Tracker › Local rental types › Malaysian room rental and hostels
Room rental (bilik sewa), student hostels and worker quarters (CLQ) in Malaysia
Malaysia has three main kinds of room-based rental. Bilik sewa (room rental) is a room in a condo or landed house, rented to students and young workers. Student hostels (asrama) are run by universities or private operators. Worker quarters, including centralised labour quarters (CLQ, penginapan berpusat), house foreign and local workers. These are regulated under Act 446.
What is bilik sewa in English?
| Local term | In English | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| bilik sewa | room for rent | A room in a shared condo or house, rented monthly. | iBilik (room listings) (21 Oct 2026) |
| asrama / hostel pelajar | student hostel | University or private student accommodation. | Tracker: student housing in Malaysia (21 Oct 2026) |
| penginapan berpusat (CLQ) | centralised labour quarters | Worker accommodation run by a provider for several employers; needs a certificate under Act 446. | JTKSM FAQ: workers' housing, accommodation and amenities (21 Oct 2026) |
| Perakuan Penginapan | certificate of accommodation | The Act 446 certificate that employers and centralised providers must hold. | JTKSM FAQ (21 Oct 2026) |
Who rents it and for how long
Who: Room rental: students and young workers. CLQ and worker hostels: workers placed by employers.
Typical stay: Room rental: monthly. Worker quarters: linked to the job, with the employer arranging the place.
Key figures
- In 2025 the Labour Department (JTKSM) inspected 25,734 accommodation units (23,545 employers and 2,189 centralised accommodation providers). Selangor had 9,750 and Johor 4,042. It issued 8,053 accommodation certificates (7,440 to employers, 613 to centralised providers) from 10,094 applications (Annual Report 2025, Table 5). [source, Apr 2026]
Rules
- Act 446 (Employees' Minimum Standards of Housing, Accommodations and Amenities Act 1990) applies in Peninsular Malaysia and Labuan, not Sabah or Sarawak. Employers and centralised accommodation providers need a certificate of accommodation, applied for at akta446.mohr.gov.my. Fines go up to RM50,000; providers can also face up to 1 year in prison. [source, 21 Oct 2026]
- From 1 Mar 2026 the maximum accommodation charge that can be deducted from a worker is RM150 a month (P.U.(A) 49/2026; previously RM100), per JTKSM. [source, 1 Mar 2026]
- Malaysia's Residential Tenancy Bill, covering ordinary room and house rentals, had not been tabled as of 12 Aug 2026 (Free Malaysia Today). [source, 12 Aug 2026]
Main operators
- Andaraya Group (tracker record): Act 446 hostel management in Melaka, Penang, Johor Bahru and Selangor.
- Gembira CLQ Management (tracker record): CLQ in Johor Bahru (Tampoi).
- LiveIn (tracker record): Tracker record.
- WeStay (tracker record): Co-living and student rooms.
- Westlite Malaysia (Centurion) (tracker record): 13 purpose-built worker accommodation assets, c.36,006 beds (31 Mar 2025).
Student-housing and co-living operators in Malaysia are in the tracker, linked below.
Tracker coverage in Malaysia: Co-living in Malaysia (11) · Student housing (PBSA) in Malaysia (6) · Serviced apartments in Malaysia (3) · Worker dormitories in Malaysia (3) (22 records in total).
Where to find listings
| Site | What it lists | Status (checked) | Tranco rank* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Akta 446 portal (JTKSM) | Official portal for accommodation certificates (not listings) | live (HTTP 200) (21 Oct 2026) | not in top 1M |
| iBilik | Rooms for rent, including student rooms | live (HTTP 200) (21 Oct 2026) | #328,092 (ibilik.com) |
| Mudah.my | General classifieds with a rooms section | live (HTTP 200) (21 Oct 2026) | #7,335 |
| Speedhome | Rooms and units with no-deposit rental | blocks automated checks (HTTP 403); site is public (21 Oct 2026) | #307,929 |
* Tranco top-1M list, 18 Oct 2026: a rough guide to site traffic, not an endorsement. Sites are listed alphabetically. Status is from an automated check; "blocks automated checks" means the site refused our checker but is public.
Related: Co-living in Malaysia · Student housing in Malaysia · Worker dormitories in Malaysia
Sources checked 21 Oct 2026. See an error? Email hello@sealivingdesk.com.