Strata property in Malaysia explained: titles, fees, JMB and MC

Most condos, apartments and serviced apartments in Malaysia are strata property, and so are many gated landed estates. Owners buy their own unit and share everything else. This guide covers the words, the money, who runs the building and the laws behind it.

What strata means

A strata development is split into parcels and common property. A parcel is the unit an owner buys. Common property is everything shared outside the parcels, such as lifts, corridors, the pool and the grounds. Owners pay together to run and repair the common property.

Strata title

• Strata title (hakmilik strata, 分层地契) is the title for one unit in a building or scheme with shared common property.
• Before strata titles are issued, the whole land sits under a master title (hakmilik induk, 总地契). Until then, transfers go through the developer.
• Gated and guarded landed estates are often under strata title too.

Share units

Each parcel has a share unit (unit syer, 份额单位). Share units decide how the maintenance fees are split and how many votes each owner has.

Maintenance fee and sinking fund

House rules (by-laws)

Every strata scheme has by-laws, the house rules all owners and tenants follow. They can restrict things such as short stays. In Kuala Lumpur, DBKL has banned adding partitioned bedrooms in commercial titled strata units, such as serviced apartments and SoHos, since 1 August 2023.

Who runs the building: three stages

JMB and MC committees are volunteers. They collect the maintenance fees and sinking fund, appoint contractors and often hire a property manager.

Property managers

A property manager (pengurus harta, 产业管理师), also called a managing agent, runs the building day to day for the developer, JMB or MC, or manages rental units for owners. They are paid a management fee. Property managers must be registered with the Board of Valuers, Appraisers, Estate Agents and Property Managers (BOVAEP or LPPEH), the same Board that registers estate agents and valuers under Act 242.

The laws and who enforces them

• Strata Titles Act 1985: the law on issuing strata titles.
• Strata Management Act 2013: the law on how strata buildings are managed, including the developer period, JMBs, MCs, maintenance fees and the sinking fund. It came into force on 1 June 2015 in Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, according to Low & Partners.
• Commissioner of Buildings (COB): sits at the local council and oversees JMBs and MCs.
• Strata Management Tribunal: run under KPKT, it hears strata disputes.
• Sabah and Sarawak have their own strata laws.

Buying a strata unit from a developer

• The statutory SPA for strata homes is Schedule H.
• Vacant possession is due within 36 months of the SPA. If late, the developer pays LAD of 10% a year of the price.
• The defect liability period is 24 months from vacant possession.
• The housing development law does not cover commercial property, which includes many SoHo, SoVo and serviced apartment projects. A new Property Development Act to cover them has been proposed but not yet passed.

How big strata is, and what is changing

Malaysia has nearly 3 million strata units in more than 27,000 schemes, according to The Star (10 August 2026). The government is studying amendments to the Strata Management Act to make JMBs and MCs more accountable. The National Housing Policy 2026 to 2035 also plans a new Building Managers Act for high-rise management. Neither had been tabled in Parliament as of October 2026.

This guide explains how strata works in general. For a dispute or a specific building, check the by-laws and speak to the COB, a registered property manager or a lawyer.