Renting out · 7 min read
A tenant or Airbnb? Both cost you something.
It depends on what you want from your unit. A one-year tenancy gives you the same rent every month, with little to do. Short-term rental lets you use the unit, gets it checked after every stay, and leaves you free to sell.
In short
- Nobody can promise you a number, for either option.
- A one-year tenancy gives you the same rent every month, little to do and lower costs.
- But for 12 months you rarely see inside, and a tenant can fall behind on rent. In Malaysia, that has gone badly wrong for a few owners.
- Short-term rental means someone checks after every stay, and there's no tenant to chase for rent. You can use the unit yourself, and you stay free to sell.
In this article
You've got the keys, and suddenly everyone has an opinion. Your agent says rent it out. Your uncle says Airbnb.
A friend who tried Airbnb "for a while" has a long story about it.
Most of what you'll hear is about money, so we'll start there. Then we'll get to the rest. Both options cost you something, and not always money.
Before that, you should know where we stand. We're RoomGuru, and we manage short-term rentals in Johor Bahru. We earn a fee from them.
When an owner picks a tenant instead, we earn nothing. So yes, we have a side, which is why we'll show you both. And if a tenant suits your unit better, we'll say so.
The question everyone asks first: which earns more?
Nobody can promise you a number. If someone does, ask them to put it in writing and see how fast the number changes.
Short-term rental is an investment. Bookings and nightly prices move through the year. A lot depends on the unit, where it is and how well it's run.
From 12 Oct 2025 to 10 Oct 2026, our units were booked on 75.5% of the nights open for booking. Similar listings nearby averaged 37.8%, going by Airbnb's own host data. That's how far apart results in the same area can be.
Share of nights booked, 12 Oct 2025 to 10 Oct 2026
A tenancy feels steadier, and in many ways it is. It still has gaps, though: empty months between tenants, agent fees, and now and then a tenant who stops paying.
So rather than compare guesses, let's look at what each option really gives you. Here's 1 unit, over 1 year, both ways.
One year, two ways
Every dot is one day. Same unit, same year.
1-year tenancy
The tenant holds the keys
Same rent every month, known upfront
When you see inside: at handover and move-out, or by appointment.
Short-term rental
A cleaner checks after every stay
Nightly rate moves with demand
When someone checks inside: after every stay. The gold days are yours.
What a one-year tenancy does well
There's a good reason most owners start here. It's the simple, familiar choice, and it does 3 things really well.
1. You know your income from day one
The rent is in the agreement: 12 payments, all the same. Got a loan to pay every month? A fixed amount is hard to beat, and there are no busy or quiet seasons to worry about.
It does rely on the tenant paying on time. The unit may also sit empty for a month or 2 between tenants. And the agent often charges 1 month's rent to find one, sometimes a little more.
2. There's very little to do
You find a tenant once a year, often through an agent, and that's most of the work. No guest messages, no cleaning to arrange, no prices to set, no reviews to reply to.
The tenant will still call you when the aircon gives up. Aircons have a talent for picking the hottest week of the year.
3. It costs less to run and to set up
The tenant usually pays electricity, water and internet. There's no cleaning, no platform fee and no linen or supplies to buy. A partly furnished unit can still find a tenant, so you don't have to spend much upfront.
Tenancies have their own costs, of course, like a fresh coat of paint when someone moves out.
Who pays for what
| Cost | 1-year tenancy | Short-term rental |
|---|---|---|
| Electricity, water, internet | Usually the tenant | You |
| Cleaning | Usually you, between tenants | After every stay; guests usually pay a cleaning fee towards it |
| Platform fee (Airbnb, Booking.com, Agoda) | None | On every booking |
| Finding guests or a tenant | Agent fee, about a month’s rent per tenant | Your time, or a manager’s fee |
| Furniture | Partly furnished can work | Fully furnished and equipped |
| Maintenance fee and sinking fund (the building’s repair savings) | You | You |
What a year-long lease can hide
This is the part people rarely talk about.
With a tenant, you usually see inside your unit twice: at handover and when they move out. You can ask to visit in between, by appointment. The rest of the year, someone you barely know lives in your home, and you mostly take their word that all is well.
Usually that's fine. In Malaysia, a few owners have learned otherwise. It's rare, but it has happened.
A one-year tenancy, month by month
HandoverBy appointment in betweenMove‑out
Reported by 45 homeowners and business owners in January 2025. Tenants allegedly used the victims’ identities to mine Bitcoin, and TNB billed the victims. The government now advises moving the TNB account into the tenant’s name.
Malay Mail, 24 Jan 2025 and 5 May 2026Police raided condos used as scam call centres, one of them for a year. Syndicates often paid up to a year’s rent in one go. The national police (Bukit Aman) warned that owners who knowingly host them could be charged. Property industry groups pushed back.
Malay Mail, 5 and 20 Mar 2025Malaysia’s Residential Tenancy Act is still only a proposal. To remove a tenant who stops paying, you usually need to go to court. The usual deposit (often two months’ rent plus a utility deposit) is a custom, not a law.
Specific Relief Act 1950, s7; Bernama, 14 Aug 2026Then there's the rent itself. A tenant can fall behind, and removing one usually needs a court order, which takes time and legal fees. The deposit may not cover it all.
It's not common, but with a long-term tenant it's a risk you carry. Short-term rental doesn't work that way, as you'll see below.
Most tenants are perfectly fine. A year is just a long time not to know.
If you do rent long-term, add a clause that lets you inspect the unit. Move the TNB account into the tenant's name, and glance at the meter now and then.
What short-term rental gives you instead
1. Someone sees your unit after every stay
After each checkout, a cleaner goes through the unit with a checklist. A dripping tap, a loose handle or a stain gets spotted within days, not a year later. That's how our cleaners work on every stay.
With us, each month you also get a list of every booking. Guests leave reviews too, so you hear how the place feels to stay in. Guests don't hold back, and sometimes it stings.
There's also no tenant who can stop paying and stay on, so you never chase rent. On Airbnb, most guests pay when they book, and every stay ends on a set date. In all our years running units, we have never left an owner unpaid.
Short-term rental has its own risks. A guest can break something, ignore the house rules, or even misuse the unit. Checks after every stay make that much harder to hide.
2. You can still use it yourself
Nobody lives there, so the unit is still yours. Family coming down for Chinese New Year? Block the dates and nobody has to sleep on your sofa.
With a tenant, the unit is their home until the lease runs out.
You can't take back nights a guest has already booked, and the nights you use yourself earn nothing.
3. You're free to sell, move in or change your mind
There's no year-long lease in the way. If you decide to sell, buyers can view between stays. Give your manager the notice in your agreement, keep the bookings already made, and that's it.
The unit is furnished, tidy and already photographed, which doesn't hurt. And if you'd rather move in yourself, or switch to a tenant later, you can.
Want to sell or move in? What’s in the way
With a tenant
- Viewings are arranged around the tenant
- Wait for the lease to end, or negotiate an early exit
- Hand over the keys
With short-term rental
- Viewings fit between stays
- Give the notice in your management agreement and honour stays already booked
- Hand over the keys
To be fair to tenancies, you can also sell with the tenant still in it. Some investors are happy to take over the lease.
4. Your price isn't locked in for a year
Nightly prices can follow the market: busy weekends, school holidays, the week a big concert comes to town. With a tenancy, the rent stays the same until you renew.
That works both ways. When things go quiet, short-term prices drop straight away, while a tenant's rent stays the same.
What short-term rental costs you
Fair's fair. Here's the other side of the bill.
- Your income goes up and down. Some months are busy, some are quiet, and nobody can promise you a figure.
- You pay the bills. Electricity, water and internet are yours, because guests come and go.
- There are more fees. Cleaning after every stay, the platform's fee on every booking, and either your own time or a manager's fee. Not sure which suits you? See run it yourself or hire an Airbnb manager.
- It costs more to set up. The unit needs to be fully set up, to a standard guests will pay for.
- More people means more wear. Things need replacing more often, even with a check after every stay.
That's the trade you're making.
Which matters more to you?
There's no right answer here, only yours. Your quick-check answers from earlier are already on the scale, so check they still feel right. Fill in the rest and see where you land.
Seven trade-offs. Pick a side on each.
Each option gives you something and costs you something. Tap the one that sounds more like you.
Answer all seven to see where you land
The balance moves as you go.
What you picked
How it works: each answer drops one equal weight into that side, and the heavier side goes down, like a real balance. With seven questions there is always a lean, from slight (4 to 3) to clear (6 to 1 or more).
Before you decide, check these
- Your building's by-laws on short stays, in writing
- Your land title and what it allows (for example residential, or commercial land used for serviced apartments)
- Your insurer's answer on how the unit will be used, in writing
- If you use a manager: the fee, what happens in quiet months, and how you can end the agreement
- Your own tax position, with a tax agent
Still not sure? Ask us for a free assessment.
Say you need the exact same amount every month for your loan: a tenant may suit you better. If so, we'll tell you, even if it means 1 fewer unit for us.
Questions owners ask
Is Airbnb more profitable than long-term rental in Malaysia?
It can earn more or less: a tenancy gives you rent you know from day one. Short-term rental is an investment. Anyone who promises you a figure is guessing.
Can I use my unit myself if I do Airbnb?
Yes. No one lives there, so you can block dates for you or your family. Nights a guest has booked stay booked, and the nights you use earn nothing.
Can my condo management stop me from doing Airbnb?
Yes: in 2020, Malaysia's top court said a management corporation can ban short stays (Innab Salil v Verve Suites Mont' Kiara). The ban needs a by-law, and that needs 3 in 4 of the votes cast at a general meeting. Get your building's by-laws in writing first, and see Airbnb rules in Johor vs Penang.
What happens if a tenant stops paying rent in Malaysia?
The Residential Tenancy Act is still only a proposal. So removing a tenant usually needs a court order, which takes time and legal fees. The deposit, often 2 months' rent plus a deposit for bills, is a custom, not a law.
Who pays electricity, an Airbnb guest or a tenant?
Guests come and go, so with short-term rental you pay; with a tenancy, the tenant often pays. But if the account is in your name, TNB may come to you first when bills go unpaid or power is stolen. The government says to move the account to the tenant: TNB's Change of Tenancy makes them pay any unpaid bills.
Sources: Court ruling: Innab Salil v Verve Suites Mont' Kiara, Federal Court, 5 Oct 2020. Electricity theft: Malay Mail, 24 Jan 2025 and Malay Mail, 5 May 2026. Scam centres: Malay Mail, 5 Mar 2025 and Malay Mail, 20 Mar 2025. Residential Tenancy Act still a proposal: Bernama, 14 Aug 2026. Removing a tenant needs a court order: Specific Relief Act 1950, section 7. Change of Tenancy: TNB FAQ. When guests pay: Airbnb Help Centre. Occupancy: Airbnb's host data for our own listings, 12 Oct 2025 to 10 Oct 2026. This is general information, not legal or tax advice.