Built-up area vs land area in Malaysia (2026): sq ft, sq m, strata parcels and price per square foot

中文 · Bahasa Melayu · Bahasa Indonesia

By Jason Lim, REN 84424 · IQI Realty · Checked on 12 November 2026

This guide is for buyers from Singapore, Indonesia, India, China and Malaysia who are comparing homes in Johor Bahru and keep seeing different size figures for the same unit. The short answer: land area is the size of the plot a landed house sits on, and it is what the land title records, in square metres. Built-up area is the floor space of the building itself. For a condo, the figure that counts legally is the parcel area on the strata title, which can differ from the brochure. Always compare price per square foot on the same kind of area.

The size terms you will see, at a glance

Term	What it measures	Where you see it
Land area (keluasan tanah)	The plot of a landed home, boundary to boundary	Land title, Schedule G SPA, layout plan
Built-up area	Floor space of the building on all floors	Brochures, price lists, listings, valuation reports
Strata parcel area	The surveyed area of one strata unit	Strata plan, strata title, Schedule H SPA
Accessory parcel	A space tied to a main parcel, such as a car park bay	Accessory parcel plan, strata title
Gross and net (internal) area	Loose marketing terms: “gross” often includes walls, balconies and ledges; “net” or internal means floor space inside the walls	Brochures and listings; no single legal definition for homes

Land area for landed homes

For a terrace, semi-D or bungalow, the land title shows the lot and its area. The statutory SPA form for new landed homes, Schedule G under the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Regulations 1989, describes the lot in square metres.

Brochures in Johor Bahru still talk in feet, for example “22 x 75 ft”, which is 1,650 sq ft or about 153.3 m². Convert the title figure and check it against what you were told.

• New launches. In the Schedule G text published by the National House Buyers Association, the price is adjusted at a rate per square metre if the final title area differs from the layout plan, and any increase the developer can charge is capped at 2% of the lot’s area. Read the clause in your own SPA, because forms are amended over time.
• Minimum lot sizes. Johor Bahru City Council’s housing planning guideline sets minimum lots for new terrace layouts, for example 18 x 65 ft (1,170 sq ft) for a two- or three-storey intermediate lot and 38 x 65 ft for a corner or end lot beside a road.
• Corner lots. Most of a corner’s extra size is land, not floor space. My guide to corner lot vs intermediate terrace shows how to compare them.

Built-up area: landed and strata

Built-up area is the floor space of the building on all floors. No single definition is used in every brochure, so ask what is included:

• Car porch: often left out of built-up area for landed homes, but not always.
• Balconies, planter boxes and AC ledges: often counted in brochure figures for condos, though you cannot live in an AC ledge.
• Yard or service area: counted by some, not by others.
• Extensions in a subsale house: a rear kitchen or extra room may be in the listing figure but not on the approved plan. My guide to illegal extensions explains why that matters.
• Wall thickness: a figure measured over the walls is bigger than the floor you can use.

Strata units: parcel area vs accessory parcels

A condo, serviced apartment or strata house is a parcel under the Strata Titles Act 1985. Its area is surveyed for the strata plan and printed on the strata title. Spaces tied to your unit but not part of it can be drawn as accessory parcels, which are shown on an accessory parcel plan and linked to your main parcel.

• Car park bays are the usual accessory parcels. In many buildings, though, bays are common property allocated by management rather than accessory parcels on your title.
• Balconies, yards, AC ledges and roof terraces may sit inside the main parcel or be shown separately; it depends on the strata plan, so check it.
• An accessory parcel goes with the unit. It cannot be sold or charged on its own, as my strata title guide explains.

Brochure vs SPA vs title: why the numbers differ

For a new strata unit, the statutory SPA form is Schedule H (Schedule J is the build-then-sell version). It states the parcel’s area in square metres and attaches the floor, storey, site and accessory parcel plans. The brochure figure is marketing; the SPA plans and, later, the title are what you buy.

Schedule H also has a clause for area differences. In the text published by the National House Buyers Association, the buyer gets a price adjustment if the strata title area is smaller than the building plan area by more than 3%, and the developer gets no adjustment if the area turns out larger. Check the clause and percentage in your own SPA with your lawyer, as the form has been amended over the years.

On resale, the same unit can show several figures:

Source	Usual basis	Why it may differ
Developer brochure	Built-up area in sq ft, often including balcony and ledges	Marketing figure; inclusions vary by developer
SPA (Schedule G or H)	Lot or parcel area in m² from the approved plans	Before final survey; adjusted under the area clause
Land or strata title	Surveyed area in m²	Final, surveyed figure; may exclude accessory parcels
Listing sites	Whatever the person listing typed in	Rounding, conversion errors, brochure copied, extensions added

Mismatched sizes are one of the warning signs in my guide to floor plan red flags. For subsale units, the title is the figure to trust; my guide to land title searches covers how to get a copy.

Conversion table: square feet, square metres, acres

From	To	Multiply by	Example
Square metres (m²)	Square feet (sq ft)	10.764	100 m² = 1,076 sq ft
Square feet	Square metres	0.0929	1,000 sq ft = 92.9 m²
Acres	Square feet	43,560	1 acre = 43,560 sq ft
Acres	Square metres	4,046.86	1 acre = about 4,047 m²
Hectares	Square metres	10,000	1 ha = 10,000 m² = 107,639 sq ft
Hectares	Acres	2.471	1 ha = about 2.47 acres

How price per square foot is worked out

Price per square foot (psf) is the price divided by the area. The catch is which area: a lower psf can simply mean a bigger area was used.

Illustration only	Area used	Price per sq ft
Condo at RM650,000	Brochure built-up, 1,000 sq ft (incl. balcony and AC ledges)	RM650
Same condo	Title parcel area, say 930 sq ft	About RM699
Terrace at RM900,000	Built-up area, 2,200 sq ft	About RM409
Same terrace	Land area, 22 x 75 ft = 1,650 sq ft	About RM545

• Compare like with like. Use the same basis for every unit: title or SPA area if you have it, otherwise brochure built-up area for all of them.
• For landed homes, work out both. Price per sq ft of built-up area and of land. A corner lot often looks costly on the first and better value on the second.
• Check recorded prices on the same basis. When you look up past sales, check whether the area shown is land or floor area. My guide to checking transaction prices walks through this.

Maintenance fees follow share units, not brochure size

Under the Strata Management Act 2013, your service charges and sinking fund contributions are your share units multiplied by a rate from the building’s budget. A Penang Land and Mines Office guideline explains the share unit formula:

• Main parcel: parcel area in m² x a weighting for the type of parcel (1.00 for an apartment or SOHO in a building with lifts and no central air-conditioning) x a floor weighting that only applies to whole-floor parcels.
• Accessory parcels: area x 0.50 if inside the building, or 0.25 if outside.
• Rounded to a whole number.

So a 92.9 m² (1,000 sq ft) apartment with a 12.5 m² car park accessory parcel inside the building gets about 93 + 6 = 99 share units in this illustration. Real figures are in the developer’s schedule of parcels and on the strata title, and older buildings may differ. My guide to maintenance fees and sinking funds shows how to estimate the yearly cost.

Measuring on site

A quick check at a viewing catches big gaps:

1. Bring the floor plan from the SPA or title plan, not just the brochure.
2. Use a laser measure for the main rooms and multiply length by width. Internal room sizes will add up to less than the built-up figure, because walls, columns and ducts take space.
3. Note what is outdoor space: balcony, yard, AC ledges, planter boxes.
4. For landed homes, walk the boundary. Compare fences with the lot shape on the title plan; a fence beyond the boundary does not add land you own.

My subsale house inspection checklist covers the rest of the viewing.

Where to buy if this matters to you

• Mount Austin: terraces, semi-Ds and condos side by side, so land and built-up comparisons come up often.
• Tebrau, Setia Indah and Molek: established landed areas where extensions are common, so check plans against the listing size.
• Iskandar Puteri: newer landed schemes and condos with recent SPAs and titles.
• JB Sentral and Bukit Chagar: city-centre condos and serviced apartments where accessory parcels and share units matter.

Compare them on my JB property map, and see my guide to landed house types in Malaysia.

More Johor living guides: Floor plan red flags · Corner lot vs intermediate terrace · Strata title explained · Maintenance fees and sinking funds

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between built-up area and land area?

Land area is the size of the plot a landed house stands on, as recorded on the title. Built-up area is the floor space of the building on all its floors, so a double-storey terrace can have more built-up area than land.

Why is the size on my strata title smaller than the brochure?

Brochures often quote a built-up figure that includes balconies, ledges or walls, while the strata title shows the surveyed parcel area, and car park bays may be separate accessory parcels. The Schedule H SPA has a clause adjusting the price if the title area is smaller than the plan by more than a set percentage; check yours with your lawyer.

How do I convert square metres to square feet?

Multiply square metres by 10.764. For example, 100 m² is about 1,076 sq ft, and 153.3 m² is about 1,650 sq ft. To go the other way, multiply square feet by 0.0929. One acre is 43,560 sq ft.

Should I compare price per square foot on built-up or land area?

For condos, use the same built-up or parcel area basis for every unit. For landed homes, work out both, because a corner lot can look expensive per square foot of built-up area and better value per square foot of land.

Is a car park bay included in my condo’s area?

Only if the strata plan shows it as an accessory parcel linked to your unit, and then it is listed separately from the main parcel. In many buildings bays are common property allocated by management.

Are condo maintenance fees based on square feet?

They are based on share units, which come from the parcel area with weightings for the type of parcel and for accessory parcels. In practice a bigger unit has more share units and pays more, but the brochure size is not the figure used.

Not sure which size figure to trust?

Tell me the unit or house you are looking at and the figures you were given. I will ask for the title or SPA area, check what the built-up figure includes, and compare similar units on the same basis. You can also book an appointment for viewings, or a Zoom consultation if you are still abroad.

Sources: Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Regulations 1989, Schedule G (land and building) SPA form, clause 13, text published by the National House Buyers Association, checked November 2026; Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Regulations 1989, Schedule H (building or land intended for subdivision into parcels) SPA form, recitals, clauses 13 and 35, text published by the National House Buyers Association, checked November 2026; Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Regulations 1989, regulation 11 and Schedules G to J, as amended to 1 December 2007, checked November 2026; Penang Land and Mines Office, Share Units Formula Guideline, checked November 2026; Strata Management Act 2013 (Act 757), charges and sinking fund provisions, accessed November 2026; Majlis Bandaraya Johor Bahru (MBJB), Garis Panduan Perancangan Perumahan (housing planning guideline), PR 05 terrace houses, uploaded February 2023, checked November 2026; NIST Handbook 44, Appendix C, General Tables of Units of Measurement, 2026 edition

Jason Lim, REN 84424, IQI Realty Sdn. Bhd. E (1) 1584/6. General information checked on 12 November 2026, not legal or valuation advice. SPA forms, titles and building allocations differ; confirm areas with your lawyer, the title and, where needed, a licensed land surveyor before you sign.