Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by perseides

Buying car from Sime Darby Auto Selection...

perseides — Thu, 30 Oct 2025 21:57:36 +0800

I'm looking at an used car at Sime Darby Auto selection. The price seems to be reasonable and it's within budget with low-ish mileage.

However, when I requested for the car to be inspected by outside mechanic, the sales agent said Sime Darby had done their own inspection and I shouldn't worry about getting an outside inspection.

I do know that Sime Darby is one of the more reputable used car dealership. But I do not have the knowledge to do a thorough check on the car myself and most mechanic shops would only offer inspection at their site.

Is this something that you would insist on outside inspection or walk away without it?

Even if I somehow managed to get the car to an outside shop and do an inspection, usually I would lose the deposit if I find something I do not like with the car right?

EDIT: How much (ballpark) is it to hire a mechanic to go with me to have a look at the car? Can someone recommend some mechanic that you trust?

Inquiry on buying used SUV?

perseides — Tue, 26 Aug 2025 23:13:09 +0800

I am looking to buy used SUV, around RM50-60k, preferrably less than 5 years old. Not Proton/ Perodua, not a BRV.

So far I am looking at the Nissan X-trail from ~year 2020, Have not decided on whether the Hybrid (5 seater) or non-hybrid (7 seater).
I am leaning towards the 7 seater, non-hybrid, which seems cost 10k more than then hybrid ones, despite hybrid models are more expensive new.

My questions:
1. Looking to buy this cash. If I buy it with a 50% loan (30k loan), what would be the interest rate look like? 3%? Would any bank even bother to lend this amt?

2. I know Nissan X-trail is prone to have CVT issues and gearbox replacement is around ~6k.
Is there any other parts that is prone to have issues that is expensive that I need to know?

3. Replacement of the Hybrid batteries is quoted by Nissan as RM25,000. Is there any shops that can replace the battery with a lower price? I cannot find any info online. (I figured this is the main reason why the hybrid version is much cheaper?)

4. I inquired a few dealership about the processing fee, and was quoted about ~4k (including ~2k insurance without CKD, ~450 road tax and other processing fees that is nearly 2k, another dealer quote me 3.8k processing fee?! ), Is that reasonable?

Unable login to Maybank2u

perseides — Mon, 18 Mar 2024 20:27:51 +0800

One of my PC could not login to Maybank using Chrome. It stuck loading the security image.
It worked fine with Firefox on the same PC. It worked fine with Chrome on my other computer.

Cleared the cache, Chrome is updated, disabled uBlock, restarted computer, tried on guess and incognito but still cannot find the issue.

Any ideas what else I should check?

Is it financially savvy to buy a car in cash?

perseides — Thu, 22 Feb 2024 14:54:27 +0800

I recently come across a a 7y/o Camry sold at 25% below market rate for ard 60k (legit offer, not a scam) I would have to pay cash for it.

I am currently driving an 8 y/o myvi (almost fully paid) and this is going to be a secondary car for long distance travelling. I make ard 100k per year (with around 25k disposable annually) n and this transaction would empty my emergency savings. Wife is wary but I do think it's fine.

I do not need the car but I do think it would be a good quality of life improvement for since we travel long distance once every other month, and the wife prone to motion sickness during travelling.

Any comment in whether it is a good financial decision?

Edit: before you jump to a conclusion that this is a scam. My company is letting go of the used car which was previously for their C suites.

Applying for credit card

perseides — Thu, 24 Aug 2023 09:05:20 +0800

Does anyone here working in finance knows what credit card companies consider when assessing your credit card? Do your existing credit card limit affect whether they approve your application?

I had been trying to apply for credit card on and off for the last few years and they kept rejecting me (about once or twice a year). My CCRIS score is within excellent range and I always pay my CC/ loan on time. No bad debt.

The only thing that I could think of is I have only 1 existing CC with a relatively high limit. It was given to me about ~ 8years ago when I applied for a mortgage loan. At that time my monthly income was about 5.5k and the bank manager just "offered" to help me apply a card and the bank approved a CC with a 12k limit. ( I just started working and didn't think much).

For the past few years I had been trying to apply for other CCs since the one I have have very limited perks but kept getting rejected.
Is it because the other CC companies refused to offer me anymore CC because I have an existing card with a limit that is relatively high compared to my income?

Edit: Seems like the consensus is the existing limit will not affect the application.

My next question is: I became to a freelancer since early 2022, so I had not been applying for any CC since then because the income was relatively unstable.

If I want to apply a cc now, what do I need to provide? My last year Tax form? Last 6 month's bank statement or 1 year or even 2 year bank statement? Or I should wait longer before trying to apply again? (Note: 2 years ago, my DSR was about 30+%. My current DSR would be around 13-20% as my income do fluctuates)

Pixel 7

perseides — Sat, 01 Jul 2023 16:30:29 +0800

Im looking to get a pixel 7 but i cant seem to find anywhere that is selling it other than online.

Anyone knows any shop that has the item om display so that i can take a look?

Also anyone having any issue with the phone?

Force a sale on a property with multiple owners.

perseides — Sat, 01 Apr 2023 13:19:39 +0800

I have a legal question regarding a property that I wanted to inquire.

If there is a shop that was inherited by 5 siblings, with 20% equal share each, under what circumstances can one force a sale on the property?

Can 3 out of the 5 siblings force the other 2 to sell the shop? Do we have to go to court for this?

It is unlikely any of the other 2 would be able to buy over the shares of the other 3. So the only option is to sell?

What is the process of doing this?

Wise for International fund transfer.

perseides — Fri, 21 Oct 2022 09:00:56 +0800

If you are a freelancer and working for foreign companies and you need to remit your income, read on!
This is the result after months of research.

I work for companies in the US as a freelancer. Most of my income is USD denominated, which requires international fund transfer between banks or other third party such as Paypal/ Payoneer to receive those payments.
As you know, those fees and conversion rate can eat into your income and I remember paying more than 5% in transfer fees and conversion rate when I was starting.
(Don't get me started on the so-called "Fees are Associated with Intermediary Banks" )

I started looking for other ways to avoid using the bank and found out about Payoneer and Wise. Payoneer is widely known in the freelance community as the go to the payment system to receive their freelance payment, but Payoneer does have some serious drawbacks:
1. Extremely bad conversion rate (comparable or worse than major banks!!!)
2. They charge USD30 for their physical card, PER ANNUM!
3. There's a lot of report online forums where people's accounts are suddenly closed and unable to withdraw the funds. (Although I do not have this problem before.)

So far, after researching various ways to remit money, I'd found out a way by using Wise which I can save a lot of conversion fees and charges.
Note: This method is applicable if your company is based in the US and paying your funds from their US bank account. But most companies are happy to do a direct wire transfer within US as it is usually free for them.
I think if your company is based in EU and they pay EURO, it is also applicable but you have to try it yourself.

How I do it:

1. Register for Wise up Wise and they will provide a USD account in a US bank:

2. Provide your Wise assigned US bank account to the companies that is paying you.

3. Once you have received the fund, you convert it to MYR (or SGD if you're in Singapore).
Yes! You can keep the money in USD and wait for more "favorable" time to convert to MYR.
There is a 0.5% conversion rate, but since the conversion rate is so favorable, it is still worth it.

4. Send the converted MYR to your Malaysian bank account. It is considered a local transfer and Wise only charges RM1.06 for it.
NOTE: DO NOT send it as USD or the Malaysian bank will do the USD to MYR conversion.

Exchange rates as of writing this post:
Payoneer 1.00 USD = 4.63246 MYR
Maybank 1.00 USD = 4.6560 MYR

and finally.... Wise 1.00 USD = 4.7295 MYR

Other than that, there are some other perks that Wise provides.
1. They have a physical debit card which cost RM13.7 for them to send it to you. (I got it and it was sent from Singapore). No additional for the debit card services AFAIK.
I think you can withdraw up to RM1000 per month for free and additional charges if you need it.
2. They allow you to create virtual debit cards (up to 3 iirc). I use it to buy subscriptions so that I can just delete the virtual debit card once when I do not want to use the subscription anymore.
3. Lastly and my favorite: I'm only withdrawing only the funds I needed leave the remaining ones in USD. For the last 3 months, USD has rise from RM4.3x to USD4.7x. (which is 10% increase! )
They can also keep your funds in USD, Euro, Canadian Dollar, SGD, and other 50+ countries but I usually only use USD.

This is not any financial advice. I'm just sharing what I'd found trying to reduce my cost of remittance as I am cheap and I do not likely paying the banks If you think this is helpful, kindly use my link to register. I will get some referral fees if you apply and use Wise to make a transfer. Note: I am no way associated with Wise, just a cheapskate.

Edit: Some butthurt forumers are reporting me for using my personal link. I do not know that it is against the rules to use personal referral link so apologies for that.
Anyhow, I think the link had been removed by the mods so this is the link to wise website: https://wise.com/my/ this is not a referral link.

I will keep this post up for anyone that it may help. You can just PM me if anything but I am not a frequent lowyat forum user so I might not be able to reply. My intention mainly to share something that I figured out and the link is just something extra. The hostility and rabidness of some forumers left a bitter taste in my mouth so I will just leave it as it is.

What ring size measurement Malaysia is using?

perseides — Mon, 19 Sep 2022 17:27:20 +0800

Hello, I was trying to custom made wedding ring but I have difficulty finding out ring sizes.
I'd went to jewellery shops such as poh Kong and asked them to help me with my gf's finger size n they told me a number such as 15 or 16.

However that's not in mm. When I asked what measurement is it, they just told me it's "Malaysia/Singapore size"?

The place I'm planning to get the ring made uses "US measurement".
Can someone who knows about jewellery knows what type of measurement Malaysia is using? If I'm not mistaken, Malaysia/Singapore measurement is same as HK measurement is it? Or its different? I'm confused.

Pixel 6a release in Msia

perseides — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 19:48:09 +0800

Need to replace a broken phone. Seems like pixel 6a/ 5a has the price/ performance that I wanted.

1. Is the pixel 6a coming to Msia officially? There's Msia YouTubers n even lowyat post saying so but I cant find any official news.

2. If so, where should I buy them from?

3. I noticed that the last pixel phones to have a headphone jack is a pixel 5a. If I want to have a look b4 I buy, where can I go to view? (any physical shop to go?)

Is Google pixel 6a officially cmn to Msia?

perseides — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 19:35:51 +0800

Need to replace a broken phones. Seems like pixel 6a/ 5a has the price/ performance that I wanted.

1. Is the pixel 6a coming to Msia officially? There's YouTube in Msia n even lowyat post saying so but I cant find any official sites.

2. If not, where should I buy them from?

3. I noticed that the last pixel phones to have a headphone jack 5a. If I want to have a look b4 I buy, where can I go to view? (any physical shop to go?)

Buying a Xbox series S: Suggestion needed.

perseides — Thu, 05 May 2022 22:27:19 +0800

I'm a PC gamer most of my life and this is the first time I'm considering getting an Xbox series S.

My gaming PC died recently and I do not feel like replacing it anytime soon due the crazy GPU and DDR5 ram price.
First plan was to buy a PS 5 but I can't buy one anywhere without being scalped so I'm planning to get an Xbox series S to game for the time being (maybe 2 years).

So my questions are:

There's no official Xbox distributor in Msia, so I assume have to rely on the shop for warranty, right? My current location is in KL.

1. Which retail shop would you guys recommend to buy from or do you trust the most? (since pricing is mostly the price is RM 1399 everywhere I looked).
Which shop has more reliable post purchase service?

2. Any difference btw Jpn and Sg version? I would prefer the Sg version.

Inquiry on SOCSO

perseides — Fri, 29 Apr 2022 14:42:47 +0800

I'm a full time freelancer working full time at home. Everything is done online.
Is there a need for me to pay for SOCSO? I mean, unless I fell and break my leg at home, during working hours (which is very very unlikely), there's practically no reason for me to pay for it right...?

Even if I injured myself at home, it would be quite hard for me to proof that is work related?

So other than injuries, is there any realistic/ practical reason for me to subscribe for SOCSO?

If I'm sick and unable to go for work? Is it even possible for me to file for benefit/ claim?

Inquiry on income proof

perseides — Fri, 11 Feb 2022 15:08:50 +0800

I am currently working as a freelancer and offering services to foreign companies. All my income is foreignly sourced, and I do not have any income from within Malaysia.

Since all individual FSI is tax exempted, and I am working as a freelancer, how do I keep a record if I need to apply for mortgage or apply CC in the future?

How do I prove to the banks that I am gainfully employed?

If I pay monthly for my own EPF, is that good enough proof?
Plus the amount I deposit into EPF monthly is based on my disgression, would putting in more money into EPF is enough to reflect my actual income?

(edit: there's news about individual FSI is going to be taxed starting 2022. Latest announcement form MOF confirmed extension of tax exemption on individual FSI until 2026)

Register a Company for Freelance job

perseides — Wed, 15 Dec 2021 17:50:48 +0800

All Sifus, I am working on a freelance job and noticed that some websites suggest to register a proprietary company with SSM, in order to get more tax deductions.

However, when I read through the notes from the LHDN, there seems to be no difference, tax deduction wise, if you are declaring as an individual or sole proprietary... ?

Is there something that I am missing or there was some hidden expenses/ deductions that I can include if I file the taxes as a company?

Thanks in advance!

How many of you still holding crypto in Binance?

perseides — Thu, 02 Sep 2021 09:50:39 +0800

So Malaysia SC just banned binance recently and Binance subsequently disabled P2p in Malaysia and certain functions. Have you move your money out of binance?

Inquiries on PC prices

perseides — Sat, 24 Jul 2021 21:44:00 +0800

I'd just killed my old i5 3570k processor (i think, it's power cycling, and I'd swapped the Mobo but issue persists).

So I need to replace the Mobo, cpu and Ram..... (still have my PSU, GPU and other parts).
I know for the last 1 year the CPU price is going over the roof worldwide, esp the Ryzen CPU with integrated GPU prices.

Any suggestion on what to buy, budget about 2k for the 3 components.
I'm looking at 11400f / 3600 / 5600.

Any suggestions?
Is now a good time, or would the price go down in the next few months (before end of the year?)

Inquiry on Binance P2P.

perseides — Wed, 19 May 2021 07:41:53 +0800

Just want to inquire. I'm trying to buy from binance p2p but the price is extremely bad? For BTC its more than 200k but the current market price is supposed to be 175-176k MYR.
This is a difference about 9%, which is ridiculous.
Can someone help me confirm or am I looking at the wrong thing?

Inquiry on Loan Interest

perseides — Mon, 10 Aug 2020 10:15:43 +0800

I want to inquire something regarding housing loan.

Despite the changes to the BLR for the half a year, there is basically no changes to my monthly housing loan payment amount.

I'd just noticed this and inquired regarding thing with the bank customer service and was told that there won't be any changes because if the changes is less than RM50, the bank would not change the payment amount. (my monthly installment is about 1.9k, loan amt of 320k, 20y payment)

Can anyone clarify...
1. Is it normal for them not to change the installment amt if it is below a certain limit (ie, changes below RM50 in this case)
2. Why is there no changes in the lending rate despite such a huge change in the lending rate?? I remember previously everytime when there is a change is BLR, my installment amount did reduce.
3. Could it be the interest portion of the loan payment is lower now so despite changes in blr, the interest portion changes is much lower and lower than 50?

Can anyone clarify? Or it's better to walk into a bank n inquire?
Btw.. My interest rate was 3.24% currently, is that high??

TNB green+ subscription

perseides — Thu, 04 Jun 2020 22:40:02 +0800

I was scrolling through TNB's account and noticed there is this mygreen+ scheme.

Has anyone tried subscribing to them?
Their tarriffs is much much lower than the usual tarrifs:

https://www.tnb.com.my/residential/pricing-tariffs

Tariff A - Domestic Tariff
For the first 200 kWh (1 - 200 kWh) per month sen/kWh 21.80
For the next 100 kWh (201 - 300 kWh) per month sen/kWh 33.40
For the next 300 kWh (301 - 600 kWh) per month sen/kWh 51.60

Source: https://www.tnb.com.my/residential/pricing-tariffs

https://www.tnb.com.my/assets/files/FAQ__myGreen+.pdf
According to mygreen+ subscription, the rate is 8 cent per kWh...?

Did I read something wrong, or the mygreen+ is tariffs are additional payment ON TOP of our usual tariffs?
Because if its 8 cent/kWh, it's so much lower than the usual tariffs?