to live, eat and shop.

The second is the diamond and gem trade. The diamond market in the town centre is where jewellery and stones change hands, while traditional diamond mining happens in Cempaka, which belongs to Banjarbaru.

The third is Sekumpul. People come here to visit the grave of KH Muhammad Zaini Abdul Ghani, widely known as Guru Sekumpul. During his annual haul (commemoration) the crowds are enormous and the surrounding roads fill up. If you own a house near Sekumpul, expect a few days a year when the neighbourhood is packed.

The fourth is the Martapura River, which runs through town. It gives the older districts their character, and it is also the source of the flood risk covered below.

Getting to Banjarbaru and Banjarmasin

Martapura is well placed. Banjarbaru is next door, with the provincial government offices, universities and Syamsudin Noor Airport. Banjarmasin is reached along the same Jalan Ahmad Yani, through Banjarbaru, Gambut and Kertak Hanyar.

The main road north to Banua Anam, the six upriver regencies, also starts from Martapura. If your family often heads home to Rantau, Kandangan or Barabai, that’s a real plus.

Your daily commute depends heavily on where your home and office are. Jalan Ahmad Yani gets congested at peak hours, especially towards Banjarmasin. Before you buy, drive your route at the actual times you’d leave for and return from work. Our guide to the Jalan Ahmad Yani corridor covers that stretch in more detail.

The property you’ll find

Martapura’s market is fairly varied. In general you’ll come across:

  • Older family houses near the centre, close to the market, mosques and schools. Many have stood for decades, and some are still timber houses or stilt houses (rumah panggung).
  • Houses and rooms for rent, for students, teachers or traders. Homes where the owner lives in one part and lets out another are common.
  • Shophouses (ruko) on the main roads, used as shops, eateries or jewellery businesses.
  • New housing estates on the edge of town, including subsidised homes, for young families who want a lower price.
  • Land plots and family land in the surrounding villages, some still held on old letters such as a Surat Keterangan Tanah (SKT), a village land statement.

If you want a home that also earns rent, think about who the tenants will be. Students and pesantren staff tend to follow the school year. Our guide to property for rent shows how to run the numbers.

Reading Martapura’s flood risk

The January 2021 flood hit most of South Kalimantan, and Kabupaten Banjar was among the worst affected. In Martapura, low ground near the river stayed under water for quite a while.

That doesn’t make all of Martapura risky. Ground levels change from one kelurahan (urban village) to the next, and even from one lane to the next. What matters is checking the specific site rather than going on a general impression.

Questions worth asking the neighbours:

  • How high did the water get here in January 2021?
  • How many days did it take to go down?
  • Does the road to this house flood in an ordinary heavy rain?

Look for old water lines on walls and paint peeling near the floor, and compare the floor level with the road. A visit in the rainy season gives a more honest picture. Our guide to inspecting property in the wet and dry seasons helps you build a checklist.

For a site near the river, also ask the kelurahan office or the local public works and spatial planning office (Dinas PUPR) about the river setback line. A building that sits too close to the river can run into trouble with permits or with a riverbank clearance programme.

Land titles on the edge of town

In the centre, many houses already hold a certificate. In the outlying villages you can still find land held on an SKT, an old segel letter, or an inheritance that was never transferred into the heirs’ names.

Before you pay, confirm a few things:

  • What kind of land document it is, and whether there is a Sertifikat Hak Milik (SHM), the full freehold certificate.
  • If it isn’t certified yet, check the village land register and meet the owner on every side of the boundary.
  • How the land is zoned in the spatial plan, especially if it used to be rice field. Some rice fields are protected as Lahan Pertanian Pangan Berkelanjutan (LP2B), sustainable food farmland, and can’t simply be built on.
  • Who all the heirs are, if it’s family land, and whether every one of them agrees to sell.

There’s more in our guide to SKT and segel land letters.

Who Martapura suits

Martapura usually works well for:

  • Families who want to live close to pesantren and religious study circles.
  • People employed in Kabupaten Banjar or on the eastern side of Banjarbaru.
  • Anyone running a jewellery or trading business in the town centre.
  • Families who travel often to Banua Anam.

On the other hand, if your office is in central Banjarmasin and you’d be driving there every day at rush hour, be honest about the time and fuel that costs. Compare it with options in Banjarbaru before you decide.

Practical steps before you buy

  1. Decide what the property is for: living in, housing parents, or renting out.
  2. Visit at peak hours and during the rainy season.
  3. Ask neighbours about past floods, especially for a house near the river.
  4. Check the land document and zoning with the village office, the Land Office (Kantor Pertanahan) or Dinas PUPR.
  5. Bring in a notary or land deed official (PPAT) early.

Martapura is calm and religious in character, with decent access to the two bigger cities next to it. To see what’s on the market, start with land for sale in Kabupaten Banjar, and the Vorneo Property team can help you check the site and the paperwork.