‘Seriously unaffordable’: Malaysia’s housing crunch hits young buyers
To help lower- and middle-income households, federal and state governments have launched several housing programs
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (MNTV) — Nur Syarah Alya Nizamuddin spent much of the past year searching for her first home, determined to settle close to her parents in Shah Alam in the Malaysian state of Selangor.
The 27-year-old administrative assistant, who works in the medical industry, grew up in the city and wanted to remain nearby, particularly because her only sibling now lives overseas. But the high cost of housing in the Greater Kuala Lumpur region — Malaysia’s economic hub — made the search challenging, reports CNA.
In 2025, the median house price in Kuala Lumpur stood at 560,000 Malaysian ringgit (about $142,300), while homes in Selangor had a median price of 470,000 Malaysian ringgit (around $119,400). Both figures rose sharply from the previous year, increasing by 7% and 4.4% respectively, according to official data.
These increases followed more modest rises in 2024 of 1.6% in Kuala Lumpur and 0.4% in Selangor.
Malaysia’s federal government defines affordable homes as properties priced at no more than 300,000 Malaysian ringgit (about $76,200), placing much of the housing market in major urban areas beyond the reach of many first-time buyers.
“Looking at property prices, I wondered to myself, ‘When am I going to own a property? Do I need to be a boss or manager first?’” Syarah told CNA.
Because of the high prices on the open market, she limited her search to government housing schemes aimed at lower and middle-income earners.
In December, Syarah purchased a new apartment in Shah Alam for 290,000 Malaysian ringgit (around $73,700) through the Rumah Selangorku program, which is available to buyers with a household income of no more than 10,000 Malaysian ringgit per month (about $2,540).
She is paying the home loan on her own and plans to marry soon. The monthly repayments take up roughly 30% of her salary.
The apartment is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2028 and is located about a 30-minute drive from downtown Kuala Lumpur when traffic is light.
“The government’s (affordable housing) initiatives have allowed us to purchase our own property, but it can do more,” she said.
She also questioned whether the housing market in major cities was primarily serving local residents. “For me, the price range in Kuala Lumpur is too high; it is not suitable for those of us with normal jobs. That’s why I feel it’s very expensive to purchase a property in Malaysia.”
According to official figures, housing in Malaysia has been classified as “seriously unaffordable” since 2014. That year, the median house price was almost five times the country’s median annual household income.
The measure, known as the median multiple — which compares home prices to household income — is widely used by the World Bank and the United Nations to assess housing affordability. Housing is generally considered affordable when prices are three times or less than annual household income.
By 2024, Malaysia’s median multiple had improved slightly from 4.9 to 4.2, but the figure still placed the housing market in the “seriously unaffordable” category.
The issue has also drawn attention in parliament. On Feb 26, Senator Michael Mujah Lihan warned that property prices in major Malaysian cities had reached levels that were increasingly out of reach.
“Although construction costs and property values have risen, average wage growth has not kept pace,” he said, urging the government to introduce stronger price controls and targeted tax incentives.
Earlier, Member of Parliament Muhammad Ismi Mat Taib had asked how authorities planned to address high home prices, which he described as a burden on first-time buyers.
Analysts say several factors are driving the problem, including slow wage growth, long loan tenures and rising development costs.
“It is almost impossible for first-timers to buy a property in centralized locations, especially in the urban areas,” Tan Wee Tiam, executive director at Olive Tree Property Consultants, told CNA.
“We tend to opine that some forms of land price (government) subsidy are essential to bring down the development cost and pricing of affordable houses.”
To help lower- and middle-income households, federal and state governments have launched several housing programs.
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