Living Cost in KL - 2013

Before we decided to move to Kuala Lumpur, we did do a lot of research. One of it is the living cost in Kuala Lumpur. I search thru Google and found some websites that is writing about the living cost.
Here is some updates from what I have to pay in average per month, while living in Kuala Lumpur :

personal finance - funtimeguids prop

Rental Fee
The rental fee is very various, and depend on the area that we choose. If you are about to choose a nice Condo in KL nearby the KLCC area or Mont Kiara area, it will be around RM 2,500 to RM 4,000. 
Damansara, where I live now, the Condo Rent slightly cheaper than all of that area, around RM 2,000 to RM 3,500, but still it depends on the type of the condo itself, fully furnished, partly furnished or non furnished.

Electricity
The average bills that I paid is around RM 200 - RM 300 per month. Electricity usage in this country is still subsidized by the government. The biggest contributor for my electricity bill is the water heater, kettle and the vacuum cleaner. If using the dryer it will cost you more. 

Water
The water bill is very cheap, the highest that I paid is RM 50 for 2 months bill. So, it is only around RM 25 per month. This water usage also still subsidized by the government, even in some area, the government do  not charge for the water.

Internet
This service is the one that I loved the most, RM 150 for an unlimited services internet 24 hours using wifi, with a very fast and good connection. I never had this kind of connection before in Jakarta. I use the services from TM, the UNIFI one. Actually Unifi is a package of internet connection, phone and tv cable. But the internet is the best, the channel of the TV cable is not that much. 

TV Cable
TV Cable provider here is monopoly by Astro company. I just tried Astro this month, so I don't have the exact information about it. The rate that you have to pay is depend on the channel that you subscribe. Go to Astro.

Mobile Phone
This one is also very cheap. Me and My husband only spend RM 100 for both of our Blackberry, RM 50 each. So the complete Blackberry Services is RM 25, and the rest is for the calling purpose. There are lots of providers here, such as Digi, Celcom, Maxis, U-Mobile and Tune Card.

Groceries
This one must be different for each person. For my little family I usually spend around RM 500 - RM 600 for monthly groceries shopping. Please note that I am still buying the expensive milk for my son, the Pediasure 1.9 kg here is RM 160 something, so the rest is for family purpose. Other than that, I still spend around RM 150 for weekly groceries, contains of fruit, fish and vegetables.

Parking and Toll Fee  
In some area like KLCC or the heart of Kuala Lumpur, the parking fee is very expensive. RM 4 hourly !! I, once paid RM 22 only for parking..Hahaha.. But like Damansara area, RM 2 for the first 4 hours Totally different right.
Then the toll fee is still reasonable, RM 1 - RM 2,5. Sometimes the toll gave discount for the public holiday.

Petrol
Here the petrol price is controlled by the government, also still subsidized. The retail price for RON 97 is RM 2.60 per liter and the one that being subsidized RON 95 is RM 1.90 per liter. For my Petrol expense, I usually paid around RM 250 per month.

I think that's all that you need to know about the living cost in Kuala Lumpur. I may add some details if you needed more. 

To Leave Jakarta

This is my first time in doing such a moving abroad..Lot of things need to be prepared. That's why me and my husband agreed to separate the things we need to do. Hehe, of course I took care the little things, but a lot, and my husband got the big part but only a few things.

So here the list goes..





Husband :

• Find our place to live in KL. We can get the info about house or condo rent using this website : http://www.iproperty.com.my/ , http://www.mudah.my/ , http://www.propwall.my/
• All things we need in KL such as car, internet connection, handphone sim card, and else. (He's a very good googler, so I rely on him about our new life there).
• Sell the Motorcycle and the Car

Me (exhale and inhale) :

• Make sure all the Internet Banking access is working, and can be use in KL
• Have all the Medical + Vaccination Report  and translated in English
• Settle all the outstanding credit card bill, close the card and keep one of the card, just in case we need some extra money in the new country. Please note that it's not easy for a foreigner to apply a credit card here in KL, they need a min RM 10,000 as your monthly income.
• Prepare Leaving Certificate from school, if you're about to move with child/ren.
• Do the homework, I separate the thing that I want to sell, bring along with me, and the thing that will be given to other. For the thing that I want to bring along with me, I do separate into which one that I will bring together by plane and which one will be carried by the moving company.

I think that's the list that I can remember. Actually I have the book, but I don't know where it is now.. Haha, I'll update the list when I found it, ok :)

What To Prepare - Documentation

Step one about moving abroad is about the documentation. In this case, we received so many help from my husband's company. So the documentation done by them, we only need to prepare for the supporting documents.

Moving to different country, might need you to have a different kind of pass also. For my husband as the Expat, he need to obtain the Employment Pass (Working Permit) and for me and my son, we need to have the Dependent Pass.

So, at that time, to have the related pass, these are the documents needed :

Employment Pass :

- One set of the application

- Passport

- Offering Letter from company

- Passport Size Photograph

- Employment CV

- Medical Test Result (this one usually provided by company) 

Then for the Dependent Pass :

- Passport

- Marriage Certificate

- Birth Certificate

- Passport Size Photograph

All of Dependent Pass document, need to be submitted together with the Expatriate's document, and all supporting documents must be in English. At that time somehow we already have the English version for our document, but sadly, it must be translated by the translator in Malaysian Embassy, Jakarta.The translation process itself took about 2 weeks. 

So 2 weeks for the translation process, and after that all of the document submitted to the Malaysian Immigration office at KL and took almost one and a half month to get the Single Entry Visa and the letter from Malaysian Immigration to chance the Single Entry Visa to the real Employment and Dependent Pass.

This Single Entry Pass only valid for 3 months, so first thing to do after departure, is to contact your company, or you yourself report yourself and bring the letter to the Malaysian Immigration Office at Putrajaya, so that they only can process your visa.

The official Malaysian Immigration Website is http://www.imi.gov.my, you may find complete information there :)