Finding somewhere to live in Kuala Lumpur

How a KL letting runs

You view, you sign a letter of intent and pay an earnest deposit of about one month's rent, and the agent drafts a tenancy agreement. On signing you pay the balance: typically two months' security, half a month as a utility deposit, an access-card or key deposit, and the stamp duty. Budget roughly three and a half months' rent before you have keys, and know that the earnest deposit is credited against it rather than added on top.

• LOI plus earnest deposit, then the tenancy agreement, then the balance.
• Security deposit two months; utility deposit half a month; access card and keys extra.
• The landlord pays the agent's commission — you should not be asked for one.
• Get an LOI clause covering what happens to your money if the landlord pulls out.

Check the negotiator, then check the owner

Estate agents and negotiators in Malaysia are registered with the national board, and a real estate negotiator carries a REN number that appears on their tag and their listings. That number is checkable. Separately, ask to see the title or the sale and purchase agreement and confirm the landlord's name on it matches the person signing — a surprising number of KL units are let by a relative or a friend acting informally.

• Ask for the REN number and verify it before viewing, not after.
• Portals: iProperty, PropertyGuru, EdgeProp and Mudah carry most of the market.
• Match the name on the title to the name on the tenancy agreement.
• If the landlord is overseas, confirm who holds the deposit and how it will be returned.

Stamping, and why it is worth doing

A tenancy agreement should be stamped with the Inland Revenue Board, which is done online and costs very little. The duty scales with the annual rent and with the length of the term, and there is a threshold below which nothing is payable. An unstamped agreement is not admissible in court as evidence, which is exactly the moment you would want it.

• Stamped through LHDN's online stamping system; usually arranged by the agent.
• Duty rises with the length of the term — a three-year lease costs more to stamp than a one-year.
• A modest annual rent threshold is exempt from duty altogether.
• Keep the stamped copy; it is the document that makes the agreement enforceable.

“Fully furnished” and the inventory

The phrase carries no fixed meaning in Malaysia. It can mean a bed, a wardrobe and an air-conditioner, or it can mean a working kitchen, a washing machine and a full set of crockery. Get an itemised inventory attached to the tenancy agreement with photographs, and read the air-conditioning clause — most KL leases oblige the tenant to have the units serviced quarterly at their own cost, and deduct from the deposit if you have not.

• Itemised inventory annexed to the agreement, with photographs of condition.
• Air-conditioner servicing every three months is a standard tenant obligation.
• Electricity from TNB and water are often left in the owner's name and rebilled — agree the mechanism in writing.
• Confirm who pays the condominium maintenance fee and sinking fund; it should be the owner.

In order

1. 1Get your employment pass moving first — much of this waits on it.
2. 2Book serviced accommodation for the first few weeks; this is normal, not a failure.
3. 3Shortlist by MRT or LRT station, then by building, then by unit.
4. 4Verify the negotiator's REN number.
5. 5Negotiate the LOI terms, including what happens if the landlord withdraws.
6. 6Pay the earnest deposit only against a signed LOI.
7. 7Attach a photographed inventory to the tenancy agreement.
8. 8Stamp the agreement with LHDN and keep the stamped copy.
9. 9Transfer or register the utilities and confirm how they will be billed.