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By Jason Lim, REN 84424 · IQI Realty · Checked on 15 November 2026
For owners who want to sell a new-launch home in Johor or elsewhere in Peninsular Malaysia before it is completed, and for buyers of such units, the short answer: you cannot transfer a title that does not exist yet, so you sell your rights under the original sale and purchase agreement (SPA) by a deed of assignment. For a home covered by the Housing Development Act, the developer’s consent is not needed: the assignment takes effect once the developer receives written notice of it. If you have a loan, you also need your bank’s redemption figures and release. The buyer takes over the remaining progress payments, pays stamp duty on the assignment as if it were a transfer, and you may owe real property gains tax (RPGT), often at the higher early-years rates because projects take years to build.
Quick answer
- How: a sale agreement plus a deed of assignment of your rights under the developer’s SPA, with written notice to the developer. Under section 22D of the Housing Development Act, the developer’s consent is not required for a home under the Act before its separate or strata title is issued.
- Developer’s fee: for those homes, the developer may charge up to RM50 for each request to confirm its records, and it is an offence for the developer to require consent or impose conditions on the assignment. Units outside the Act, such as commercial units, follow their own SPA, which may require consent and a fee; in a 2019 case on such a contract, the Court of Appeal held a flat 1% fee unreasonable and treated RM500 as reasonable on those facts, as the National House Buyers Association described in September 2022.
- Your bank: it holds an assignment of your SPA rights as security, so it must be paid off and reassign them before the buyer’s bank steps in.
- Stamp duty: LHDN treats an assignment of an equitable interest in property as a conveyance on sale: 1%, 2%, 3% and 4% bands, or 8% for foreign buyers of residential property from 2026.
- RPGT: 30% of the gain within three years for citizens and PRs, 20% in year four, 15% in year five, nil from year six; foreigners pay 30% up to year five.
- Buyer’s protection: the Housing Development Act treats a later purchaser as a “homebuyer” for the Tribunal for Homebuyer Claims.
Why an under-construction sale is different
Before completion there is no individual or strata title in your name to transfer; what you own is a contract with the developer. So you assign that contract, and the buyer steps into your shoes for the rest of the build, the handover and, later, the title. For housing under the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966, section 22D says an absolute assignment in writing takes effect when the developer receives express written notice of it, without the developer’s consent, as long as the separate or strata title has not been issued. The statutory sale agreement says the same: clause 31 of the 2015 Schedule G lets the purchaser assign without the developer’s consent, on notice, once the price is fully paid or once the developer and the purchaser’s bank have exchanged the undertakings the agreement requires. If your SPA is not on the statutory Schedule G or H form, ask your lawyer whether the unit is covered by the Act; if it is not, the SPA’s own assignment clause applies.
For background on the contract you are passing on, see my guides to the new-launch progressive payment schedule, the SPA and buying without an individual strata title.
The steps, from offer to the buyer taking over
- Check your own SPA and loan. Check whether it is on the statutory Schedule G or H form, read the clause on assignment, and look for your loan’s lock-in period or early settlement fee in the letter of offer.
- Ask the developer for a statement. How much has been billed and paid, whether anything is overdue (sums due to the developer are settled when notice of the assignment is given), and how it wants that notice delivered.
- Get your bank’s redemption statement. The amount disbursed so far plus interest is what must be repaid.
- Agree the price and sign an offer, with an earnest deposit held by a stakeholder, usually a lawyer.
- Sign the sale agreement and deed of assignment. Each side normally has its own lawyer. The agreement should be conditional on the buyer’s loan and, for a foreign buyer, state consent. Developer consent is a condition only if the unit is outside the Housing Development Act and its SPA requires it.
- Developer’s confirmation. The lawyers or the buyer’s bank ask the developer to confirm its records: the unit, the current purchaser, any bank holding an assignment and the amount still payable. Section 22D caps the fee at RM50 per request.
- Completion. The buyer’s bank redeems your loan, your bank reassigns your rights, the balance due to you is paid, and the RPGT retention goes to LHDN. Written notice of the assignment goes to the developer with the stamped SPA, the executed deed (or an undertaking to deliver it once stamped, within 14 days) and any sums due to it, and the developer records the buyer in its register of purchasers.
- The buyer carries on. Future progress bills go to the buyer, the buyer receives vacant possession and, when the title is issued, the transfer is registered in the buyer’s name.
Notice to the developer, consent and fees
For a home under the Housing Development Act, section 22D settles the point: before the separate or strata title is issued, the developer’s consent is not required for an absolute assignment. The assignment takes effect when the developer receives written notice, given at or after completion of your sale with the stamped SPA, the executed deed of assignment (or an undertaking to deliver it once stamped, within 14 days) and payment of any sums due to the developer. The developer must keep an up-to-date register of purchasers and confirm its records to the purchaser, their lawyers or bank on request, for a fee of no more than RM50 per request. A developer that requires consent or imposes conditions contrary to the section commits an offence, with a fine of RM50,000 to RM100,000, up to three years’ jail, or both.
Units outside the Act, for example offices and other commercial units, are different: their SPA may require the developer’s written consent and an administration fee. If that applies to you, ask for the amount in writing early and agree who pays it.
Courts have looked at excessive fees under such contracts. In a September 2022 article, the National House Buyers Association described a 2019 Court of Appeal decision in which a developer had demanded RM65,000, a flat 1% of the owner’s bank facility, as its fee for consenting to an assignment of the property to a bank; the court found the flat percentage an unreasonable use of discretion, noting that the paperwork is the same whatever the value, and treated a nominal RM500 as fair on those facts. That was one case on its own contract, not a fixed national cap, so read your SPA and ask your lawyer if a fee looks out of line.
Your bank: redemption and reassignment
With a new-launch loan, your bank holds an assignment of your SPA rights as security instead of a registered charge. To sell, the bank must be repaid the amount disbursed so far, plus interest, and then reassign your rights so they can pass to the buyer. In practice the buyer’s lawyer and bank deal with your bank’s redemption statement and undertakings, much like any sale where the seller still has a loan. Watch three things:
- Lock-in or early settlement fees in your letter of offer.
- Progress bills that fall due during the sale. Agree in writing who pays them and how they are credited at completion, because late payment to the developer carries interest at 10% a year under the statutory forms.
- Loan protection tied to the loan. If you took MRTA or MRTT, check what happens to it on redemption; see MRTA vs MLTA.
How the money flows against progressive billing
Under the statutory Schedule G and H forms you pay 10% on signing and 65% across eight construction stages, then 17.5% at vacant possession, 2.5% on title and 5% held by the developer’s lawyer. When you sell midway, the buyer in effect pays three parties: your bank for what it has disbursed, you for your own cash and any difference between your price and the new one, and the developer for the stages still to come. An illustration with made-up figures:
| Item (made-up figures) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Original SPA price with the developer | RM600,000 |
| Billed so far: 10% deposit (seller’s cash) plus 35% in stages (seller’s loan) | RM270,000 |
| Still to be billed by the developer (55%) | RM330,000 |
| Agreed price with the new buyer | RM640,000 |
| Buyer pays the seller’s bank: the amount disbursed | About RM210,000 |
| Buyer pays the seller: the 10% deposit plus the RM40,000 difference, before any unpaid interest, the RPGT retention and costs | About RM100,000 |
| Buyer pays the developer as future stages are billed | RM330,000 |
If the agreed price is below what you owe the bank plus what is still to be billed, you need to top up the shortfall at completion; my guide to selling below your loan covers that case.
Thinking of selling before completion?
Send me the project, your SPA price, the stage reached and your loan balance. I’ll lay out the money flow and the costs on your side, and recent transacted prices for similar units, before you set an asking price.
WhatsApp JasonStamp duty on the deed of assignment
LHDN’s stamp duty guideline of 30 June 2026 says an agreement for the sale or assignment of an equitable interest in property is charged ad valorem as a conveyance on sale under Item 32, on the higher of the price or market value. The buyer normally pays it.
| Value band | Rate |
|---|---|
| First RM100,000 | 1% |
| RM100,001 to RM500,000 | 2% |
| RM500,001 to RM1,000,000 | 3% |
| Above RM1,000,000 | 4% |
| Residential property sold to a non-citizen who is not a PR, or a foreign company (from 1 January 2026) | 8% flat (Item 32(ab)) |
Ask your lawyer how the transfer will be stamped when the title is later issued, and whether any first-home exemption applies to the buyer’s assignment. My stamp duty guide for 2026 has the wider rules.
RPGT: why timing matters
RPGT is charged on the gain, not the price. LHDN takes the disposal date as the date of the written agreement, so your holding period runs from your SPA with the developer to the date you sign with the buyer. Because many projects take three years or more to build, a sale before completion often lands in the higher brackets.
| Disposal in | Citizens and PRs | Foreign individuals |
|---|---|---|
| Years 1 to 3 | 30% | 30% |
| Year 4 | 20% | 30% |
| Year 5 | 15% | 30% |
| Year 6 onwards | 0% | 10% |
| Buyer’s retention from the price, paid to LHDN within 60 days | 3% | 7% |
In the example above, a RM40,000 gain less allowable costs taxed at 30% would be up to RM12,000, and the buyer’s 3% retention of RM19,200 would be credited against it. A citizen or PR can also elect the once-in-a-lifetime exemption on one private residence. My RPGT guide and what sellers pay go further.
Seller’s costs
- Developer’s fees, if the agreement puts them on you: up to RM50 per records confirmation for a home under the Housing Development Act, or the SPA’s administration fee for a unit outside it.
- Your lawyer’s fees, on the Solicitors’ Remuneration Order 2023 scale, plus disbursements; see legal fees.
- Loan costs: interest to redemption and any lock-in fee.
- RPGT on any gain, after the retention is credited.
- Agent’s fee if you appoint one: up to 3% of the price under the official scale of the Board of Valuers, Appraisers, Estate Agents and Property Managers, plus service tax. You can sell yourself; my guide to selling without an agent sets out what that involves, and exclusive vs open listings explains your options if you appoint one.
Risks for the seller and the buyer
| For the seller | For the buyer |
|---|---|
| The buyer’s loan is rejected or a required consent is refused (state consent for a foreign buyer, or developer consent for a unit outside the Housing Development Act), and the sale stalls; make the agreement conditional and agree what happens to the deposit | The project is delayed or stalls; check its status on KPKT’s TEDUH portal and read about abandoned projects |
| You remain liable to the developer until the sale completes and the developer receives notice of the assignment | Arrears or late interest on the seller’s account; get the developer’s written statement of payments |
| Progress bills and interest keep running while the sale is pending | A broken chain of documents; every SPA and stamped deed must be in order |
| RPGT at early-years rates | Late delivery damages and defects: agree in writing who receives any LAD for the period before the assignment |
| Selling below the amount owed | A foreign buyer needs Johor state approval and must meet the RM1 million minimum, with only limited exceptions (for example, some serviced apartments sold by developers with state approval); no area is exempt as a whole |
Buyers keep their protections. Section 16A of the Housing Development Act 1966 defines a “homebuyer” for the Tribunal for Homebuyer Claims to include someone who buys from the first purchaser, so late-delivery and defect claims can still be pursued there; see my tribunal guide and late vacant possession and LAD. Foreign buyers should read state consent in Johor and Johor’s minimum price for foreigners; sellers with a foreign buyer can start with selling to a foreign buyer.
Where to buy if this matters to you
Assignment sales come up most where many projects are still being built: around JB Sentral and Bukit Chagar near the RTS Link, Iskandar Puteri, Danga Bay and Tebrau. Compare subsale and new launch, see current new launches in JB, and check any developer with my developer checklist.
More Johor living guides: What sellers pay · Subsale timeline in JB · Choosing a conveyancing lawyer · Vacant possession defect checklist
Frequently asked questions
Can I sell my property before it is completed in Malaysia?
Usually yes, by assigning your rights under the developer’s SPA to the buyer with a deed of assignment. For a home under the Housing Development Act, the developer’s consent is not required; the assignment takes effect when the developer receives written notice. If you have a loan, your bank must be repaid and reassign your rights. Check your SPA first: a unit outside the Act follows its own assignment clause.
Does the developer charge a fee for an assignment?
For a home under the Housing Development Act, the developer cannot require consent and may charge no more than RM50 for each request to confirm its records. For a unit outside the Act, the SPA sets the fee and there is no fixed national amount; in a 2019 Court of Appeal case described by the National House Buyers Association, a flat 1% fee was held unreasonable and RM500 was treated as fair on those facts. Ask the developer for its fee in writing.
Who pays stamp duty on a deed of assignment?
The buyer, normally. LHDN charges it as a conveyance on sale at 1% to 4% in bands, on the higher of the price or market value, and at 8% for foreign buyers of residential property from 1 January 2026.
Do I pay RPGT if I sell before vacant possession?
Yes, if there is a gain. The holding period runs from your SPA date to the date of the sale agreement, so early sales often fall in the 30%, 20% or 15% brackets for citizens and PRs. The buyer retains 3% of the price (7% for foreign sellers) for LHDN.
Who pays the progress bills after I sell?
Bills issued after the assignment completes go to the buyer. For bills falling due while the sale is pending, agree in writing who pays and how it is credited, because late payment carries 10% a year interest under the statutory SPA.
Can the second buyer still claim late delivery damages?
Section 16A of the Housing Development Act treats a purchaser from the first buyer as a homebuyer for the Tribunal for Homebuyer Claims. Agree in the sale agreement who receives any damages for the period before the assignment.
Selling or buying an under-construction unit in JB?
Tell me the project, the stage and your numbers. If you are selling, I will check recent prices for similar units, work through the money flow and costs, and market the unit; if you are buying, I will help you check the developer’s statement and the seller’s loan position before you commit. You can also book an appointment, or a Zoom consultation if you are abroad.
Sources: Bar Council, Circular No. 104/2007, Q&A on section 22D of the Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966 (developer consent not required; RM50 confirmation fee), 2007; Housing Development (Control and Licensing) (Amendment) Act 2007 (Act A1289), inserting section 22D; Chang Kim Loong and Jo Ee Chang (National House Buyers Association), “Nominal administrative fees of RM500 fair and reasonable: landmark ruling”, The Vibes, 14 September 2022; LHDN, Garis Panduan Pengenaan Duti Setem, First Schedule, Stamp Act 1949, 30 June 2026; LHDN, Real Property Gains Tax rates, checked November 2026; LHDN, disposal date and acquisition date, checked November 2026; LHDN, retention and remittance by the acquirer, updated 25 May 2026; LHDN, RPGT exemptions, updated 22 June 2026; Housing Development (Control and Licensing) (Amendment) Regulations 2015, P.U.(A) 106/2015, Schedule G clause 31, in force 1 July 2015; AGC Laws of Malaysia: Housing Development (Control and Licensing) Act 1966 (Act 118), sections 3, 16A and 22D, checked November 2026; KPKT / Jabatan Perumahan Negara, TEDUH portal, checked November 2026; LPPEH (BOVAEP), scale of fees for estate agency, checked November 2026; Bar Council, Circular No. 185/2023, Solicitors’ Remuneration Order 2023, 13 July 2023; 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 15 November 2026, not legal, tax or financial advice. Your SPA and loan documents decide the actual process and costs; ask your lawyer, your bank and a tax agent before you sign.