Anyone bought in Malaysia

Hi all,

Seen a few threads about buying in Singapore and HK, but interested in knowing if anyone has looked into Malaysia, and if so whereabouts ?

I do know the minimum spend is RM 1 Million for a foreigner, which is still quite comfortable spending.

 

Can we get finance from Australian banks?

 

@RedMarty are you familiar with the market?

 

@EN710 Not familiar. I have moved here for work at the start of the year. Living in Penang. Looked at a bit but nothing thorough.

@devank I have never invested overseas so I was fishing for some people who have ?

 

Good time to buy IMHO... FX will improve if anything

 

If you are fishing then this may interest you?
US - Atlanta, GA - USA Property Investing

 

Lookup MM2H - Malaysia my 2nd home program. Comes with restrictions on where and what property can be bought. A good starting point to know where expats are buying.

 

@MTR I must admit being a novice investor I am nervous about investing overseas but your post certainly makes me keen to look into it. As I am working here for three years I'll definitely be able to be on ground looking.

 

Red Marty:

SInce you're living in Penang, can I say you're referring to buying here? It is better to be more specific because Malaysia, like Australia is a big country with different markets.

 

Malaysia? I wouldn't go that far on my holidays.

 

@Xiao Hui I'm not buying to live in it as I am compensated for my accom and pay very little for it. From what I posted originally, I am keen to know where in Malaysia someone would invest or has invested. I.e Penang, Kl, Johor, Ipoh etc.

 

Malaysia has a very different property market compared to Australia.

The concept of renting house there is not strong as most people buy their own. I think only Kuala Lumpur and Penang have strong house rental market. In other cities like johor Bahu, Ipoh, Kuching etc, the rental market is weak.

Moreover there is weak laws to protect the rights of the landlord. It is common place in Johor for eg that a tenant stop paying rent and there's not much a landlord can do other than confiscate the bond and evict him. And rental returns are very little in many of these other cities. A 3 bedroom condominium in Johor Bahru rents for around A$400 per month or around RM1200. Is it worth all your investments for this little returns?

Also, like Australia there is over supply of apartments everywhere in Malaysia currently. The worst is probably johor Bahru where an estimated 200,000 apartments are coming up in the next 3 years, I think. For a city of 1.5 million people, how are they going to absorb this huge amount of accommodation units? Even Singapore ministers have cautioned Singaporeans (Singapore is just beside Johor Bahru) against buying there. The situation in Penang and Kuala Lumpur are not that bad but still people have advised caution. Property prices throughout malaysia now is on a decline, something like in Perth.

Lastly, politics come to play in Malaysia when you invest. Economically in this country, it is the Chinese that call the shots. But they are increasingly marginalised poltically, causing many to uproot and migrate to Singapore, Australia, new Zealand etc. It is the opposite of what's happening here in Australia. Would you put your future in a place where the best and cleverest keep leaving?

I understand that the programme of "Malaysia My Second Home", where the govt give certain preferential treatment for foreigners intending to retire there, is not very successful. It failed to attract as many people as originally intended. I am not sure of exact reasons though.

I always heard of Malaysians buying houses here as investments. But I have hardly heard of the opposite. Not to say this is not viable, but it's definitely not for the faint hearted. And there must be a reason why this is the case.

 

i would just invest in KL and Penang - possibly Johor (due to proximity to Singapore) and avoid everything else. Also investing in malaysia is not the same as australia. there are many micro markets within the main cities. KL is the better place to invest being you have more options and all the main HQ places are located there with infrastructure (trains etc).Then again, what kind of investments are you looking for? landed or apartment? i did have a place in KLCC area but have sold it a few years ago.

In malaysia, there have a policy when a set amount of properties are earmarked for the local native people (bumiputera) which means they can only be bought and sold by the natives which are generally cheaper. When there is a huge amount of these properties with this standing, i would avoid as generally the prices are lower. Also follow where the chinese buy in malaysia, certain suburbs etc are in demand due to this.

 

i just think buying in malaysia is a bit more complicated. i'll be in malaysia in Jan 2017 and will speak to a developer.

 

Hi, Just to add on, I've invested in KL and melaka. Word of caution for investors, policy risk is high. Rental yield is low, vacancy rates is high. Taxation is high, 26% on nett rental income for foreigners. From my observation, RM seems to peg very much to AUD and you can't really profit from currency fluctuations.

My KL property rented well for 4 years as a service apartment. My agent is good but they lacked the professionalism of Australian gents and the laws are pro-tenant. With O&G sector falling, tenancy rates may climb further. KL holiday lets seems to be more resilient.

More on policy, foreigners can't do refinance even with equity gained. Tread carefully.

However, Malaysia is still practising common wealth laws, it may be an easier entry point. Penang being landscarced and a Chinese population will do well in long term (5-10years). KL being a major centre is Asia will continue to attract jobs and visitors. With mrt completing in 2 years,you can expect KL to continue to perform. JB is a wild card. The oversupply is scary. I wouldn't touch it. However,if you like JB for whatever reason, look out for fire sales soon.

My 2 cents.

 

the "Malaysia My Second Home" is just a ploy and really benefits not the locals but foreigners. Personally you can import 2 cars into the country tax free (and then on-sell) them for profits later on. Although you may buy a property (back then it is RM500K only which is really only AUD160K. You are also able to access these funds by sellling the property and later already having the 2nd home residency. In terms of medical i feel asian countries have less process to deal with esp with dental, medical checks etc something many in their later years of life may need. i would say there are still a lot of chinese in malaysia running businesses. Unfortunately the "Malaysia My Second home" has limited success as foreigners may find it hard to navigate through the maze of getting things done. Also being a islamic country, some may also find it unnerving as they are not used to the customs and cultures.

 

What's the price range like? What yield are gonna get? Can you get local finance from foreign buyers?

 

I think you're right from what I'm hearing. 3 years ago, I was going through JB and the development of apartments is massive. My singaporean friends cautioned that buyers going in are speculative...once built, flip. Highly risky.

The Malaysian government..hmm...local chinese aren't confident in the policies.

Perhaps a better way is to enter into a JV with a local? I'd find out more when I'm there in Jan 2017.

 

JV ? as in build? or invest ? i think it is an advantage to have a local or relative there if you do as all the official paperwork is in bahasa malaysia. I have a friend who is local developer there. builds in an area in KL/Selangor known as sungai long (in english "river long) and also does custom houses in a suburb called (bukit damansara) or damansara heights

 

It is the demographics that's worrying me if you invest in Malaysia. Not trying to be a racist - ask any Aussie that have stayed long enough in Malaysia and they will tell you the most progressive and hardworking people there are the Chinese. They are the ones that keep Malaysia moving and surviving well as a nation. But the issue is they are declining in numbers, and at an alarming rate!!


In 1983, they account for about 35% of Malaysia's population.
In 1995, they form around 28%.
Now it is only around 22%.
Come 20 years later, it might be 10% to 15%?

Just like everyone wants to buy in a good neighbourhood in Australia, do you want to buy house in a place where the best people have left? Or are preparing to leave?

What will be the value of your property then?