No. Rent in Kuching does not include electricity, water or internet. Those are the tenant’s accounts and bills, while the landlord pays the assessment rates, the quit rent (a land tax) and, in a condo, the maintenance fee.
I have rented in Kuching since we arrived, and my electricity bill is about RM1,000 a time, in a household where I work from home and the air-con is on regularly.
TL;DR
- Tenant pays: electricity (SESCO), water (Sarawak Water), internet, and usually the stamp duty on the tenancy agreement.
- Landlord pays: assessment rates, quit rent, and condo maintenance unless the agreement says otherwise.
- Move-in cost: three and a half to four months’ rent in all (security, a utility deposit and the first month), plus a SESCO deposit of RM700 to RM2,400 if the account goes in your name.
- The bill to watch: electricity. Air-con decides whether a cheap rent stays cheap.
Who Pays Which Bill in a Kuching Tenancy?
A Kuching tenancy splits into bills that follow the person living in the house and bills that follow the property. The Sarawak names differ from the Peninsula’s: SESCO instead of TNB, Sarawak Water instead of Syabas.
| Item | Who pays | Sarawak body | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity | Tenant | SESCO (Sarawak Energy) | Account in the tenant’s name with a deposit, or the landlord’s name by arrangement |
| Water | Tenant | Sarawak Water Sdn Bhd | Took over from the Kuching Water Board in August 2025; the first RM5 of each monthly bill is subsidised by the state |
| Internet and TV | Tenant | Unifi, other fibre providers, Astro | Non-Malaysians pay a RM500 advance on Unifi |
| Sewerage | Ask | State Sewerage Services Department | Indah Water does not operate in Sarawak; ask whether the property is connected and whether any sewerage charge exists |
| Assessment rates (cukai taksiran) | Landlord | DBKU north of the river, MBKS south, MPP Padawan | MBKS bills fall due on 31 May and 31 October |
| Quit rent (cukai tanah) | Landlord | Land and Survey Department Sarawak | The owner’s annual land tax |
| Condo maintenance and sinking fund | Landlord by default | Management body | Sometimes passed to the tenant in the agreement, so read the clause |
| Stamp duty on the agreement | Tenant by convention | LHDN | Stamp within 30 days of signing |
| Repairs | Split | None | Landlord for structure and major appliances; tenant for minor items up to a stated cap |
Landlords sometimes bundle utilities into the rent, but in Kuching that is mostly room rentals and serviced units. The account stays in the owner’s name, and so does the risk of a missed payment. For a whole flat or house, assume you pay the bills.
What Deposits Do Kuching Landlords Ask For?
Kuching landlords ask for three layers of money on signing: a security deposit, a utility deposit and rent in advance. The common listing shorthand is “2+1”, meaning two months’ rent as security and one month as the utility deposit. Some landlords ask for “2+0.5” instead. Tenants also pay one month’s rent in advance, so move-in comes to three and a half months’ rent on 2+0.5, or four on 2+1, with the utility deposit already inside both totals.
In my own case the pattern was two months’ rent as security plus half a month for utilities, refundable if the place is left in good condition.
The deposit that few people budget for is SESCO’s. If the electricity account goes in the tenant’s name, Sarawak Energy takes a collateral deposit based on the type of home. For a tenant on single phase, it is:
- Terrace house or flat: RM700
- Semi-detached house or condominium: RM1,100
- Detached house: RM1,900 or RM2,400, depending on size
Three-phase supply doubles these figures, and owners pay about half. The SESCO deposit is refundable when the account closes. Water has a deposit too, but Sarawak Water does not publish the amount, so ask at the Jalan Batu Lintang office or through its app. Internet takes an advance instead: Unifi asks for RM100 from Malaysians and RM500 from non-Malaysians, credited back against the bill.
Stamp duty is the last upfront item. The rate is RM1 for every RM250 of annual rent on a tenancy of up to a year, so a RM2,000-a-month, one-year agreement costs RM96. It rises to RM3, RM5 and RM7 per RM250 for longer terms. The old nil band for rents under RM2,400 a year was removed on 1 January 2025. LHDN publishes the schedule at hasil.gov.my.
Getting the deposit back is where tenants report friction. A common complaint is a landlord or agent who holds the deposit for an inspection period of up to 30 days after move-out, so keep the final bills’ receipts and photograph the place on handover.
How Much Are the Monthly Bills, Condo Versus Terrace House?
Electricity is the line that varies most, and the rest barely move. SESCO’s domestic tariff starts at 18 sen a unit for the first 150 units and steps up to 31.5 sen a unit above 1,300 units, with a RM5 minimum charge. A one-bedroom condo with bedroom air-con at night usually sits at RM80 to RM250 a month. A family in a terrace house or condo running two or three units in the evening lands around RM200 to RM350. A household that cools rooms through the working day goes into the high hundreds. Mine is about RM1,000 a bill, and I don’t know exactly how much of that is the air-con alone.
Electricity can double the apparent cheapness of a Kuching rent. At an asking rent of RM1,200, a RM1,000 electricity bill adds nearly as much again. Beyond the two end bands above, how SESCO tariffs, payment and outages work has the detail.
Water is cheap by comparison. The last published Kuching domestic tariff was RM0.48 per 1,000 litres up to 15,000 litres a month, RM0.72 from there to 50,000, RM0.76 above that, with a RM4.40 minimum. The state then covers the first RM5 of each household’s bill. Typical household bills run RM10 to RM30.
Internet adds RM89 to RM159 a month for 100 to 500 Mbps on Unifi.
Condo and terrace differ less on the bill than on what drives it:
| Condo | Terrace house | |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance fee | Landlord’s, unless the agreement passes it on | None |
| Electricity driver | Fewer rooms to cool, but check any limit on air-con units | More rooms to cool |
| Water | Small household bills | Garden tap adds usage |
What Does “Furnished” Mean in Kuching?
Furnished in a Kuching listing is a spectrum, and the agreement’s inventory tells you more than the portal label. Fully furnished normally means beds, wardrobes, sofa, dining set, fridge, washing machine, air-con units and water heater. Partly furnished means kitchen cabinets, air-con units, water heaters, lights and fans but no loose furniture. Unfurnished means bare, mostly landed houses and long-term local lets. Portal listings for terrace houses and condos in October 2026 are overwhelmingly furnished or partly furnished, and how renting compares with buying in Kuching covers how the market splits.
The utility point is the air-con. The units come with the home, but servicing them is a clause to negotiate. Commonly the tenant pays routine servicing and the landlord pays gas and repairs.
Should the SESCO and Water Accounts Be in Your Name?
For electricity, yes where you can. Sarawak Energy recommends that tenants register the account in their own names. If it stays in the landlord’s name, agree in writing how the bill is passed on and ask to see the last bill before signing. A transfer needs the tenancy agreement, ID (ask customer care about passports) and the deposit.
For water, the tenant procedure is unpublished. The Sarawak Water site lets only the legal owner apply for a change of ownership, so ask at the Kuching office whether a tenant can hold the account.
The first week goes in a set order, which opening utility accounts in sequence lays out. Autopay needs a local bank account, and opening a bank account as a foreigner covers that.
What Should You Check in the Tenancy Agreement Before Signing?
Read six clauses before you sign:
- Utilities: whose name is on the SESCO and water accounts.
- Deposits: the amounts, and the refund terms and timing.
- Maintenance fee: whether the landlord or tenant pays it in a condo.
- Air-con servicing: who pays routine service and who pays repairs.
- Minor repairs: the cap below which the tenant pays.
- Stamp duty: who pays it, and when it will be done.
Sarawak has no tenancy tribunal, so the stamped agreement is what a court will read.
So, What Does a Kuching Rental Really Cost Each Month?
Asking rent plus the monthly bills above. For a one-bedroom with air-con at night, that is RM179 to RM439 (electricity RM80 to RM250, water RM10 to RM30, internet RM89 to RM159). For a family in a terrace house, it is RM299 to RM539 (electricity RM200 to RM350). A household that cools rooms through the working day pays more. The full monthly budget for living in Kuching puts these bills beside the rest of a household’s spending. My own electricity bill, about RM1,000 with the air-con on through the working day, is the warning, not the norm.