Ohmyhome expands into Malaysia, offers cross-border property deals

LOCAL proptech startup Ohmyhome on Thursday announced it is expanding into Malaysia, its first overseas market.

In a press statement, it said it has officially launched in Greater Kuala Lumpur. There are also plans to introduce its service in Johor.

With its end-to-end service offerings in Malaysia, the proptech startup serves both only-Malaysian property transactions and cross-border transactions between Malaysia and Singapore.

Given that cross-border deals work differently from local ones due to variations in property ownership policies, processes and taxes, Ohmyhome said that it will provide step-by-step guidance in these negotiations.

Rhonda Wong, chief executive officer and co-founder of Ohmyhome, said: "In the cross-border case, the payment will be made in the currency where the property is located. For example, if the property in located in Malaysia, the sale will be made in Malaysian Ringgit and if an Ohmyhome Malaysia agent is engaged, the agent fee will be paid in Malaysian Ringgit too."

Users in Malaysia will be able to make use of Ohmyhome's hybrid service model - a DIY (do-it-yourself) platform and agent service - to allow customers to manage housing transactions on their own.

The mobile application serves both Singapore and Malaysia markets and allows Singapore users to connect directly with potential buyers, sellers, tenants and landlords across the border. Cross-border negotiations and deals are also done through the application.

In contrast to a flat fee paid to Singapore's agents, Malaysian agents are priced at 3 per cent commissions, which Ohmyhome says is in line with the market rate.

"The central pain point in Malaysia is not agent fees but instead, the focal issue is trust in price or speed of transactions. Contrastingly, Singapore customers' largest pain point is price, hence Ohmyhome here was about offering a price point that people can comfortably afford," said Ms Wong.

The firm has also signed major partnerships with large banks and conveyancing firms which will offer housing loans and conveyancing services respectively. In addition, the startup has embarked on partnerships with prominent Malaysian real estate developers Sime Darby PROPERTY, Mah Sing Group as well as Tan & Tan Developments, and will feature their new property projects on its platform.

Said Ms Wong: "Real estate is the most valuable asset class in the world and ought to be well taken care of, and now we have made it simple, fast and affordable to manage your overseas property transaction from right here in Singapore."