The Minimum Price a Foreigner Can Pay for Malaysian Property — All 13 States
There is no single national minimum. The federal guideline bars foreigners from acquiring property below RM1 million per unit. But the states set their own floors: as high as RM2 million (Selangor Zones 1 and 2) and as low as RM500,000 (Perlis, Kelantan, Sarawak). Both sets of numbers are live at the same time. That contradiction is real — it is not us being vague.
So the useful question is never "what is the foreigner threshold in Malaysia". It is "what is the threshold in the state I am buying in, for this property type, buying from a developer or on subsale" — because each of those three variables changes the answer.
And price is only the first gate. Every state requires written State Authority consent for a foreign buyer. Without it the transaction is void. Some restrictions never come up in a show gallery: Selangor bars foreigners from landed property on individual titles, Perak bars freehold outright and bars residential subsale entirely, and Melaka locks your property for five years after transfer.
First, separate the two gates — most articles merge them and get it wrong
Foreign residential purchases in Malaysia are governed from two different places.
Gate one: the federal guideline. The Garis Panduan Perolehan Hartanah (in force 13 July 2022, revoking the 2014 edition) bars foreign interests from acquiring four things — real estate valued below RM1 million per unit, residential units in the low and medium-low cost categories as determined by the State Authority, properties on Malay Reserve Land, and units allocated to Bumiputera interests in a development.
Gate two: State Authority consent. This is the gate that actually stops deals. The Bar Council circular puts it plainly: "State Authority's consent must be applied and obtained by each foreigner purchaser in all States in order to acquire properties." On top of that, each state sets its own minimum price, its own list of permitted property types, and in one case a cap on how many units you may own.
🔴 What to do when the two numbers disagree. The federal guideline says RM1 million; the state table lists RM500,000 for Perlis, Kelantan and Sarawak. That is a genuine conflict, not a typo. In practice what decides your transaction is the consent from that state's land office — so whether a sub-RM1m purchase clears is a question only that land office can answer. Anyone giving you a confident yes or no here, us included, would be guessing. Our approach with those cases is to go and ask, not to guess on your behalf.
Minimum residential purchase price by state (as at October 2024)
These are not footnotes. Each one can void a transaction outright, and none of them tends to come up voluntarily in a sales gallery.
- Selangor: no landed property on an individual title. Foreigners in Selangor may buy strata and landed strata titles only. A RM3 million bungalow held on an individual title is simply not available to you — affordability has nothing to do with it.
- Perak: no freehold at all, and no residential subsale. Since September 2023 non-citizens and foreign companies cannot acquire, own, hold or inherit freehold property in Perak. Residential subsale is marked Not Permitted in all three zones — a foreigner in Perak can only buy new, from a developer, on a 60-year leasehold.
- Melaka: locked for five years. Residential and commercial property cannot be transferred or leased for five years from the date the Form 14A transfer is registered, with a 60-month registrar's caveat on the title. Residential ownership is also capped at two units.
- Auction properties: barred in most states. Kedah, Penang, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Melaka all list auction properties as off-limits to foreigners. Section 433B(4) of the National Land Code separately bars non-citizens from bidding at court-ordered sales of agricultural, building or industrial land without state consent. Buying cheap at auction — a real strategy for local buyers, as we note in 12 red flags before buying a condo — is effectively closed to you.
Four states whose rules do not fit in one table row
The table compresses each state into a line. Four states are complicated enough that the line loses something important. If you are buying in one of them, read this section.
Penang — the island and the mainland are two markets, and one expired number is still circulating
Penang splits its thresholds four ways: island/mainland × strata/landed. On subsale: island strata RM1,000,000, island landed RM3,000,000; Seberang Perai strata RM500,000, landed RM1,000,000.
🔴 You will see RM700,000 quoted for the island in many articles. That was the discounted threshold for overhang units bought directly from a developer, and the source states it applied only to sale and purchase agreements signed between 1 January and 31 December 2024 under Penang's Home Ownership Campaign. That window has closed. Budget off the expired number and you will be short.
Also: foreigners may only sell Penang commercial and industrial property three years after the date of the SPA, and a levy is imposed on State Authority approval.
Perak — the lowest prices, the heaviest restrictions
Perak's numbers look the most accessible in the country (Zone 3 strata from RM350,000 direct from a developer). The trade-off: 60-year leasehold only, developer purchases only, and no residential subsale at all. All three zones list residential subsale as Not Permitted.
The source writes the prices as ranges — "RM700,000 > RM2,000,000" — and does not pin down which figure applies to which case. That has to be confirmed with the Perak land office. We are not filling that blank for you.
Negeri Sembilan — a low strata floor, but consent still applies
Strata from RM600,000; landed, including landed strata, from RM1,000,000. Freehold and leasehold alike. Two exceptions are recognised: love-and-affection transfers between immediate family members, and small estates orders or court orders.
Note one sentence in the source: State Authority approval is required for a foreigner's acquisition even though the title does not have any restriction in interest. A clean title is not a shortcut past consent.
Melaka — a unit cap, and a five-year lock
Strata from RM500,000; landed including landed strata from RM1,000,000; a maximum of two residential units. Master-title property (no separate strata title issued yet) is permitted subject to state approval.
The heaviest term is the five-year lock: residential and commercial property cannot be transferred or leased within five years of the Form 14A transfer being registered, and a registrar's caveat runs on the title for 60 months. If you are buying in Melaka to rent it out, that clause ends the plan. Property inside Melaka's Heritage Zone is also off-limits.
Seven things an agent will not necessarily volunteer
- A price pushed up to clear the threshold — what counts is the valuation, not the price on the SPASome developers and subsale owners will lift the price to land exactly on a threshold (RM1 million in Kuala Lumpur, say). The problem is that the state and the bank look at valuation. If the property does not value up, consent is refused anyway — and your loan margin is calculated on the valuation, so you fund the gap in cash. Worse, from 2026 the 8% stamp duty is charged on the consideration or the market value, whichever is higher, so you pay 8% on the inflated portion too. Before you negotiate, have your solicitor or agent pull recent transacted prices in that building.
- Tie your deposit to "no consent, full refund"Your booking form and SPA must state that the transaction is conditional on obtaining State Authority consent (Kebenaran Pindah Milik), failing which the deposit is refunded in full. The law only makes the dealing void where there is no consent (NLC s.433C) — it does not guarantee you get your money back. That is purely a matter of drafting. Leave the clause out and your deposit is exposed.
- If you are not in Malaysia, do not plan to sign by power of attorneySection 433F of the National Land Code is blunt: an instrument executed by a non-citizen under a power of attorney over alienated land is void and incapable of registration. Plenty of overseas buyers assume they can sign a POA at home and let a relative or agent run the process — that route is closed to foreigners. Plan for your own signature, or ask your solicitor what compliant alternatives exist.
- The bank's charge needs no consent — your transfer doesSection 433B(3) states that a non-citizen taking a charge or lien does not need State Authority approval. So the bottleneck is never the financing leg; it is the transfer. When someone reassures you with "the bank has already approved", that is a different gate entirely.
- The levy is real money, and it has a deadlinePenang charges 3% of acquisition value (only island strata between RM1m and RM1.5m is 1.5%), and Kedah, Pahang and Johor levy as well. Penang's rules are the most explicit: the levy is payable within 30 days of the approval letter, a late payment needs an extension application at RM500 per title, and after one year the approval lapses. Put both the money and the deadline into your budget and timeline.
- In Penang, only a solicitor can file the applicationThe Penang land office guideline states that a foreign acquisition application may be submitted to PTG only through a solicitor. If someone offers to "handle the approval" for you in Penang, that offer is not what it sounds like.
- A Bumiputera quota unit cannot be bought at any priceUnits allocated to Bumiputera interests in a development are excluded at federal level. That is a category problem, not a price problem. Johor is the one state that expressly contemplates release (exemption from the State Secretary's office, Housing Department). Before you sign anything, ask the agent to show you the unit's quota status.
Check in this order and you will waste less time
- Pick the state before you fix the budgetThe same money clears the threshold in Kuala Lumpur and falls short in Selangor Zone 1. Lock the state first — do it the other way round and most of what you shortlist will be ineligible.
- Confirm the title type is one you may buyStrata? Landed on an individual title? Landed strata? Selangor allows only strata and landed strata; Perak allows only leasehold. Fail this and no amount of budget helps.
- Ask whether it is a developer purchase or a subsaleIn Penang and Perak the thresholds differ completely between the two routes, and Perak bars residential subsale entirely. When a salesperson says "foreigners can buy", ask which route they mean.
- Check whether the unit is Bumiputera quota or low-costBumiputera-allocated units and low / medium-low cost housing are excluded at federal level. That is a category question, not a price question — paying more does not fix it.
- Put State Authority consent in your timelineEvery state requires it. It sits between signing the SPA and completing the transfer, and it genuinely lengthens the transaction. Ask your solicitor before you sign roughly how long that state is currently taking.
- Budget the 8% stamp duty that starts in 2026From 1 January 2026 the transfer stamp duty on residential property bought by a non-citizen who is not a permanent resident is a flat 8%. Do not budget the purchase price alone.
The table is transcribed cell by cell from Malaysian Bar Conveyancing Practice Committee Circular No 444/2024 (issued 23 December 2024; the table itself is stated as at October 2024). The four federal prohibitions come from the Ministry of Economy's Garis Panduan Perolehan Hartanah, in force 13 July 2022.
Two things have to be said plainly:
- The Bar Council attaches its own disclaimer — the circular states the table "should not be considered accurate, comprehensive or authoritative" and advises consulting the relevant state authority. We reproduce that because it is true.
- State thresholds change, and they change without announcement. This table's baseline is October 2024. We found no nationwide revision published up to August 2026, but individual states may have moved. Before you sign, the operative source is the land office (Pejabat Tanah dan Galian) of the state you are buying in.
We are not going to write "please verify independently" and leave you there. Send us the state and the project and we will make that check for you.
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum property price for foreigners in Malaysia?
It depends on the state. The federal guideline bars foreigners from property below RM1 million per unit, while state floors run from RM500,000 (Perlis, Kelantan, Sarawak) to RM2 million (Selangor Zones 1 and 2). Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan are RM1 million. Penang and Perak subdivide further by island/mainland, by zone, and by developer purchase versus subsale. There is no single figure — you need the state, the property type and the purchase route together.
Can foreigners buy landed property in Malaysia?
It depends on the state. Not in Selangor — only strata and landed-strata titles are permitted, so landed property on an individual title is out. Perak bars residential subsale entirely and bars freehold outright. Kedah, Johor and Melaka exclude single-storey and 1½-storey terrace houses. Kuala Lumpur, Negeri Sembilan and Johor do allow landed purchases above their minimum prices. Property on Malay Reserve Land is barred nationwide.
Do I need MM2H to buy property in Malaysia?
No. The federal guideline merely lists MM2H purchases as one category exempt from Ministry of Economy approval; it does not make MM2H a precondition for buying. The causation actually runs the other way: MM2H requires you to buy (Silver from RM600,000, Gold from RM1 million, Platinum from RM2 million). With or without MM2H, State Authority consent still applies. See MM2H tiers and the property requirement.
Why do some articles say RM700,000 is enough in Penang?
Because that number has expired. RM700,000 was the discounted island-strata threshold for overhang units bought directly from a developer, and the source states it applied only to sale and purchase agreements signed between 1 January and 31 December 2024 under Penang's Home Ownership Campaign. The current island subsale thresholds are RM1 million strata and RM3 million landed.
Can foreigners buy auction properties in Malaysia?
In most states, no. Kedah, Penang, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Melaka expressly list auction properties as off-limits to foreigners. Section 433B(4) of the National Land Code separately provides that a non-citizen or foreign company may not bid at a court-ordered sale of land under the agriculture, building or industry category without State Authority approval.
What happens if State Authority consent is refused?
Section 433C of the National Land Code is blunt: any dealing in contravention of section 433B is null and void. Consent is not a formality — it is what makes the transaction exist. But note what the section does not do: it voids the dealing, not the contract terms about your deposit. Getting your money back is purely a matter of drafting. So your booking form and SPA must state that the transaction is conditional on State Authority consent, failing which the deposit is refunded in full. Without that clause, a refusal can cost you the deposit as well as the deal.