Kuala Lumpur real estate market — prices, rental yield and trend
- Gross rental yield: 4.87%
- Net rental yield: 3.41%
- Transaction cost: 5.7%
- Price basis: local-market average
Kuala Lumpur is one of the 156 property markets Glopra tracks.
What a buyer pays in Kuala Lumpur
Buying costs — transfer tax or stamp duty, notary, registration and agency — come to about 5.7% of the price here. That is below the 9.5% median across the set, which shortens the time it takes for a purchase to break even.
What it earns
The typical home here lets for about $740 a month against a purchase price of $182,500, which is 4.9% gross before tax. Neither figure is quoted per square metre in this market, but both come from the same source, so the ratio between them holds. It ranks 92nd of 151 markets by gross yield. Rental income is taxed at 30%, which takes the yield down to 3.4% net. The 1.5-point difference between the gross and net figure is the part most listing sites leave out.
How the tax works. Flat 30% for a non-resident individual on net rental income with no personal reliefs and no tax-free band (Income Tax Act 1967 § 4(d), Schedule 1 Part II); with no expenses claimed, net equals gross. There is no withholding on rent in Malaysia; the owner self-assesses on Form M. Source: PwC Malaysia.
Who can buy in Kuala Lumpur
Freehold, subject to a minimum price and state approval. That is the rule a foreign buyer meets first, not legal advice — check the current position locally before you commit.
How this figure is built
The price figure for Kuala Lumpur is built from asking prices from listings. It was last refreshed on 2026-10-15. We rate our confidence in this market’s data medium: the series is usable, but thinner or less current than our best-covered markets. We recompute every market the same way, which is what lets Kuala Lumpur be compared with a country average or another city.
Sources: Global Property Guide Malaysia rental yields (KL all locations, 2-bedroom, Q3 2026) · globalpropertyguide.com. Snapshot: 2026-10-15.
Latest Kuala Lumpur market analysis
- Malaysia construction costs ease as steel falls 2.4% in September 2026 — 2026-10-13
- Malaysia's Unsold Completed Homes Climb to 33,094 in the First Half of 2026 — 2026-09-13
- Malaysia Keeps Its Policy Rate at 2.75% While House Prices Sit Almost Still — 2026-09-05
- Malaysian Household Lending Slowed to 5.3% in Q2 Even as Growth Hit 6% — 2026-08-17
- Sime Darby Pays RM418.5m for 557 Acres Inside Johor's Singapore Border Zone — 2026-08-14
- Malaysia's New Housing Policy Brings a Tenancy Act and Build-Then-Sell by 2035 — 2026-08-12
Related markets: Malaysia