What is the Actual cost of living in Malaysia?

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Since both of you have motorbikes, could you tell me the annual cost of insurance for motorbike ?
Regards,
Mary

Hi Mary, a friend of mine has a 750cc sportbike, so I asked him in case you were asking about a big bike.
He pays about 1,200 MYR  insurance, 15% discount for no claims and bike insured for 40,000 MYR.
(I think it's a full coverage insurance, not just 3rd party)

If you are thinking of purchasing a motorbike over 250cc in Malaysia, be aware that they are very expensive here.

Stephan

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Hi,

Thank you to all of you for your precious infos !

I am just worrying about bringing our bikes to Malaysia, I've heard that if it's more than 10 years old we might not be authorised to bring our "grand-ma" in the country  ?! that would be sooo sad  .....well....we will see...

Regards,
Mary

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Hi Mary

Flashy or expensive bikes will attract attention from thieves. Better to keep a cheap battered runner that's not worth much.

cheers

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Hi Rag,

For everyday use we will have a small old local bike, but we would love to travel around the country once in a while with our "old grand-ma" :-) we are going to install an electronic chip to trace it... just in case... and we will hide the bike when we don't use it. But thank's anyway for your advice.

Rgds,
Mary

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If you are planning on importing the bike in Malaysia, you better check out if it is possible. You will need an AP.
Maybe you can get an AP for the bike, if they bend the rules a bit. On the MM2H visa one is allowed to import one car. No mention of motorbikes. Better check before you go ahead with it! Would be sad if she had to remain in a bonded warehouse.

Click here for info on AP

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Someone has already asked if they could have a 'tax free' Motor cycle instead of a tax free car, and the answer was 'NO'. perhaps this is something we could propose in terms of more flexibility.
Maybe allow both as both Luxury cars and Super-Bikes have something like 300% duty added!

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Danny, may I ask you, the figure for "taxes" - can you enlighten?  Are there property taxes or something like that in Malaysia?  Or did you mean taxis (cabs)?

Sorry, sorry, not picking up on your English but just wondering if there are "taxes" to pay in Malaysia

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Hi Papaya,

If you own a house in Malaysia you need to pay tax such as Quit rent and Assessment (and in Penang for the sewage system, wherever that may be). But don't be shocked the amounts are peanuts compared to Holland where I "enjoyed" paying taxes for god knows what.
But if you wish you can also spend money on taxis.

Regards, Danny

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I've just been re-reading this thread and absorbing the numbers and it seems to me that living in Malaysia for the average Joe, retired with no debt and no extra baggage (kids etc), is really quite cheap isn't it.  And presumably most people wouldn't contemplate retiring if they still had debts to clear (mortgages, loans, etc) or am I just old-fashioned and sensible?

Anyone had any shock expenses in Malaysia?  Something you hadn't considered?  I know that alcohol can be quite expensive.

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hi,

The thing about "shock expenses" in Malaysia is that they're pretty cheap.

If you're buying property there's the State tax that can be very high in places like Johor ( RM10,000 if I remember correctly).

But on the whole, I've always found costs for more or less everything to be reasonable. I think that the point in Malaysia is that you need to work out the quality of what you want. Then you won't be disappointed.

For example. Currently, working on the boat, I need marine ply. The non-marine plywood available is RM45 per sheet of 9mm. It's useless and it's third rate. The marine ply that's in stock is RM110 per sheet for 9mm and it's 2nd quality. So the sawmill is getting hold of some proper marine plywood, it'll cost RM150 per sheet.

The reason that they don't stock the "good stuff" is because of no demand. And Malaysia exports it's quality products. That's why so much stuff in the shops and markets is 2nd or 3rd rate. Another e.g. Malaysian tomatoes in Singapore are really beautiful and they cost about the same as tomatoes in Giant or on the markets here in Malaysia. However, the stuff in Singapore is good quality because the poor quality won't sell there. The poor quality is sold here in Malaysia.

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What is state tax?  Is that a one-off charge or an annual charge on property?

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hi,

State tax applies to property purchase. It's a one-off item payable for state approval of the transaction.