Gunnar45

As I mentioned before, the local restaurants, especially the cheaper ones lace the food with MSG. (What do you expect when it is so cheap?)
But this is of course OK if one doesn't have a problem with MSG.

As for wet markets, the quality varies, some is good, some not so good, one has to be selective as many of the vendors are just traders.
Some vendors who have temporary stands outside the markets are selling their homegrown produce and at good prices.

Standard fruits, veggies, meats, fish & poultry are cheaper in the supermarkets but check for the freshness.

Epicurious

Don't believe the listings at all. Most of them are fake in my (KL) experience. They are indeed there to draw in the punters and you will find that many apartments have mysteriously been let a few days ago despite the listing being new that day, or the photos are not of the actual unit, oh, and it happens to be a couple of hundred RM more expensive than advertised. A single unit may be listed by many different agents so before you view make sure you haven't already viewed it!

I can recommend a good agent if you want, but I'm not sure if she deals with that area of KL.

I think KL is a darn sight safer than most cities in Europe. The locals may say it's dangerous, but they obviously haven't walked down a UK High Street at pub chucking-out time. Bag snatchings happen, but interpersonal violence is very rare as far as I have seen. Take the normal precautions and you'll be just fine.

physdude

Your point is well taken. I am fairly well hedged against US inflation through my investments (in fact, high US inflation will be great for me) but that is not the same as Malaysian inflation. I am not sure if there is any way to hedge against that.

All retirement safe withdrawals are also statistically based and cannot account for completely unusual happenings so there is that risk too (though at that point one should probably be worried about any number of umpteen things that one can't control in life). Well, for the 1% disasters, one can always fall back upon family.

physdude

Thanks for the info. The wet market and supermarket comparison will be something to look out for.

In KL, we found some above average well reviewed banana leaf places where the food seemed to be quite fresh but you are right that a random place is likely to have issues. These are not quite as dirt cheap as the most basic ones but RM 8 or so for a good unlimited meal is still an unbelievable bargain.

physdude

This is great info! I have encountered this issue a few times before but it is difficult to figure out whether it exists and how bad it is before one sets out on the actual house hunting.

I would love to get the info on the agent since I am still fairly flexible about the location - right now KL Sentral seems good from 2-3 visits and armchair surfing but it would seem a good idea to scope out a bit more when the time actually arrives (I still have about 9 months before the move).

(As I read more, it sometimes seems tempting to even try out different cities before settling on a final choice but that would be a bit of a logistical nightmare.)

lacmac

8k should be plenty. And 2k for a 3 bedroom condo around sentul is about right. I rented a 3 bedroom condo at Sri putramas II which is only 5mins from sentul for rm1500pm.it was an ideal location. Just off Jalan kuching,close to the highway,can get to Curve mall, Ikea, Tesco's in 15mins and this was at peak times.
I now live on Ipoh where it is even cheaper to live.

Epicurious

Sentul is about 6km north of Brickfields which is where physdude was talking about. Did you perhaps mean Sentral or Seputeh?

lacmac

I can get to sentul in about 10mins if there is some traffic,half that at night. but that's still very close.

If you drive out of the Sri putramas condo you are 10mins from Solaris dutamas and 10mins from mount kiara.

So it's in prime location from all amenities.

I wish we had bought a unit, but by the time I left, prices had doubled from the time we moved in 18 months earlier.

kiat137

Welcome to Malaysia!
3 BR apartment at KL Sentra area rental is around RM 4k now.
Good decision that you plan to own a car in Malaysia, it is very important. Is very inconvenient if you don't have a car in Malaysia.
Since you already plan to have a car, you can choose place to stay out of city.
You can find 3 BR apartment rental below RM 2K around 20km out from city which you can enjoy lower density living environment.
Or else you can explore other state like Melaka, rental below 2k you can find landed house in city center.

SushiFan

If having fast internet is important to you don't forget to check about it. It is not country wide available yet.

lacmac

Check mudah.

Plenty of condos for rent in sentul from rm1200-rm2800 average price is rm1500.

Here is a link to mudah.

http://m.mudah.my/list?q=sentul&ca=6_3_u&sa=&cg=2020&catname=Apartme nts&o=1&f=a&srch=1&so=1&mre=&frn=&ros=false&roe=fa lse&ss=false&se=false

Stuck in Auckland

When in KL for holidays and visits to family we have always eaten through hawker and hotels (wedding dinners and reunions) so have no real idea of day to day food costs - we do prefer to eat quality fresh produce.

What about other costs such as flights/holidays car running costs?
It has been pointed out to me that one of the benefits of using the retirement visa is a tax free car? Downside was if we came to sell it - which would not happen - worst case would pass on to extended family. Always have problems parking in KL so would look at a small car like a Golf but spec it up

I worry about being bored so what things to do? I don't drink (more than sociable 2 or 3 pints a week). Any clubs where I wont be harassed by social climbers? or Amway types.

Golf
Tennis
Badminton
Skeet shooting
Sailing

SushiFan

@Stuck in Auckland: it would have been better if you had opened your own thread, instead of posting your various questions in multiple, old, threads.
Cost of living is discussed in another thread, including links to websites with detailed cost analysis.
If you have an MM2H visa you have access to a "car with lower purchase tax" program. However, there are various considerations attached to it, which have also widely been discussed on this forum.

Stuck in Auckland

The wet markets/supermarkets/online is changing as the younger generation have no inclination to sort through wet markets nor spend time in supermarkets.

This will move price changes to online and so too more convenience

SushiFan

You could be correct in general but I think that it will take some more time in Malaysia before online shopping gets a strong foothold. The logistics for online shopping incl. home delivery is not yet well-enough developed to use it for fresh produce.