Malaysia's New Housing Policy Brings a Tenancy Act and Build-Then-Sell by 2035

Malaysia's National Housing Policy 2026–2035, unveiled on 10 August, pairs a one-million affordable-home target with the country's first Residential Tenancy Act.

Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming launched Malaysia's National Housing Policy 2026–2035 in Petaling Jaya on 10 August, setting a target of one million affordable homes by 2035. For anyone who already owns Malaysian property, the more consequential part is legislative: the policy commits to rewriting the laws governing how homes are sold, rented and managed. The framework runs to six focus areas, 17 strategies and 59 action plans.

Four legal changes that reach existing owners

The policy commits to a Residential Tenancy Act. Malaysia currently has no dedicated statutory framework for residential rentals, which leaves tenancy disputes to general contract law and the civil courts. It also proposes a new Housing Developers Act, amendments to the Strata Management Act 2013, and the introduction of Option to Purchase and Sunset Clause mechanisms in sale agreements. Most foreign-owned Malaysian residential property is held on strata title, which makes the Strata Management Act amendments the item with the widest direct reach.

Build Then Sell, phased in

The policy sets out a phased move to the Build Then Sell model, under which buyers pay on completion rather than progressively during construction. BTS has existed in Malaysia as a voluntary alternative to the dominant Sell Then Build system for years without displacing it; making the transition policy rather than option is the change. The stated motivation is the country's long-running problem with delayed, distressed and abandoned housing projects, which the policy names explicitly alongside unsold stock and the mismatch between supply and demand.

Financing measures without dates

On the demand side the policy lists rent-to-own schemes, shared ownership, fixed-rate mortgages and a Housing Credit Guarantee Scheme, plus big-data matching of supply to demographic demand, transit-oriented development, modern construction methods and green certification. None of these carry implementation dates in the launch materials.

The market this lands in

Glopra tracks Malaysia at roughly $1,050 per square metre nationally, derived from NAPIC's Q1 2026 average residential price of MYR 507,533 over an estimated national average floor area. That figure is carried at Low confidence, because Malaysian official statistics publish per-property prices and an index rather than a per-square-metre national average. The gross rental yield is 5.27% and annual price growth 1.7% on the NAPIC index. The line that most often surprises foreign landlords is tax: Malaysia levies a flat 30% on non-resident rental income, taking that 5.27% gross to roughly 3.7% net. A statutory tenancy framework would not change the tax — but it would change how enforceable the lease behind the yield actually is.

Sources: New Straits Times (10 Aug 2026) https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2026/08/1508123/govt-targets-one-million-affordable-homes-2035; EdgeProp.my https://www.edgeprop.my/content/1917065/govt-launches-national-housing-policy-2026%E2%80%932035-targets-one-million-affordable-homes-2035

Market data: Malaysia