Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by Salary

Why are Malaysians so obsessed with using agents?

Salary — Mon, 02 Dec 2024 16:12:04 +0800

I’ve actually been wondering about this pretty much my entire life — why do Malaysians rely so heavily on agents for even the simplest tasks?

One example is when I applied for my Australian PR, pretty much every Malaysian with an Australian PR I knew or spoke to strongly advised me to use an agent - some even said it's a guarantee fail if it do it myself, which was an absolutely ridiculous statement to make. The Australian Home Affairs website pretty much has instructions laid out step-by-step and is fool-proof unless it's a complicated case (e.g. having a criminal record or being deported before). I followed the steps, submitted everything myself, and got approved without any issues in less than half a year.

This got me thinking — why the obsession with agents? It's not isolated to the example above. Certain careers, like insurance agents, don’t even exist in other countries where people are more independent. Malaysians' reliance on agents seems to have given rise to these careers. FWIW, I believe it’s because of most Malaysians' stubborn refusal to read and understand instructions.

Even after moving to Australia, I’ve seen examples of this over-reliance on agents or avoidance of personal responsibility. I’ve met Malaysians here who really struggle when it comes to the simplest day-to-day tasks - things like converting their driver's licence, home loan applications, school enrolment, and more.

Some would avoid doing what they need to do if they can't find an agent and would rather succumb to their allergy to read instead of taking 10 minutes to look it up on Google. These blissfully ignorant folks then go on a complaining spree as if it's a national sport after getting smacked with the consequence of their decision. One recent example I came across was someone ranting on an FB group about being hit with a 2% lifetime health cover loading in Australia for every year they’re over 30. Their excuse is always the same - they didn't know. I have cousins who can't even do their own LHDN e-filing when it's already one of the simplest systems in the world. Are these people expecting to be spoon-fed every step of the way?

So, I’m curious— is it part of our culture to trust others more than ourselves, or is it plain laziness? Personally, I believe it’s the latter. This issue became very apparent to me after I moved overseas and realised just how dependent the majority of Malaysians are on others for tasks that could easily be done themselves.

What do you think?

[AMA] I immigrated to Australia early 2022

Salary — Sun, 11 Jun 2023 11:25:44 +0800

Hi All,

I’ve been browsing Lowyat Forum on and off for the past decade or so and I’ve seen a lot of threads every now and then that centres around the topic of moving to Australia. There’s a lot of good information on here, but there’s also an equal amount of misconceptions about living and working in the land down under.

One saying that I’ve come across a lot which stands true is that the grass is not always greener on the other side, and this is something that I’ve always kept at the back of my mind when I was planning the big move. I’ve seen many migrants struggling as they did not deliberate enough when making the decision to uproot their established lives in Malaysia to give what they perceive as the land of opportunity a go.

I have a bit of time to spare over the next week, so I’d be happy to shed light on and provide some first-hand insights into moving, living and working in Australia. Some context about myself to kick start the AMA:

- I obtained my Australian permanent resident visa prior to the COVID pandemic
- I moved early 2022 at the tail-end of COVID border restrictions
- I am English-educated while my wife is Chinese-educated
- My wife and I are in our early 30s
- We are both currently working in our respective industries, either at the same level or higher that the jobs we had prior to leaving Malaysia
- We had a combined monthly salary of approximately RM35k per month in Malaysia with our house and cars paid off, which made the decision to move even more difficult

Feel free to ask me anything and I will endeavour to provide a candid answer based on my personal experience.

Deleted

Salary — Fri, 13 Aug 2021 23:06:39 +0800

Deleted. No longer available.

CIMB Home Loan GMTA/MRTA Refund

Salary — Wed, 28 Apr 2021 17:27:01 +0800

I've just sold off my property and am currently in the process of applying for a refund for my MRTA. I held the property for just 1 year 11 months and Sun Life (CIMB's insurance partner) advised me the surrender value is only 32%, which is absolutely shocking.

Is this normal? I can't find the original MRTA illustration when I signed up for the loan and have requested for a copy from CIMB. As a reference, I paid off my other mortgage with RHB on the 10th year where the insurer was Tokio Marine and I was able to get back 53%.

If CIMB is going to stick the agreement in my face, which I believe they probably would, this is a very expensive lesson. Please have a look at your MRTA illustration before signing up for any loan, especially with CIMB bank.

LHDN Tax Clearance Letter

Salary — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 17:10:33 +0800

I will be tendering my resignation soon with three months notice and will be using 2.5 months of accumulated annual + misc leave to offset the notice period, following which I will be leaving the country permanently immediately after my last day in office. Summarising my timeline:

Last date in office: 15 June 2021
Last date on payroll: 31 August 2021
Plan to leave the country: 15 June 2021 (still under employment with the company until 31st August, but on leave)
Submission of CP21 and CP22A: ???

I understand LHDN's requirement in this case is for the employer to submit forms CP21 and CP22A for the application of a tax clearance letter (TCL) within 30 days prior to cessation of employment. Question is, can my employer submit both forms 30 days (15th May 2021) before I leave the country while still under employment? Would LHDN entertain this considering my last date on payroll is 31 August?

Is there anything that needs to be done on my side with regards to income tax? I looked at a couple of previous threads and it seems that I'll need to submit a BE form and my previous EA forms as well, but it's not really clear on LHDN's website. Just wanted dig into your experience before i head into LHDN's office next week.

I'm a Malaysian citizen, not an expat btw.

Thanks in advance!

Cathryn Li Suicide Attempt

Salary — Sat, 13 Mar 2021 13:19:11 +0800

Translation:

Closed

Salary — Mon, 16 Nov 2020 13:22:58 +0800

Tutup kedai

Earnest Deposit - Buyer Unable to Secure Guarantor

Salary — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 13:44:49 +0800

Buyer has already paid earnest deposit for a property. On goodwill grounds, seller extended the 14-day grace period TWICE to at the request of the buyer to give him more time to secure financing. After 7 weeks, buyer asked if he can get back his earnest deposit as his loan was approved with the condition that he has a guarantor, but he couldn't find one. So the buyer decided not to proceed and requested for the deposit to be returned.

In this case, who has the rights to claim the deposit? Is the property agent also entitled to a share of the deposit as well? If the agent returns the deposit to the buyer, is the seller allowed to claim liquidated damages as the property was out of the market for 7 weeks?

Swap Unifi Accounts

Salary — Mon, 06 Jul 2020 19:10:27 +0800

Is it possible to swap unifi plans between two accounts under the same name? I currently hold two active accounts still within the contract period at two different locations and would like to swap them. Has anyone done this before?

Lawan Arus OKU Jailed 5 Years & Fined

Salary — Mon, 22 Jun 2020 13:22:33 +0800

Selow

Condo Neighbour Constantly Fighting

Salary — Wed, 20 May 2020 23:29:18 +0800

My neighbour two doors down fights at least twice a week. They are a family of 5 - husband, wife and three kids below 10. There’s been nothing physical as far as I know, but last week they’ve been fighting every other day, yelling so damn loud even my colleagues heard the commotion over telecon once

Pre-MCO they were fighting at least twice a month, but now that the husband is not working (or working from home) the frequency has increased to the point where it’s unbearable for me. Each fight lasts around 2 hours. Doors banging, glass breaking, yelling at the top of their lungs - basically everything bar physical abuse.

Another neighbour and myself have tried talking to them nicely but they’re quite hostile. Management has intervened multiple times, but to no avail. Police has been called in once during the MCO but they can’t do anything since there’s no physical contact. Is there any other ways to resolve this issue or is moving out the only option?

OKR New Construction Caught Fire

Salary — Wed, 20 May 2020 12:00:03 +0800

Saw this on FB just now. Next to Verve Suites OKR apparently. Xxxxxxz Square?

Flying from East to West Malaysia

Salary — Sun, 17 May 2020 02:52:47 +0800

Since this is considered domestic movement, is the 14-day quarantine still required? I believe there will be a spike of domestic movements as more flights have been introduced following the CMCO announcement. Are the facilities provided by the government enough to accommodate the increased number of people to be quarantined?

Moving During CMCO - Any Restrictions?

Salary — Sat, 16 May 2020 23:33:09 +0800

I’m due for a move to KL in the next two weeks and have found a condo to rent. The movers I engaged told me there’s no issues for them to move within Klang Valley, but the condo management informed me that they will not allow movers to enter during the CMCO period, not even for a couple of boxes (around 5 standard size boxes) and two mattresses.

I understand from the movers that this is the second condo they’ve come across that doesn’t allow moving during the CMCO period. Is there any workaround for this issue?

Moving During MCO - Any Restrictions?

Salary — Sat, 16 May 2020 23:31:13 +0800

Edit: Wrong sub forum

Pointers on Price Bargaining

Salary — Thu, 19 Dec 2019 17:01:55 +0800

Taikos,

Any tips and tricks on selling price negotiation?

There's a couple of houses at a Taman I'm interested in where, according to brickz, two houses were sold more than four years ago at around 1.8m. Another was sold six years ago for 1.6m. Remaining sales date back to 2010 - 2011 at around 1.4m There's been no sales since then and the 4 - 5 houses currently available on the market are going for around 2m, almost all of which have been on the market since 2015.

With the slow market I'm trying to see if I can push the price below 1.5m. Three of the houses are empty with no previous occupants, sold as is following handover from developer around 10 years back, which I'm interested in.

Before I bargain the selling price, any tips I should know of beyond putting on a thick face? Need your expert advice. Thanks!.

Landed Property Recommendations - KL/Selangor

Salary — Tue, 26 Nov 2019 19:16:37 +0800

Hi Folks!

I'm considering purchasing a landed property for my own stay as a permanent home around KL/Selangor area. Hence I'd like to leverage on the expertise available here where all the property sifus hang out as, unfortunately, I'm not from KL/Selangor and have limited knowledge of the neighbourhoods here.

I'm looking for a Semi-D with a budget in the region of RM1.5mil. There's a couple of factors that are important for me, in no particular order:

1. Proximity to KL Sentral - no tolls, minimal traffic as far as KL traffic goes;
2. Safety - G&G is mandatory, at an area with a decent safety record and low crime rates;
3. Amenities - easy access to malls, grocery shopping etc;
4. Age - Nothing older than 15 years please!
5. Freehold & Non-Bumi Lot.

Currently, Cheras area in Selangor just east of Taman Connaught looks most tempting to me. There's a couple of Semi-Ds under 1.5mil and a few pretty decent ones at Taman Cuepacs sitting at 1.7mil. I believe it fulfils pretty much everything I look for, but I heard traffic is pretty depressing, especially when travelling to and from work for an 8 - 5 job.

Any thoughts on the area I'm looking at and recommendations on potential alternatives? Also, since it's now a buyer's market, any tips on bargaining and assessing if a property it worth its advertised price?

Many thanks in advance!

Cancelling Stamped SPA - Subsale Pre-OC Property

Salary — Wed, 10 Jan 2018 08:46:32 +0800

Hi Property Talk!

I'd like to seek your advice on the possibility of cancelling my sales & purchase agreement as the condo unit I bought last year (subsale) has been pending Occupancy Certificate (OC) approval since completion in March 2017.

10% of the purchase price has been paid last year, in January, upon signing the SPA. Looking at my SPA, there is a clause stating that the balance of the purchase price shall be paid "within 3 months of the developer's consent to transfer OR the date of OC issuance, whichever is LATER". Under one of the schedules, it is also stated that "both parties agree that any liquidity damages payable by the developer in respect to the late delivery of OC shall belong to the PURCHASER upon full settlement of the purchase price".

The above are the only two clauses related to late OC delivery, nothing else beyond that. Now, the property was completed in March 2017, and on the same month, the developer submitted application for OC to the local council which was rejected due to road access issue. There is only one access road to the condo, and aparently part of it is a reserved road. This reserved road belongs to another developer who has only completed one of five approved development phases on that plot of land.

The council showed that buyers that the OC was not issued on the grounds that there is a condition registered in the approved development plan requiring the property developer to obtain consent from the other developer who holds the rights to the reserved road. Communication has broken down between the two developers and the local council, and this matter has entered court since Q3 last year, with no end in sight. The local council did successfully strike out the case once, but the condo's developer is going to re-appeal as per latest updates, published in the newspaper.

With that said, my SPA is not with the developer, but with one of the original buyers. The complication is that I've already paid 10% of the purchase price, along with the legal fees and stamp duty. My loan has been approved last year in January as well, but my bank hasn't disbursed the sum yet as OC is still pending.

So, my question is, is there any way for me to get at least the full 10% payment back and call off the SPA? If I could get the stamp duty and legal fees refunded, that's be even better, but I don't think it'll happen. Hoping for some advice from the sifus here before I talk to my lawyer. Thanks!

TL;DR - Bought subsale pre-OC property from the property's original buyer. SPA signed one year ago. Property completed in March 2017, no OC until now because of road access issue (the only access road is a reserved road). Matter has been dragging in court for a couple of months. Possible to cancel SPA and get refund?