Furnished vs Unfurnished Rental in Johor Bahru: A Landlord’s Guide (2026)

By Jason Lim, REN 84424 · IQI Realty · Checked on 11 November 2026

This guide is for owners letting a Johor Bahru home, whether you live in JB, Singapore, Indonesia, India or China. The short answer: partly furnished (air-conditioners, water heaters, kitchen cabinets, lights, fans and curtains) is the usual middle ground in JB; fully furnished suits tenants who move at short notice, such as Singapore commuters, students and expatriates; and unfurnished suits families staying several years. A signed inventory with dated photos protects both sides, and for an ordinary (non-business) let LHDN allows a deduction for replacing furniture and air-conditioners.

Unfurnished, partly furnished or fully furnished: what each means in JB

These labels are used loosely in JB listings, so always check the item list rather than the label:

Level	What is usually included	Tends to suit	For the landlord
Unfurnished	Lights and ceiling fans; sometimes nothing else. New units may lack even kitchen cabinets.	Families and long-stay tenants who bring their own furniture	Lowest spend and fewest repairs; fewer tenants can move in at once
Partly furnished	Air-conditioners, water heaters, kitchen cabinets, lights and fans, curtains. Sometimes a fridge or washing machine.	Most local tenants, families and many working couples	The basics tenants expect; moderate spend
Fully furnished	Partly furnished items plus beds, wardrobes, sofa, dining set, fridge and washing machine	Singapore commuters, students, expatriates on one-year contracts, newcomers and remote workers	Highest spend and most wear; suits quick move-ins

Fitting out a new unit? Check what was handed over first: some new condos come without kitchen cabinets, air-conditioners or water heaters.

Who rents which in Johor Bahru

• Families staying several years often own furniture and prefer unfurnished or partly furnished homes, especially landed houses and larger condos near schools. Malay Mail reported in October 2026 that a relocation adviser suggested Singapore families rent first to test JB.
• Singapore commuters often want to move in with a suitcase, so fully furnished units near the checkpoints and the future RTS Link station tend to suit them. The RTS Link is planned to open in February 2027, subject to safety certification; see my RTS Link update and living in JB and working in Singapore.
• Students usually want furnished rooms or units near campus; see student housing near JB universities and renting out rooms.
• Expatriates and company lets on fixed contracts often want fully furnished units and may ask for an early-exit (diplomatic) clause; see ending a tenancy early.
• Short stays need full furnishing and follow different rules. In October 2026 the housing ministry said national short-term rental guidelines were being finalised (The Star); see my Airbnb and short-stay rules guide.

These are general patterns; the best guide is how similar units in your building are let.

Does furnishing raise the rent?

A furnished unit usually asks more than the same unit unfurnished, but there is no official rent index for Johor Bahru, and I found no reliable published figure for the gap in November 2026. It varies with the building, unit size, furniture quality and competing listings, and portal figures are asking rents, not agreed rents. To judge it for your unit, weigh:

• Like-for-like asking rents: same building, similar size, floor and facing, furnished vs unfurnished, listed recently.
• Set-up and replacement costs: itemised quotes now, plus mattresses, sofas and appliances that wear out faster in a let unit.
• Time to let and tenant length: an empty month costs a month’s rent, and commuters and students may move more often than families.

I can pull current asking rents for furnished and unfurnished units in your building and share how quickly they have been letting.

Setting up a partly or fully furnished unit

For partly furnished, tenants in JB generally expect air-conditioners in the living room and bedrooms, water heaters in each bathroom, kitchen cabinets, lights and fans, and curtains. Check the condo’s rules on outdoor aircon units, ledges and drainage pipes first; my aircon guide covers sizing, energy labels and servicing. Fully furnished adds beds and mattresses, wardrobes, a sofa, a dining set, a fridge and a washing machine. Choose durable, easy-to-clean items.

Suruhanjaya Tenaga (the Energy Commission) regulates household electrical equipment. Its guidelines on approving electrical equipment (sixth edition, May 2018) list air-conditioners, water heaters, refrigerators, washing machines and fans among regulated items that need its approval before sale and must carry the SIRIM-ST label. Check for the label, keep receipts and warranty cards for repairs, claims and tax records, and get a licensed electrician to install and earth water heaters and other wired-in items. Costs vary with unit size and specification; my renovation and furnishing costs guide explains what drives them.

The inventory list and photos at check-in and check-out

The more you furnish, the more the inventory matters: it is your evidence for any deposit deduction and the tenant’s protection against unfair ones. Malaysia has no Residential Tenancy Act in force; on 4 August 2026 the deputy housing minister said the bill was still being finalised (Bernama), and I found no report of tabling by early November 2026. The agreement and its inventory do the work.

Record	What to include
Item list, room by room	Every item with a short description, quantity and condition (new, good, fair, marked). Include remotes, curtain rails, light fittings and kitchen items.
Dated photos and a short video	Each wall, floor and ceiling, each furniture item, close-ups of existing marks, inside the fridge and cabinets.
Appliance details	Age, last aircon service date, and that each appliance worked at handover.
Meter readings and keys	Electricity and water readings; number of keys, access cards, car park stickers and remotes.
Signatures	Both sides sign the inventory at check-in and again at check-out, noting any disagreement on the day.

Deposits follow the usual JB pattern of two months’ security deposit, one month’s advance rent and about half a month for utilities (Malay Mail, July 2026); no law fixes the amounts, so some landlords agree different terms for a fully furnished unit. Write in what can be deducted and the refund deadline. My guides to tenancy agreements for JB landlords and rental deposit refunds go into detail.

Wear and tear vs damage, and who repairs what

Fair wear and tear is the natural decline of a home and its contents through ordinary, careful use. A tenant pays for damage, not age, and a fair deduction covers putting something right, not a brand-new replacement.

Usually fair wear and tear (landlord’s cost)	Usually damage (tenant’s cost, if the agreement allows)
Faded curtains and sofa fabric after years of sun	Burns, large stains or tears in upholstery and mattresses
An old water heater or aircon compressor failing with normal use	Appliances broken by misuse, or aircon damaged by skipped servicing the tenant agreed to do
Light scuffs on walls and floors	Holes, pet damage, and missing items, keys or access cards

For repairs, the common JB split is that the owner pays for structural problems, concealed leaks and appliances that fail through normal use, while the tenant pays for damage they cause and for minor repairs and aircon servicing up to a cap in the agreement. A furnished let has more items, so set the cap clearly. For disputes, see what landlords can do when a tenant stops paying.

Tax: furniture, fittings and your rental income

LHDN’s Public Ruling No. 12/2018, Income from Letting of Real Property (19 December 2018, still listed as current on LHDN’s site in November 2026), sets out how rent is taxed. The points that matter for furnishing:

• Business or non-business source. Most individual landlords are taxed under paragraph 4(d) of the Income Tax Act 1967, a non-business source. Letting is a business source under paragraph 4(a) only where support services are provided comprehensively and actively; services provided passively, such as by a management corporation, do not count.
• Replacing furnishings. For a furnished property let as a non-business source, paragraph 12 says the cost of replacing furnishings such as furniture and air-conditioners can be deducted from the gross rental income.
• Capital allowances. Paragraph 10 applies the capital allowance rules in Schedule 3 to letting that is a business source. A non-business landlord therefore relies on the replacement deduction rather than capital allowances.
• Other deductions. Paragraph 8.2 lists assessment and quit rent, loan interest, fire insurance, rent collection, renewing a tenancy or changing tenants, and ordinary repairs.
• Not deductible. Paragraph 8.3 disallows initial expenses of getting the first tenant, such as advertising, the first agreement’s legal cost, stamp duty and agent’s commission.
• Empty periods. Paragraph 8.4 generally disallows expenses while a property is not let, except where it was let before and is kept ready to let again, such as during repairs or for up to two years after a tenancy ends.

Illustration with made-up figures: you let a furnished condo as a non-business source and replace a worn-out washing machine for RM1,200 in 2026. Under paragraph 12, that RM1,200 can be claimed against your 2026 rental income. Furniture bought before the first tenancy is different, so record first purchases and replacements separately and ask a tax agent.

Non-resident individuals pay a flat 30% on Malaysian rental income with no personal reliefs (LHDN). My rental income tax guide covers rates and filing. This is general information, not tax advice; confirm with LHDN or a licensed tax agent.

Insuring the contents

Building cover does not protect your furniture and appliances; that needs a householder (contents) policy, while houseowner and fire policies cover the building (Malay Mail, November 2024). Tell the insurer the unit is let, ask how it treats theft and damage in a rented home and whether claims allow for depreciation, and remind tenants to insure their own belongings. See my home insurance guide. Not insurance advice; check the policy wording.

Re-letting between tenants

• Check out against the inventory and settle deductions with evidence.
• Service and refresh: service the air-conditioners, deep-clean, and repair or replace worn items before viewings, keeping receipts.
• Update the inventory and photos for the new tenant.
• Stamp the new agreement within 30 days. Under LHDN’s guideline of 30 June 2026, duty is RM1 per RM250 of annual rent for a term of up to one year, so RM2,000 a month for a year costs RM96.
• Meters and cards: take readings and reissue cards; see electricity and water bills, which rise with several air-conditioners.

Which should you choose?

Your situation	Often the better fit
Landed house or large condo near schools	Unfurnished or partly furnished, for families
Small unit near the checkpoints or the RTS Link station	Fully furnished, for commuters
Unit near a university	Fully furnished, possibly let by the room
You live abroad and cannot manage many repairs	Partly furnished: fewer items to maintain; see managing JB property from overseas
You may move in yourself or sell soon	Partly furnished keeps options open

Foreign owners follow the same letting rules. If you are still buying, foreigners can generally buy Johor residential property only from RM1 million (New Straits Times, April 2026); see Johor’s foreigner minimum price.

Where to buy if this matters to you

• JB Sentral and Bukit Chagar: near the CIQ and the RTS Link station; commuter demand.
• Mount Austin: families and working couples.
• Tebrau, Setia Indah and Molek: established family neighbourhoods.
• Iskandar Puteri: Medini, EduCity and the Second Link.
• Skudai, Tampoi and Kempas: near universities and industrial areas.
• Danga Bay: waterfront condos near the city.
• Permas Jaya and Senibong: east-side condos and landed homes.

Compare them on my JB property map, or read renting out property in Johor.

More Johor living guides: Tenancy agreements for JB landlords · Rental deposit refunds · Renovation and furnishing costs in JB · Renting out rooms in JB

Frequently asked questions

Is it better to rent out a JB condo furnished or unfurnished?

It depends on who rents in your area. Partly furnished is the usual middle ground in Johor Bahru. Fully furnished suits tenants who move at short notice, such as Singapore commuters, students and expatriates. Unfurnished suits families who own furniture and plan to stay for years.

What does partly furnished usually include in Johor Bahru?

Usually air-conditioners in the living room and bedrooms, water heaters in the bathrooms, kitchen cabinets, lights and fans, and curtains. Some landlords add a fridge or washing machine. There is no legal definition, so list every item in the tenancy agreement’s inventory.

How much more rent does a fully furnished unit get in JB?

There is no official rent index for Johor Bahru, so no reliable published figure exists for the gap. It varies by building, unit size and furniture quality. Compare current asking rents for similar units in the same building.

Can I claim furniture as a tax deduction on rental income in Malaysia?

Under LHDN’s Public Ruling No. 12/2018, if your letting is a non-business source, the cost of replacing furnishings such as furniture and air-conditioners can be deducted from the rental income. Capital allowances apply where letting is a business source. Not tax advice; check with LHDN or a tax agent.

Can a landlord deduct worn-out furniture from the tenant’s deposit?

Not for fair wear and tear, meaning the normal ageing of items through careful use. A landlord can usually deduct only what the agreement allows, such as damage beyond normal use, backed by the move-in inventory, dated photos and receipts or quotes.

Who pays to repair furniture and appliances in a rented unit?

Commonly, the owner pays when an appliance fails through normal use, and the tenant pays for damage they cause and for minor repairs and aircon servicing up to a cap in the agreement. Your agreement decides.

Letting your JB home?

Tell me the project, unit type and what it has now. I’ll tell you what tenants there usually expect, share asking rents for furnished and unfurnished units nearby, and help with the inventory and handover for lets I handle. You can also book an appointment, or a Zoom consultation if you are abroad.

Sources: LHDN, Public Rulings list (No. 12/2018, Income from Letting of Real Property, 19 December 2018), accessed November 2026; Chartered Tax Institute of Malaysia, summary of Public Ruling No. 12/2018 (paragraphs 4, 5, 8, 10 and 12), 20 December 2019; LHDN, Who is taxable (non-resident individuals), accessed November 2026; LHDN, Garis Panduan Pengenaan Duti Setem, First Schedule, Stamp Act 1949 (Item 49), 30 June 2026; Malay Mail, on rental deposits for first-time renters, 12 July 2026; Bernama, “Residential Tenancy Bill being finalised to balance rights of tenants and landlords”, 4 August 2026; Suruhanjaya Tenaga, Guidelines for the Approval of Electrical Equipment, sixth edition, 21 May 2018, checked November 2026; Malay Mail, guide to home insurance coverage and policies in Malaysia, 22 November 2024; Malay Mail, “From dreading JB to calling it home”, 13 October 2026; Malay Mail, “Johor-Singapore RTS Link fares expected by year-end”, 20 October 2026; The Star, short-term rental guidelines being finalised, 26 October 2026; New Straits Times, “Foreigners hit Johor property resale wall”, 20 April 2026

Jason Lim, REN 84424, IQI Realty Sdn. Bhd. E (1) 1584/6. General information checked on 11 November 2026, not legal, tax or insurance advice. Tax rules, practice and asking rents change; confirm with LHDN or a licensed tax agent, your lawyer and your insurer, and use a licensed electrician for wired-in appliances.