Buying vs. rentingBuying wins 84% by yr 5

decide

Buy, or rent and invest the rest?

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Find your property

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›Or paste a listing instead

Import from a listing

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Your property

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StateProperty typeDistrictMost granular -- optionalTenureLeasehold typically sells for less than freehold nearbyRegionSub-state, optional

Purchase price (RM)Floor area (sqft)Built-up size (condos: strata size), not land.Deposit (%)Mortgage rate (% p.a.)Islamic financing? Enter your profit rate here: the calculation is the same.Loan term (years)Your ageBanks end the loan by a maximum age.Partner's age (if applying together)

›Running costs of owning (optional)

These sit on top of the loan every month. Leave blank if you do not know yet; the result then shows the loan only.

Maintenance fee (RM a month)The monthly service charge. Add the sinking fund if it is billed separately. Ask the management office or check the listing.Quit rent and assessment tax (RM a year)Land and council charges. Your bill or the council can tell you.House insurance (RM a year)Fire cover the bank asks for. Your insurer can quote it.

›Other assumptions

Include stamp duty & legal feesFirst-time Malaysian buyer (stamp duty exempt up to RM500k)Date you sign the sale and purchase agreementExemption applies to SPAs signed 2026-01-01 to 2027-12-31 only.Latest age at end of loanTypical banks use about 65 to 70. Check yours.

Monthly rent for a similar home (RM)Check a similar nearby listing.assumption: your own estimate

Import a comparable rental listing

Works with any site -- just copy the listing text?

Rental deposit (months of rent)Often 2 + 1 months. Locked with the landlord, returned later.Selling costs (% of sale price)Agent fee (max 3%) + 8% SST + legal fees.Use my one-time gains tax (RPGT) exemption

For W.P. Kuala Lumpur, High-Rise

Buying wins in 84% of simulated outcomes by year 5

Homes here grow about 4.5%/year vs. your 4% mortgage rate: a 0.5-point spread in your favour.

›Why this isn't a guarantee

From 2,000 simulated futures. >99% means none lost: capped, not certain. Basis: W.P. Kuala Lumpur MHPI index, 2009-2025 (16 years). Local growth fades toward a long-run 4.1%/year within a few years, and the range is wide on purpose because growth runs high or low for years at a time.

Pick a district to check your price against local sales. Without one, no price adjustment is made.

Your plan

How long will you live in this home?

Buying pays off only if you stay long enough to earn back the costs of buying and selling.

Retiring somewhere else? Count only the years until you move.

When you leave, what will you do with it?

Sell it when I leaveKeep it and rent it outKeep it for good (I will retire here)

›How this is worked out

The same simulation as the figures below: for each year, the share of simulated futures where your net worth from buying (home value less the loan, selling costs and any gains tax) beats renting and investing the same money. Your plan only picks the year. The answer is a range of futures, not a forecast, and it does not know about a job move, a family change or a better offer.

Is this price fair?

Pick a district (and floor area) to compare with real recent sales.

How that changes over time

Year 1

53%

Year 5

84%

Year 10

90%

Year 20

93%

Year 30

94%

Based on 2,000 simulated scenarios.

Your net worth, buying vs. renting

Orange = buying, typical case; dashed = renting and investing?

Buy net worth (typical case)Rent+invest (typical case)

Where that net worth actually comes from

Year 30, typical case, future ringgit?

Your deposit: RM50,000
+ Loan principal repaid: RM450,000
+ Market appreciation: RM1,284,917
− Selling costs: RM44,623

= Net worth at year 30

RM1,740,294

about RM1,080,393 in today's money

Your profit and return if you buy

Sell at year 30, future ringgit?

Total paid out: RM833,673 (deposit RM50,000, upfront RM10,260, mortgage RM773,413 incl. RM323,413 interest).

	Prices grow slower than expected	As expected (typical case)	Prices grow faster than expected
Cash back (after loan and selling costs)	RM1,184,850	RM1,740,294	RM2,556,123
Net profit	RM351,177	RM906,621	RM1,722,450
Yearly return on cash paid in	2.1%	4.3%	6.4%
Same, counting RM668,075 rent saved	7.9%	9.5%	11.0%

Low-risk savings: ~6.0%/yr. Inflation: ~1.6%/yr. The second return counts rent saved, which is a benefit but not cash in hand.

Recent sales near your price

Pick a district to see real recorded sales close to your price.

The numbers behind this

Loan amount

RM450,000

Upfront costs

RM10,260

Projected annual growth (avg)

4.5%/yr

Comparable rent (year 1)

RM1,460/mo

›Assumptions used above

First-time-buyer stamp duty exemption applied. Rent rises with inflation. The renter invests the deposit and upfront costs (less a 3-month refundable rent deposit) plus any monthly surplus over what the buyer pays, at a low-risk return. Buying figures are "if sold that year", after 2.5% selling costs and gains tax (RPGT, citizens/PRs) if sold within 5 years: 30% in years 1-3, 20% in year 4, 15% in year 5, then none. The first RM10,000 of gain (or 10%) is exempt. Foreigners and companies are not modelled.