Actually post-retirement can be extremely boring! You need to find things to do and usually interesting activities require money. Usually after 70, we tend to slow down a lot and we usually tend not to want to go faraway places, i.e. we prefer to do things that involves being around home more as we tend to get tired more easily. Now medical costs tend to increase most during this period. The best financial plan after 70 is 'good health' because it can save you a lot of money.

Now most people will work till 60 so they tend to be still quite active between 60-70. They probably like to travel more if they can afford it. Also another big ticket item is eating out in good restaurants during this period. Some people like to drive a flashy car after they retire but most will be happy to drive a more basic car because our reflexes tend to slow down when older and we don't crave high speeds anymore. Also getting in/out of the car tend to be more problematic because the knees get sore more often (esp going up stairs). I am bringing up overseas travel and eating out (in better restaurants) because usually these are the few items (that i can think of) that will bump up retirement costs. If you tend not to have these extravagances, retirement costs can be lowered significantly.

This post has been edited by Garysydney: Aug 22 2018, 11:00 AM

Hey Gary, long time no talk....

I stay in Australia quite often, so I know a little bit about the cost of living in both Malaysia and Australia...

I can tell you cost of living in Malaysia is lower than Australia. Especially your passive income is in AUD. After conversion, everything is 3 times cheaper.

For food (home cook), 2 person in Australia need maybe $200 per fortnight. In Malaysia, maybe RM800 per month is enough. I am talking about fruits, vege and some meat. Pork is about $15/kg in Coles, in Malaysia about RM30/kg. Free range chicken is about $6/kg. In malaysia about RM9/kg. Vege maybe average $2 per kg in Aust, in Malaysia, RM2-4/kg can get many types of vege. But I find that the quality of meat and vege is way better in Australia. In Malaysia, you may not be able to get the same quality. Onion, lettuce, carrot, tomato, lamb, steak, port are top quality in Australia. While in Malaysia, the quality is second grade.

For eating out, that is where malaysia is much cheaper and taste better too. In tai chow, 2 person 3 dishes maybe around RM60. If you order seafood, maybe RM100. For fried rice/chow kui teow is around RM6 or RM7 each. KFC in malaysia RM13/meal. In Australia, fried rice alone is already $12. Red Rooster is $12/meal. For dimsum, maybe already $60 for 2 person. For posher restaurant, it will be >$100. Price aside, it is the taste which matters. Malaysia best food is not in those posh restaurant, but cheaper street food and kopitiam. So I think you will enjoy yourself eating out in Malaysia. So many varieties authentic chinese, malay, indian, not like Australia international food are prepared for kuai loh taste

Petrol in Malaysia is about 50% cheaper too.

Electricity is maybe $0.20-$0.40 per unit on average depending on provider. While in malaysia, it is about average RM0.30-RM0.50 depending on usage

Water is free in Selangor. And very cheap other parts of Malaysia. While in Australia it cost a bomb at least $100 per month !

Movie is also cheaper in Malaysia about RM13 per ticket. Hoyts is about $15. I think both Malaysia and Australia has 50% concession for age above 60...

You have already a house in Malaysia, so that is taken care of. Car price is slightly more expensive in Malaysia by maybe 25%, both small car or luxury car. But that is a one-off cost

For medical, we have GP clinics in malaysia which is considered affordable. Small sickness consultation+medicine is under RM100. Maybe for serious illness, you get insurance. Depending on the amount covered, it may range from RM400-RM1000 per month for older people. If I were you, I will keep PR or convert to citizen. If got big health problem, then fly back to Australia for treatment. The hospital service is better there.

So, I would think for basic living, RM2k for a retired couple with no kid is very comfortable. Throw in another RM1k for eating out per month. RM3k will be sufficient for simple but enjoyable life. Your passive income from Australia has a lot of buffer !

Ah....another thing you will enjoy here is the cheap manpower

If you ask bangla to mow your lawn, RM30 or maybe cheaper. In Australia, $50

Haircut you still can get about RM15 in the small salon. $20-$30 for simple haircut there

Household repair you can easily afford in Malaysia. Plumber, Electrician, Contractor for roof repair you can ask them to do it here. In Australia, everything DIY because too expensive...

Hi Showtime

I must thank you very much because you were the one who answered a lot of my questions when i first joined LYN. To be honest when i first made the query in the USD/MYR thread, there was someone who complained about what i was asking being out of topic and i was totally confused as i was so new to LYN. You took me to another thread about retirement and i totally was lost (at that time) because i didn't know how to get back to that thread after i left it.

I have always been a very 'careful person' esp in the later years of my life which is why i worry a lot about finances. My friends/relatives around me all worry about their retirement expenses because cost of living is very high in Sydney. When the govt gives a couple A$700/wk for the most basic lifestyle in retirement, you can imagine how expensive living costs are and that is the reason why a lot of people still want to work till their 70s in Sydney. A lot of old-age pensioners (who solely rely on the govt pension) complain that A$700 is not enough because things have gone up so much!! Sydney (and for that fact Australia) is so far away from everywhere, travel expenses are greatly exacerbated due to the distance away from the rest of the world. People who rely solely on the old-age pension will struggle unless they have a little of extra retirement fund.

I have given it considerable consideration about going back to KL to live and i suspect that i will definitely have to give up my PR one day. The alternative is to take up Aussie citizenship and apply for MM2H but i need to wait 18 months (after applying nowadays) before you will get it and i plan to go back to KL mid-2019 when i turn 57. For your info, if you leave the country (during the period when you are applying for citizenship), your application is suspended until you are back in Aust. This will throw my retirement plan into chaos!!

I thank you for giving me the information for a comparison of the price of goods/services in the 2 countries. Both my wife and myself love eating out quite a lot (even though it is a lot less healthy) - we are probably catching up with the 'eating-out in KL' for the lost time we weren't in KL (close to 40 years now).

This post has been edited by Garysydney: Aug 24 2018, 08:10 AM

If you need help with problems in the house, you are in big trouble in Sydney!! Plumbers charge A$100 just to step in your house during work hours 8am-5pm Mon-Sat. An easy 15 min job can easily cost A$300. The plumbers are usually quite smart - they slowly change whatever they need to so that it looks very time-consuming so they can charge more. I had a Msian friend who needed his garden dug up because the pipe under the garden was cracked. 2 plumbers came and quoted him A$7500 cheapest for the 2-day job!! That is why you better pray that it is a small job when a trades person turn up at your place (a lot of times they don't even turn up and you had to take time off work!). We learn how to do simple things like changing tap gasket so we can save a bit of money. A lot of my friends change their own lubricant oil/filter esp those who have a few cars. Labor is ridiculously expensive as most trades persons charge about $120-180/hr for their services. That is why i like so much about Msia - the labour is so cheap! Do you know that in a recent report, it quoted Sydney cars are the dirtiest in the world and you know why? It is because the cheapest car wash (wash exterior only) is more than A$25 where i live. What can you do when min wage is more than A$20/hr (incl super). Good for workers and not good for the consumer.

This post has been edited by Garysydney: Aug 22 2018, 01:26 PM

At our age, nothing is more important than making ourselves and our other half happy. I am sure you and your wife will enjoy living in malaysia.

Living in KL is not a problem for you financially. The only thing left outstanding in your plan is medical insurance. It’s good to research now. Because you need to undergo medical checkup and also a waiting period. Get you and your wife a family coverage of about RM1m pa and no lifetime limit, and guaranteed renewal too. Insurance here must have “life” portion and “medical” portion. You don’t need the “life” portion so put “medical” portion to the max, “life” portion to min.

There are many choice of insurance companies. Allianz, HLA, prudential etc etc. No good to ask for recommendations from relatives. Once you ask, then you are stuck with the relative. Best is you research and compare the medical policy from different companies, and once you have selected the policy, only ask your relatives whether they know any agent from that company.

Actually the public hospitals in Malaysia is not that bad. The only bad thing is you have to wait in the long queue. Also there could be times when the hospitals run out of medicine supplies. Hopeful with the change of government, we can have better service. I have been to selayang and sungai Buloh hospitals, the environment is quite modern and they have all the medical equipment and specialists there. So, even without private insurance, there are still public hospitals we can go to. And really cheap too.

That’s why the tradies earn more than some of the professionals like accountants, chemists and even architects in australia. Plumbers, electricians, carpenters, construction workers earns close to 6 figure while the professionals average only $60-70k

One more thing, are you affected by the vacant residence tax like Melbourne if you move to Malaysia ?

This post has been edited by Showtime747: Aug 22 2018, 03:45 PM

Hope you went to hospital to visit friends or relatives rather than been admitted.

Imported foods in this country is more of 3rd grade than 2nd grade.

Labourers always find comfort in labourers' foods/cooking.

Earning in foreign country and spend in cheap country is always value for money.

As far as i know Victoria is the only state that imposes vacant residence tax. There is no such tax in NSW.

Residential property prices in Sydney has taken quite a significant fall since the beginning of the year. There is fear among those who bought recently that there may be further falls in the coming 12 months as banks are tightening up their lending due to the Royal Commission (into Banking). The Royal Commission exposed a lot of illegal banking practices where income/expenses were forged and mortgage brokers were collaborating with the lenders to 'close an eye' on figures that were highly dubious. That is why the share price in banks dropped quite significantly earlier in the year.

I take consolation that you have stated quite a significantly lower figure (than i expected) for monthly expenses than (i thought possible) that a couple could live with in retirement in KL. In Sydney, no matter how thrifty you are, you will need at least A$30k+/yr in retirement (couple). I was still having doubts about my passive income (as i tend to worry more than i should) being sufficient to retire in KL earlier in the year.

Regarding maintaining the PR status, we need to fulfill the '2/5 years stay' and i think i may not be able to fulfill that condition - over the last 15 years, i have known a lot of parents (older) bringing their children over (under business migration) and eventually the old man decided to go back to KL to live because they prefer the lifestyle in KL and leaving the wife with the children here.

This post has been edited by Garysydney: Aug 23 2018, 06:27 AM

Hi son, was visiting my staff. One was giving birth, the other car accident.

The service for giving labour is even better than private hospital. They will send nurses to your house after discharge just to make sure the new mother knows how to take care of the baby like bathing and correct way to use diapers. Private hospitals don’t have such service !

Gary, you have about 4-5x more buffer than the amount needed. If your passive income isn’t enough, then majority of KL retirees will be staving

Your income level is the dream of many youngsters in this thread. If you notice, some aim for only RM1m nest egg to generate RM30-40k of passive income. You already have way more than that.

There is a Chinese saying “if your horse dies, get off the horse and walk”. Life will work out. Just enjoy the moment

Thank you Showtime.

After living in Sydney for about 40 years now, i have only known that if you come across problems, you better fix it yourself or find a friend to help you because it is so expensive to get help in Sydney as labour costs are so high (thanks to the high minimum wage! and high trades-person hourly rate). Can you imagine that we need more than A$30k/yr for basic survival (this is the 'poverty line' according to govt definition) in Sydney.

I will let you know the story of a good friend of mine who is 81 years old now (with on-coming alzheimer's) and he retired with more than A$2mil in 2006. He thought he had plenty as he sold his surgery (he is a doctor and the wife was the receptionist/nurse) and put all that into his superfund. He spent his retirement with all the usual comforts (like eating out 3-4 times a week and 1 overseas trip back to Batu Pahat for about a week every yr). To cut a long story short, his A$2mil+ is nearly all gone (he didn't want to get the old-age pension because he is a very proud man and doesn't want to rely on govt welfare). He doesn't gamble and has no vices at all. He helped one son and one daughter a little financially as the kids were struggling financially. He didn't spend much on luxuries at all (he drives a small Japanese car and the house is still the same one since he retired) as he doesn't believe in luxuries and was quite a simple man. From looking at him (he is a very good friend of mine and i have known him since 1981), i was telling my wife that retirement in Sydney is very expensive as he is a good example!! This is the reason why i find it so hard to convince myself that an overseas retirement can be so much cheaper!!

This post has been edited by Garysydney: Aug 23 2018, 09:10 AM

About the dirtiest car part, I have to agree, during my travel to Perth, I thought Aussie weather are dry, windy and duty, thus the dirty car, or the Aussie are born adventurous to roam the outback, so don't bother to clean the car. That until one day, I walk passed a car wash shop and the washing is $20A... Malaysia only RM15 with washing, vacuuming and deodorizing.

In Sydney, car wash is a luxury. If you want to do interior and exterior, you are looking at about A$50. It is because labour is so expensive!!

in Msia, the minimum wage is about RM35 per day
thus RM15 is about 1/2 day salary

In Australia, $20A is about how many hours pay of a minimun pay salaried worker?

Looking at another perspective is, people is being well paid, thus low in thief and robbery, educated and good civil. To save cost, go for robotic automation or diy.

I think Australia minimum wage is about $20A per hour.

Yes - that is correct. If you include super, the min wage in Aust is A$23/hr. The unions are very strong and have been pushing this figure higher and higher every year. Min wage is for jobs that don't require any skills like waitresses/delivery drivers/labourers... Actually this minimum wage has actually pushed the whole wage system higher because if the minimum wage is high, you will have to pay a lot higher than that for skilled labour. This is the reason why Aust wages are higher than Spore but Spore has much lower personal-income taxes than Aust so if you compare net salaries, there is only a slight difference for middle income earners. The difference in directors/senior executives pay will be much higher in Spore (in favour of Spore) because they pay a lot less tax while in Aust, you will be paying close to 50% tax if you are a high-income earner.

This post has been edited by Garysydney: Aug 23 2018, 10:55 AM

thks for the info...
in this case,...it costed about 1/2 days wage to wash a car in M'sia, where else it just cost 1 hour's wage in Australia...

Similarly for meal at mcdonald's, restaurants, etc. eating out in australia may be expensive in absolute number but not relative to income.

tax on income is high in australia because of the welfare system e.g pensions, etc.

wages is high in australia largely because of legislation (trade man must be licensed), trade union, etc and policy to even income between blue collar and white collar workers.

if one find expensive to retire in sydney could relocate to queensland, house price difference would be more than enough to live a comfortable life.