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Penang heritage houses

Living Life as an Expat in Malaysia: Pros and Cons

My family and I have been living in Malaysia since 2016. We absolutely love it.

Every day we get to enjoy the many benefits of being an expat in Malaysia along with being closer to my wife’s family.

It’s not perfect though, then again nowhere is.

The odd annoyances are far outweighed by the pros of living in Malaysia.

The experience of living abroad isn't completely new to me. But this is the longest period I have lived outside the UK.

Apart from sometimes missing family and friends, the experience has been how I expected and we're glad to have made the move as a family. It was made easier by my work being mostly online and being location independent (check out how I made money online).

So, I thought I would write an article on living life as an expat family working online.

Penang heritage houses

Why Did We Move to Malaysia from the UK?

The most obvious reason why most people move abroad is for work reasons. For us, it was for family and lifestyle reasons.

As I have outlined in me about the Life Hacker Guy page, my wife is from Malaysia, and so she does have family living here. I would also say that 75% of the reason for moving to Malaysia is for the lifestyle.

With the shift of work now moving ever online, and the rise of the so-called digital nomads (although they tend to be younger people), it’s easier than ever to work and life pretty much anyway in the world.

I am fortunate that years of wishing to be location independent has meant that my work in the last 20 years has mostly been online. So, up and moving to Malaysia meant that I didn’t need to find a job and initially could work for my UK company until I sold it.

Malaysia condo view

My Previous Experiences Living as an Expat

I have spent a reasonable amount of time living abroad as an expat in places like Munich, Germany, and in Chiang Mai, Thailand in the last 16 years. In fact, I estimate in the last 18 years I have spent at least 6 years outside of the UK.

During this time the term digital nomad didn’t exist.

Most people I met where either backpackers or had physically relocated for their job.

Nowadays it’s not uncommon to meet people with their laptops in trendy coffee shops and be unsure if they are simply checking email, updating their Facebook status, or actually working.

I know recently I used to work the same way, but much prefer spending time in coworking spaces in Malaysia.

My previous periods living as an expat abroad were less than and year though due to circumstances at the time. Funny enough the reasons were mostly around girlfriends!

A quick shout out to Viangbua Mansion where I lived for 9 months in 2004 in Chiang Mai – an amazing experience that I will never forgot!

Viangbua mansion chiangmai

A picture of the lounge at my Chiang Mai condo in 2004 when I lived there.

Related Post: Why I prefer Malaysia to Thailand

Advantages of Living as an Expat in Malaysia

We have experienced regular trips to Malaysia since I have been with my wife as we tended to come here every Chinese New Year to celebrate with the in-laws.

So, we mostly knew what to expect in terms of weather, food, and people. This really helps and would highly recommend visiting a place a number of times before making the commitment of moving there, especially if you have kids.

Every day is a Sunny Day!

For me one of the biggest pros of living as an expat in Malaysia is the weather.

Maybe it’s because I am a Brit if I do complain about the weather (hey I still do, it's our cultural pastime after all!) it’s because it’s simply too hot, or really too humid here. Often it's in the high 30 degrees here, sometimes touching 40 with 75-80% humidity!

Malaysian sunny days
In fact, thinking about it, I may complain about the cold more than the heat.

That’s right, the cold! More of that below in the disadvantages.

When it’s sunny most days, it’s a lot easier to plan what you want to do.

Going to the pool or the beach, or maybe the playground with the kids? No problem, most days it’s possible.

Even if it decides to rain typically you only get a downpour, which is actually quite refreshing and sometimes welcomed – I never would have thought I would be saying that!

Amazing Countries Just a Short Flight Away

I really enjoy traveling to countries in South East Asia. Whilst Thailand used to be my favorite place in the world, as time goes on I have to admit that Malaysia and Singapore are pretty tough to beat.

Thinking about this more, I have realized it's a combination of the improved infrastructure in places like Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong – and also the fact, in my opinion, their more family-friendly.

I am simply not looking for cheap backpacking places but a bit more sedate and luxury place to chill and un-wind.

So, it’s most likely the stage I am at in my life. I am simply not looking for cheap backpacking places but a bit more sedate and luxury place to chill and unwind. Of course, it’s possible to do this in Thailand but I like the organization and reliability of Singapore and places like Kuala Lumpur.

Based in Malaysia it’s easy to hop a low-cost airline to visit all the countries around us for sometimes $30-50 USD.

Ironically, these days I think nothing of jumping on a plane to Singapore or Chiang Mai for a conference or meet up with like-minded people. When living in the UK the prospect of jumping on a plane to Scotland or Spain for an event or meet up, was This is something I rarely did when living in the UK.

Malaysia boats at sea

Cost of Living

It's impossible not to mention the cost of living when highlighting the pros of living in Malaysia!

Playing the currency arbitrage game means your money goes a lot further in SE Asian countries, even with the downward trend of the British pound these days (don't mention the B-word!).

Our cost of living is significantly cheaper than our days of living in London.

Not everything is cheaper though.

Imported goods at the supermarket can still add up. I have thought on numerous occasions how much cheaper Sainsbury's or Marks and Spencer in the UK would be for things like nappies, decent formula milk, toothpaste, etc would be.

Our apartment cost is also not terribly cheap, there is a reason for this though. We enjoy a large amount of space (double the size of our last house in the UK) in a complex that has a few acres of swimming pools, tennis courts, and playgrounds. I can only imagine the cost of living somewhere similar in the US or warmer parts of Europe.

Lastly, one of the true bonus of living in SE Asia – the FOOD!

Partly responsible for me putting on 5-6 kg since living in Malaysia is the tasty food that can be incredibly cheap. When we go out for dinner, we can spend literally $10 USD for a family of four in market or hawker center (just $1 for morning Roti Canai breakfast – see picture), or we can splash out in one of the many expat or higher-end restaurants and spend $40 USD.

Roti Canai man

Exposure to Different Languages

My kids understand Mandarin I would say fairly fluently, especially my older daughter. Although my wife has spoken to them mostly in Chinese since birth, their ability to understand and speak in Mandarin has blossomed since moving to Malaysia.

Being around the in-laws and exposure to different languages each day at school or nursery has really developed their language skills.

Now, I really wish I could say the same about me though.

It’s very easy to just speak English here as the language fluency of English is much higher here than in neighboring Thailand. As such, this means it’s simply too easy to be complacent and not bother.

If you have ever checked out my monthly Life Hacker Guy reports, you will know that this is something I am really trying to change.

The Disadvantages of Being an Expat in Malaysia

It’s often the case that some of the disadvantages aren’t realized until you settled down in your new country.

For me, the biggest downside is accountability and customer support.

Poor Customer Service

It’s really tricky to sometimes get someone to actually be accountable for something said or done here. In terms of good customer support, in most cases, you can forget it!

I can give you a quick example, in the local apple-like store called uSwitch, I asked why one wireless keyboard was more expensive than similar much cheaper one.

As is fairly typical in my experience, he simply read out the box contents to me and didn’t actually answer the question.

Me being the sarcastic chap I am, replied “so maybe does this one help you type faster?”.

He replied, “Yes”.

Seeing my reaction, he realized his mistake and said “no”.

To cover up his mistake, he replied “oh this one is powered by Bluetooth!”.

Less than impressed I simply said, “thank you” and left.

So, my point is not to ridicule the salesperson (although when I see him now, I avoid him big time), but to illustrate that the staff in shops where I live 90% of the time don’t know anything.

It’s worse than that though, most sales assistants simply don’t admit in most cases that they don’t know and try to wing it. I would rather hear “I am not sure”.

…you walk into a shop and staff will often follow you around, trying to be helpful and yet often don’t know anything….. aghhh!

The irony is that you walk into a shop and staff will often follow you around, trying to be helpful and yet often don’t know anything….. ahhh!

In contrast, many high-end shops that have high ticket items, maybe watches and cars are much better and typically very knowledgeable.

Contrasting Temperatures and Being TOO COLD!

Another disadvantage which is somewhat ironic coming from a Brit is that sometimes it’s simply TOO COLD here.

Office buildings and shopping malls have their aircon really turned up, resulting in cool air being blasted around giving the feeling yours in an icy wind tunnel. So, sometimes your day is one of contrasting hot/cold temperatures.

You find that you’re often moving from hot/humid temperatures to what feels like sub-zero temperatures. On some days it’s like being in a German sauna from the steam room to icy plunge pool!

Pavillon Shopping Mall in KL

One of my favorite shopping malls in Kuala Lumpur – Pavillon!

The Expat Bubble

This phenomenon is common amongst expats who move abroad and mix with just other expats. Through a combination of working closely together and often hanging out in similar places can mean living in somewhat of a bubble, far removed from the “normal” everyday life of where you’re living.

Whilst I don’t necessarily think this is bad, it’s a shame if you completely miss out on the more local experiences.

I remember when I lived in Chiang Mai a French friend of mine (we do sometimes get on us Brits!) used to say I wasn’t living a proper Thai lifestyle – whatever that is! For the reason why is because I lived in a serviced apartment that cost 4 times the average wage of a local person in Chiang Mai.

I regularly ate in local markets often being the only foreigner there and enjoyed the odd expat meal too each week. You could say I was living life like a well-off Thai – or as they say in Thailand, I was a little hi-so!

Is Malaysia Now Our Home?

Yes, it certainly feels like it.

We have integrated nicely into a mix of expat and local life here. With my wife being Malaysian it’s nice to enjoy a mix of local living combined with the benefits of being an expat.

Living life as an expat suits me. I enjoy meeting people from all over the world and feeling independent, and not dependent on living in one place, one country, or even one government.

With the interconnectedness of the world, I really like the fact our kids are growing up experiencing living in different countries and cultures. It’s proving a real boost to the learning and understanding Mandarin too!

As the modern world becomes increasingly globalized, international travel is a way of life and getting as easy as getting on a train. Living in different environments encourages us as a family to adapt to different cultures and ways of life, an amazing skillset for our kids to learn.

My family and I are in no rush to go back to the UK – it's a great place to visit but our home now is Malaysia.

Adam relaxing by the pool

Adam Author

About the LifeHacker Guy

Hi, I'm Adam the founder of the LifeHacker Guy.

I have a First Class Honours degree in Sports Science from Brighton University, specialising in exercise physiology and nutrition. In my youth I was a competitive Triathlete and long-distance runner placing top 10 in most triathlon races I completed.

Since suffering from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, I moved into web development, after a couple of years I then moved onto developing a number of online businesses. I've recently taken a sabbatical and I'm now looking to make big changes in my life, hopefully this may resonate with you - join me in my journey!

16 comments

  1. Thanks for the review. I’ve stayed at Straits Quay several times and hope to
    retire there in two years. But this was the first article I’ve seen on Straits Residences so now I
    may consider that as well. Lots of time to think it over, until the pandemic is gone and we can come back to Malaysia.

  2. Thank you for the post, Adam!

    We live in the US and are thinking of retiring in Malaysia under MM2H. Do you know of anyone retiring in Malaysia from the US? We have questions regarding healthcare. Not healthcare in Malaysia but should we come and visit the US again. You can pm me if you like. Thanks for your assistance.

  3. Great post, I’m from US and will be 53 this year. I hope to visit this November for the first time .

    I am looking for possible retirement destination. I never can actually imagine full retirement. Are there any job opportunities?

    Thank for post

    Rob

    Thanks

    Rob

  4. Thanks for the piece, very interesting. I am working towards relocating to Malaysia with my young family, setting up a sub of our UK business. Visa process is hard work, but sure it will be worth it, reading your take on life there.
    A fellow Brighton Uni graduate, maybe we’ll meet some day in MY.
    Thanks again!

    1. Hey Chris,
      Thanks for the message, it’s a small world eh?
      Glad you liked the post. I am really enjoying living here, the lifestyle works really well for our setup. Where in Malaysia are you moving to?
      I am guessing it’s mostly likely KL or Penang, either way, I am sure we can arrange a catch-up.
      All the best with the move, it’s particularly challenging at the present time, but it will certainly be worth it!
      Adam

  5. Hi Adam,
    Nice article. I am currently living in the US with my Vietnamese wife and our son who just turned 16. I am 59 years old and I am thinking of an early retirement in Malaysia because of the many good things I have read about it (Food, Travel, cost of living etc). I think if it was just me and my wife it would be an easier transition but with my son I am not sure. I am worried about him getting a quality education especially in college over there and also wondering what his employment opportunities would be for him as a foreigner? I am also not sure what visa he would fall under to be able to live there possibly for the rest of his life if we liked it there? I am not good on long plane rides because of my back but I should probably visit for a while before making the leap. We have our house in the states that I should be able to lease for $3000 USD per month and was wondering if that would afford us a comfortable life including my son’s education?
    Any assistance/advice would be helpful.

    1. Thanks, Eric for your comment.
      I first traveled to Vietnam in 1999 and was blown away by the place. I have a few friends who live there who tell me it’s changed big time. I am very much looking forward to traveling to Vietnam with my family once we have the ability to do so.
      Your right in your assumption that for you and your wife it’s a fairly easy move, but for your son not so straightforward.
      The International primary and secondary schools are great, quality education at an affordable price. I have many teacher friends who live and work here who say the same. When it comes to higher education though from my conversations with my inlaws it’s not so great. This is the reason why so many Malaysians will if the opportunity exists to travel and study abroad.
      I will ask my wife and teacher-friends to get their feedback – anyone with experience please do add a comment below.
      The other factor is that the MM2H visa that you would most likely apply for is only valid for kids up to 18 and so would need to have a different visa for your son. This is a factor that I will need to consider too as my kids have British passports and at 18-years old will need to have a work visa to live here permanently.
      In terms of costs, this really depends on lifestyle and what you’re looking for. To give a very broad outline I know families who live on 12,000 ringgits and others who spend upwards of 30,000 ringgits.
      As you would expect the more of a local lifestyle you have the cheaper it is.
      Adam

  6. cool post. I just stumbled upon your post and wished to say that I’ve really enjoyed reading your blog post.

  7. Pretty amazing post. I stumbled upon your article and wished to say that I’ve really enjoyed browsing your article. After all I’ll be subscribing to your rss feed and I hope you write again soon!

  8. Hi Rob,
    Interesting articles and very reassuring since we are moving to Malaysia next month! Do you live in KL or other city? We are moving to KL, particularly liked Desa Park City for its park environment and it seems to be expat friendly. Do you know if Desa Park City has a good expat community (We are mixed couple like you, Japanese & British)? Do you know any other places / condos that offers similar lifestyle as DPC? Thanks!

  9. I would like to spend 30 days like an expats on visitors visa, renting a studio, cooking on my own, etc, I am from usa, any agents or person can help me….

    1. Hi Ajay,
      I am by no means a visa expert but I believe you can stay for 30-days on a visa on arrival. So, you would just need to rent a place for one-month and there are plenty of places to choose from to suit most budgets.
      Adam

  10. I’m curious about living in Malaysia. I’ve only been there once to date; right across the Straits Bridge from Singapore for a day.
    I am currently residing in Thailand on a retirement visa. Immigration Policies here seem to be trending towards more and more requirements (often without any obvious public notice prior to implementation) and it seems no matter how long one lives here and obeys all the rules, laws, social norms, spends the bulk of their retirement income here and is always super polite on top of it no matter what, their ‘oversight’ seems to be getting more demanding for all. Ninety Day checkins are now reduced to 72-3 days if one does it through the mail because they begin the next 90 days upon receipt of your mail, which is required to be posted no less than 15 days before.
    There still seems to be inconsistency between IO’s around the country. Doing 90 days from a different city than your resident address also creates more cost and time consuming procedures for the next checkin…, etc.. etc.
    Can you tell me about the income requirements and also the ongoing immigration reporting requirements in Malaysia. Also, about health insurance. Here, I have good health insurance, but since I am past 61 years old, I cannot switch companies because of both carrying forth pre-existing conditions and also, the larger reason, because here, if you sign up for health insurance after age 61, it is my understanding that Health Insurers are allowed to drop you when you reach age 71, where it then becomes impossible to acquire health insurance. They seem to be trending towards health insurance becoming mandatory here also. So, as far as I can tell, one is pretty much stuck with their insurer here after age 61 no matter if the company is sold to another less desirable company and– as costs leap upwards each year due to what is called ‘medical inflation’ by insurers, your purchased ‘amount of coverage is never adjusted upwards due to ‘medical inflation…
    Those are my main questions…
    Thank you

    1. Hi Rob,
      Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment here. I know the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) visa is very popular as once you have it makes life really easy. Basically no reporting needed and you get 10-years hassle free visa to come and go as you please (as long as you retain the required Fixed Deposit in Ringgit in a Malaysian bank).
      I would suggest checking other resources for the financial requirements as I am under 50 years old and so they are different. – check here (we didn’t use this company for our visa but provide good information on their website.
      In short, I had to show 500,000 Ringgit in liquid assets for 3 months prior to applying and then 10,000 ringgit in offshore income per month. Once accepted I needed to deposit 300,000 ringgit into a Fixed Deposit account, which you can apply to withdraw 150,000 ringgit out with suitable expenses (e.g. car purchase, medical bills or education fees).
      It’s possible to apply yourself but we used an agent to simplify the process and to avoid going to Immigration in Putrajaya several times.
      In my opinion the agent fees were worthwhile (we paid around 7,000 ringgit in total) for the convenience and piece of mind knowing all the forms would be completed correctly.
      In terms of medical insurance, you need a private policy as part of the MM2H requirements but I am not sure if this needs to be provided from within Malaysia or can be external. Maybe other people can comment here on this?
      I hope this helps Rob.
      If you satisfy the requirements of MM2H I really do recommend Malaysia. If you’re still a fan of Thailand then its really easy to visit – I go a few times a year!
      Cheers, Adam

  11. Thank you Mr Adam for th detailed highlights of Malaysia. I am born n raised in Dubai, looking at Malaysia for a new challenge and base.

    Your feedback is nice and encouraging. See you someday soon!

    God bless.

    Shaikh

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