Seremban good areas ?

Are you aware that foreigners have to buy property for not less than RM500 000 ?  That sort of money buys quite a lot, mainly houses in Seremban as the condos or apartment cost much less.

Seremban is about 45 minutes away from KL centre and down closer to the airport. I am not sure who would rent property from you. It's not well known as an expat area.  But I guess you know more as you have chosen to stay there because of work or some other attraction.

It takes about 6 months to complete a purchase and foreigners have to get permission from the local authority to buy property. Some properties cannot be bought other than by Malays (Bumi lots). The international banks, such as Standard Chartered, offer mortgages to expats in certain circumstances.  I believe it is also possible to add the legal fees into the loan.

Can I guess you are working in Semenyih at the Uni. of Nottingham - although it uses the address as Seremban, it is far away from that town - 39 mins drive according to Googlemap.my

Many thanks for your reply.
Yes I am aware that foreigners can buy only properties above RM 500000, and that it takes at least 6 months to complete.
I am banking with HSBC in the UK, and they seem to be able to provide a mortgage, though I'm still trying to speak to someone in Malaysia about the terms.

I realise that 500000 RM in the Seremban area is a lot, but then again I don't think a condo in KL in a good investment right now.
We're more thinking about a landed property, but as you say, it might be more difficult to rent, as it would be the top end of the market I guess.

Do you think it is impossible or difficult to rent out this kind of properties ? I wasn't thinking about expats, more along the lines of using a letting agent and renting it out to a Malaysian family maybe ? It seems that some areas have quite high rents but of course internet research is not always reliable, that's why I'm hoping to get a bit more info from "real people" before I come next time.

Of course I don't really know the area, so if I find out the 500000 minimum is too high to be viable in Seremban I'll try and find another place.

We're not going to work in Seremban, but will have a web based business, and need to travel frequently, which is why we're attracted by the proximity of KLIA.

Thanks again for your help, it's always good to have as many opinions as possible before making a decision like this.

This might be interesting so you can plan where your websites are located. 

http://www.hasil.gov.my/pdf/pdfam/GUIDE … MMERCE.pdf

Thanks !
I have read the guidelines before but it's good to be reminded.
To be more precise, it will be partly web based, but partly consultancy with other countries, and we plan to set up a Labuan company, according to the info I found,and the agents I contacted, I would only pay taxes in Labuan for that (at the moment our prospective customers are in Indonesia and Europe).
I'm still gathering information but we should be fine with this part.
We're thinking of buying a house this year (or at least begin the process), and come and set up our business next year, which is why I am researching more in detail areas right now.

Thanks for your quick reply.

You've probably also seen stuff like this for Labuan:

http://www.lowtax.net/lowtax/html/jlbecom.html

I heard from someone trying to set up an offshore company in Labuan that its now a requirement not only to have a trust company acting as company secretary, but also must rent office space and pay for a phone line....

Not sure if they got "side-tracked"...... but I guess you have raised this type of issue?

My opinion would be that if locals can afford the type of rent that would be expected on a 2 - 2.1 story house, they would probably buy - so the rent to be charged would have to compete with the level for a condominium - i.e. probably not more than RM 1,500 per month. 

All housing areas have lots of empty properties, caused by people moving on and not being able to rent or sell their properties.  This is a main complaint made by foreigners trying to make a good purchase in Malaysia. Not only is it unattractive, it devalues the property as well.

Although Seremban is physically close to the airport (aircraft noise??) there is a train service that operates there as well so close proxity is not really necessary. A taxi from KLCC to the airport costs Rm 70-90 and takes 45 mins (at right time of day)

My advice would be pay the least you can in an area that has lots of expats who will rent the property at a reasonable rent say RM2500-3500. The usual exats these days are becoming young professionals and not families.  Of course there are some top executives but not enough fill the empty highcost luxury condos and houses. Assignments are also shorter just to bring in expertise that improves the experience of other staff through exposure to international standards and development.

These two articles in today's business news may be of interest

http://www.thestar.com.my/Business/Busi … arket.aspxhttp://www.thestar.com.my/Business/Busi … ments.aspx

Hi , I have stated here > 10 years . The environment peace and quiet . You may contact me for more information and planning . Regards Pat