PETALING JAYA: A recent survey has found that singles in Klang Valley spend RM1,100 on housing, contrary to the reference expenditure guide Belanjawanku, which recommended that singles only spend RM300 on this expenditure.
“This brings their monthly budget up by over 360% when compared to the budget allocated by the Belanjawanku guide,“ iMoney Malaysia said in a release today.
It cited the National Housing Department that Malaysian houses have become unaffordable, with the average market price of a property being RM372,801 when the annual median household income is only at RM188,208.
“While the government has taken necessary steps to boost home ownership and affordability such as with the Residential Tenancy Act and the National Housing Policy, many of the homes remain unaffordable and continue to put a large dent on the average Malaysian’s monthly budgets,“ iMoney Malaysia said.
Its survey also found that singles with car ownership spend a total of RM2,695 without taking into account annual expenses, savings and personal care, in contrast with Belanjawanku’s recommendations that people of the same category can make do and survive with RM2,650.
To make up for their shortfall, Malaysians have been increasingly taking up personal loans, where there has been a sharp rise in applications for personal loans between 2016 and 2018 with a 370% spike by the end of 2018.
“Majority of applications were made with the intention of personal refinancing and debt consolidation, indicating that there is a substantial number of Malaysians still struggling with debt,“ it said.
The survey, conducted by iMoney Malaysia, was done to see if the Belanjawanku reference guide tallies with the real cost of living in the Klang Valley.
The survey was conducted from March 12 to March 22 with a sample of more than 1,000 Malaysians based in the Klang Valley.
