Pre requesites for renting in Malaysia

Yes people on tourist visas can rent. But you risk being prevented from entering Malaysia so often by immigration officers.

The main issue will be you will be liable for the 12 months of rental if you sign a 1 year lease and can't enter Malaysia.

Ok , thank you
Are you able to point me in the right direction  to overcomethis obstacle ?

Im dead set on making this work in the new year

There is no solution unless you want to get the MM2H 10 year visa.

http://mm2h.gov.my/index.php/en/home/pr … conditions
Check out the "On approval" requirement as well.

Living on tourist status in Malaysia just doesn't work any longer

Far out the upon approval part is definately steep,

Thanks for a prompt relevant reply.

Do you have any information about why immigration would not let youinto the countru that often other than the fact they would be missing out on you fulfilling them obligations ?


I really would prefer to live in malaysia than thailand or Indonesia

Simple.. you would be attempting to live illegally in Malaysia and not a bonafide tourist

Generally most countries, and not just Malaysia, regard evidence that a person who has taken residence (unless they have demonstrated sufficient financial proof) is working within the country...either in the overground sphere (thus taking a position from a local) or in the underground (drugs, scams, begging, petty theft).

Immigration will look at time outside before return, number of intervening countries, and evidence as to whether you have done this repeatedly. They do realize that sometimes tourists fly in to KL travel throughout SEAsia and then need to return to KL.

They may request that you show an onward ticket (or you should "volunteer" one if they demonstrate concern).

Mind you they may issue a short-term or transit visa rather than a three month term visa.

However I know of people that have been visa-hopping for years. The greatest risk is that the immigration agent may but a stamp in your passport (anf into the computerized system) barring you for 5 years.

Ok,  thank you .

I would have an onward/return ticket everytime i entered K L .

I had it in my head id be able to holiday in kL for 5 days every 9 days but stay in a rental instead of a hotel.

Maybe seems too risky to try

Just toclarify , in case anyone else is ever interested .

Spoke to malaysian consulate who said australian can enter malaysiaon a  tourist visa as many times as they like.

Renting mau be another story though

Entry is at the discretion of the Immigration Officer (not the consulate)

To put it into perspective, there have been quite a lot of DNL - do not land - decisions based on just 2-3 entries. The people must return to last embarcation location.  This gives problems say for Vietnam as they have a 30 day ban on re-entry these days.

After a DNL there is a 30 day ban on reentering. As Cinammonape mentioned, there is also no guarantee an IO will give 30 day entry - I've known 3 day entries being given.

Basically immigration changed here and in relation to ASEAN countries with the new cooperation agreement

The unification of the immigration information systems might make this strategy less possible, but back in the old days an officer at a particular entry point would look at your passport, grumble, and then stamp the entry pass in, make a little annotation and tell you "next time you must stay out for 3 months". Apparently the way around this was to re-enter at a different airport or overland point. I don't know if that's possible now.

The weirdest thing I've heard was about a friend (who really should now better as he's married to a Malaysian and could get a long-term SVP) who still visa hops. He went across the border between Sarawak and Kalimantan and spent the half the day in a dingy little border town on the Indonesian side with his wife. Coming back, the Indonesian Immigration officer told him he was not allowed to leave.  The officer got quite angry about it  because the Malaysians would not allow him through. "You must go to Pontianak" he said. They left the line and went back into the town of Entikong and an just off-duty officer came up to them in a café and said "Pak Abdul is off at 4PM, come back again them".  They did and crossed with no problem.

Back to the rental question, heres the thing. There is a primary and fundamental (aversion? reluctance?) to rent to foreigners because landlords believe, and rightly many times, the foreigner will skip out suddenly and leave the landlord with various problems. Also, because foreigners are not considered permanent and stationary, landlords are confused as to what laws apply to foreigners. So their first answer is no, you cant rent, even though you legally can.  This process then requires a certain massaging and finessing on the renters part, especially if the expat isnt attached to a branded company. For these reasons, dont ask your questions to a landlord or agent, basically just shuttup and reply to adverts for rentals and act like "you own the place." Act natural and normal and local and permanent. Perception is everything---next to money.

But now we have to come back around to the points raised in this thread by replyers. Ok, you rent a place, its cheaper than a hostel, everything is great and fine. You pay your rent on a signed lease. Great! One day in 4 months, you decide, meh, i dont care to go back, bye. Now you have skipped out on an agreement and are now an example of the very reason landlords are so reluctant to rent to expats in the first place.

Upshot? With a little money anything can be accomplished here, even a rental. But whatever you decide, make sure you are prepared to see it through to both keep yourself out of trouble and also create an easier path for future expats. After all, the fact you could do it at all is because a previous someone cleared a path for you.

Thanks for your reply ,

I've emailed the consulate and then malaysian immigration with my question and being told by both i shouldn't have any problem entering that frequently.

Im going for a short holiday after tax time mid year , and will approach real estate agents to view properties within my price range to rent in the new year.
Id have no problem paying the rent in cash up front for the year or anything like that so ill see how i go.

First thing first: Are you an Australian citizen?

I would take their answer with a pinch of salt because they have no say whatsoever.  Its the immigration officers on arrival that decide.

Yes you will have to sign tenancy agreement n provide passport
Chances are you will be required to pay a bigger deposit

I rented to an expat before under corporate
For individuals if your contract is for 12 mo
Then you will need to pay 12 mo lease in advance as most contract is 12 -24 mo
Every thing is negotiable
Owner

Yes , Australian and British dual citizen.

Im hoping to save between 25 - 30k aud before the end of the year to dedicate to flights to and from K L , paying a lease in advance and to cover some expenses.

Ive got bahasa malay lessons booked for 10 hours every time im back from work for the next 6 months.

Im fully focused on doing this.

And at the end of the day if all i stand to lose is 15k on a lease , im not too phases. Id rather try and fail than not try at all.

Cheers for the replies🙃

Good
Looks like u are prepared
When u get ready to come to malaysia
Touch base again
Ciao
Mona

I have been doing this for close to a year, with the longest stay being 2 months. My passport is rapidly filling with stamps, but I have never been queried by officials.  I tried to rent, but agents will not look at you, if you don't have a resident visa.  So, hotels it is, but these are cheap. I have now applied for a resident visa through MM2H, but they take many months to obtain.

😊

I'll keep this thread updated with how i go with getting a rental and learning the language.

January's only just around the corner and to me , theres no question about where Im going to be living then .

Just to try and push for some more info if I can.

I've read about real estate agents not wanting to entertain me , given I'm not even in the country at the moment.

And I've tried a lot , from that iproperty website and the ones on here.

Just want to know if there's anywhere else I can try to contact and build repoir with an agent before I make the trip to come and view properties later this year ?

Well to a rental agent January is a lifetime away. Any property they have now they would hope they've rented or sold by then. They likely wouldn't think that starting talk about renting something that far down the line would be very productive. Plus prices may change as could your plans. In addition, despite your zeal, they might not quite "get" how flying back and forth to work to Australia and living in Malaysia would make sense.  Especially all that stuff about learning Bahasa Malayu.

I'd wait until a month before or start doing this when you arrive and have cash in hand and waving it in front of them. Money talks.....

Ok .

Just to clarify though , are you insinuating that Malaysian would not be the best language to try and get my head around ?

Any other suggestions if this is the case ? Mandarin ?

Getting a Certificate of Residence in Malaysia for tax purposes requires a long term visa (Pass - such as MM2H or EP) and is not possible on tourist entries.

Setting up a Labuan international company could be advantageous both taxwise and to get an immigration status in Malaysia (EP)

Only when you have some firm roots, will you actually be "living" in Malaysia.  Even if you visit Malaysia for 182 days a year it does not give Tax Residency (or any other kind of residency).

gregs5290 wrote:

Ok .

Just to clarify though , are you insinuating that Malaysian would not be the best language to try and get my head around ?

Any other suggestions if this is the case ? Mandarin ?

I'm not insinuating anything.

I'm just saying that a property (or immigration) agent would be wondering WHY you are so set on learning Malay that you are actually moving to the Malaysia to learn it. It seems backwards.  You talk about "a plan"...and learning Malay and moving to Malaysia is part of that "plan". But what is the reason for the plan. Do you expect to set up a business? Buy coastal property and live on the beach? Or are you a real tourist?  Do you expect to "commute" back and forth to your job in Australia for the rest of your life? 

See the "plan" actually raises bigger unanswered questions. You really need to explain the reason why you want to live in Malaysia rather than Australia.

Learning Malay is not really a "reason" to move to Malaysia (you could likely find a University course vastly cheaper). You could say the same thing about Japanese, Mongolian, Korean, Swahili. Why Malaysia? What is it about Malay culture that makes you want to move here?  Learning Malay seems subsidiary to some other purpose.

A lot of people learn Malaysian because they move here, and it's particularly useful in rural areas.  Are you intending to live there?  In-depth knowledge is useful for scholars, or if you want to deeply understand what's being said about philosophy, religion or politics. But most expats get by quite well with a basic course and a dictionary or phrasebook. English is widely spoken in the cities.

Property agents will be less interested in the "plan" and more with the reason for the plan.

And if you are going to learn a Chinese language in Penang I'd suggest Hokkien.

Lol , im doing malay lessons because i plan on spending time in Malaysia next year.

Why would i bother / have to explain anything to an agent other than i want to rent a property ?

It should be without saying that any australian with a 1000$ a week mortgage would prefer to live in kl for 1000$ a month whilst leasing their property in australia to cover the majority of the mortgage.

Most Malaysians speak English. Signs are all in English.  Public announcements, eg on trains, are all in English.  People will naturally address you  in English, as they will assume you don't speak Malaysian.  I have heard that Malaysian is also quite difficult to learn. 

If you do apply for a visa, they will be looking at how you can contribute to society here. I was asked for details of my education and work experience,  despite only applying for a retiree visa.  They are very conscious of inviting only the 'right" people to live here.

As a fellow Aussie, I fully understand the financial motive for living in Malaysia.  However, it might be  good idea to think of ways you can help the community, rather than just spending your money in Malaysia.

Also, without being rude, it might pay to use good spelling, when dealing with anyone who you need to impress - create an impression that you are well-educated, which they seem to appreciate.  I refer to such words as PREREQUISITE and RAPPORT.

Good luck!  I am sure you will enjoy Malaysia, particularly the price of everything.  The locals are friendly and helpful, as well as being a peaceful nation (witness the recent overthrow of the government .. in no other country would that have happened without  major disruptions or violence.)

gregs5290 wrote:

Why would i bother / have to explain anything to an agent other than i want to rent a property ?

Because
a) you don't have a long-term visa which means you have had your financial and criminal background checked by the government
b) they don't have to rent to you
c) Malaysians are apt to ask people all sorts of questions about you and your family background. Remember, it is THEY that are going to bend the regulations for YOU.

Gruffness, the "it's none of your business" and other such behavior may give them opinion that you are not a tenant they want. Or hiding something. Add in the waving the money in front of them and it looks quite peculiar.

I'd point out that MM2H asks for a statement of why the individual is interested in staying in Malaysia. When you enter the country you are often asked a set of questions by the immigration agent as to your PURPOSE in visiting Malaysia. Try the "it's none of you business" approach on them and see how far it gets you.

gregs5290 wrote:

It should be without saying that any australian with a 1000$ a week mortgage would prefer to live in kl for 1000$ a month whilst leasing their property in australia to cover the majority of the mortgage.

Really...I had no idea that this was why you wanted to move to Malaysia. It actually doesn't "go without saying" that you own property and are renting it. And that this was the rationale for your "plan." If you said that up front it would allay suspicion and questions. After all, they deal in property, and would understand that motivation.  Quick and simply.

The whole...I'm learning Malay - but working in Australia- story, as I've pointed out, raises more questions and sounds a bit contrived, in comparison.

One of the issues western expats experience in KL when trying to rent, is that owners (working through Agents designated to find a tenant) tend not to show people properties below a threshold deemed "affordable" for an expat. This means that it is almost impossible to get good value rentals.

Secondly, there a normally issues with most condos such as design, only vehicle access, dark units with little natural light, hot units because of aspect and no ceiling fans, bad maintenance and frequent breakdowns, antisocial behaviour around the pool/gym, noise/pollution, etc. Age of a property is also paramount and the modern is good.

The issue about Agents is you need to know which buildings/condos are of interest, as the usual method is to do some research and see what is being advertised. There will be a few Agents working at a property and who can show you units - and possibly extra ones that are not being advertised that they also have on their books. 

Agents tend not to act as property tour guides and stick to those where they earn commission from the owner. This can make the search a bit tedious. Never see a unit with two agents either. Its a recipe for disaster as both agents may pull the plug on a rental.

Research is best on www.iproperty.com.my or www.propertyguru.com.my

But don't be surprised if you are told a unit is no longer available - especially if it has a low rental.

Always avoid responding to any adverts for units where it states "owners willing to list" because that means the agent is trying to poach the property and get a commission share.