Refinance Calculator Malaysia 2026
Compare your current home loan with a refinanced one, count the legal fees, stamp duty and valuation, and see the month the switch pays for itself.
Preview page. The rates are checked against official sources; the page is awaiting final review before it is published.
Result
This is an estimate for planning. Confirm the final figure with the bank, JPJ or LHDN before you commit.
How it's calculated
Refinancing replaces your current housing loan with a new one, usually at a lower rate. It saves money only if the lower instalment recovers the costs of switching before you sell or settle.
Both instalments use the standard reducing balance formula. The costs are the legal fee for the new loan on the Solicitors’ Remuneration Order 2023 scale (1.25% on the first RM 500,000 with a minimum of RM 500, then 1%), stamp duty of RM 5 for every RM 1,000 of the new loan, and the valuation, processing and lock-in penalty you enter.
break-even months = total costs ÷ monthly saving
Worked example (the default inputs). A RM 400,000.00 balance at 4.50% with 25 years left costs RM 2,223.33 a month. Refinancing the same amount at 3.90% over 25 years costs RM 2,089.32, saving RM 134.01 a month.
The legal fee is 1.25% × RM 400,000 = RM 5,000.00, the stamp duty RM 2,000.00 and the valuation RM 1,000.00, so the costs are RM 8,000.00. Divided by the monthly saving that is 59.7, so the switch pays for itself in month 60, five years in.
Over the full 25 years the interest falls from RM 266,998.97 to RM 226,797.17, a saving of RM 40,201.81, or RM 32,201.81 after costs.
Lock-in periods and timing
Most housing loans carry a lock-in of three to five years, with a penalty of a few percent of the original loan if you settle within it, and refinancing counts as settling. Check the date the lock-in ends in your offer letter; refinancing the month after it ends avoids the penalty entirely. The new loan will usually come with its own lock-in, so make sure you do not expect to sell within that period either.
Comparing offers fairly
Compare the full rate, the Standardised Base Rate plus the spread, not promotional first-year rates. Check whether the offer is a flexi or term loan, whether the bank is paying any of the costs, and whether insurance such as MRTA is bundled into the loan amount. A longer new tenure lowers the instalment but can wipe out the interest saving; keep the tenure close to the years left on your current loan when you compare.
FAQ
When does refinancing a home loan make sense?
When the interest saved over the time you will keep the new loan is clearly larger than the costs of switching. A rate cut of half a percentage point or more on a sizeable balance usually qualifies, as long as you are past any lock-in period and do not plan to sell within a few years. The break-even month above is the quickest test.
What does it cost to refinance?
The main items are the legal fee for the new loan agreement, set by the same Solicitors’ Remuneration Order 2023 scale used for purchases, the 0.5% stamp duty on the loan, the valuation fee, and any lock-in penalty on the old loan. Some banks offer to pay or finance the legal fee and valuation, which shortens the break-even; ask whether that comes with a new lock-in.
What is a cash-out refinance?
Borrowing more than the outstanding balance and taking the difference as cash, using the equity built up in the property. It is cheaper than a personal loan, but it turns short-term spending into a debt you repay over decades, and the new loan amount drives up the legal fee and stamp duty. Enter the larger amount in the new loan field to see the effect.
Should I ask my current bank first?
Yes. Many banks will reprice an existing loan to a lower spread to keep a good customer, sometimes for a small fee and without the legal and stamp duty costs of a full refinance. A competing offer from another bank is the best lever for that conversation.
Does refinancing affect my credit record?
The application appears in CCRIS as an enquiry and the old loan shows as settled, which is normal. What matters more is your debt service ratio at the time of application: a new loan is assessed like any other, so a drop in income or a new car loan since you first borrowed can mean a smaller offer than you expect.
Sources
- Stamp Act 1949 (Act 378), First Schedule, items 22, 27, 32(a), 32(aa) and 32(ab), updated text as at 1 January 2024
- Finance (No. 2) Act 2023 (Act 851), section 68: 4% rate for non-citizens and foreign companies from 1 January 2024
- Finance Act 2025 (Act 874), section 29: 8% rate on residential property for non-citizens and foreign companies from 1 January 2026
- LHDN, Garis Panduan Pengenaan Duti Setem bagi Surat Cara yang Tertakluk kepada Jadual Pertama Akta Setem 1949 (30 June 2026)
- LHDN, Pengenalan Duti Setem di bawah Akta Setem 1949 (worked examples, 29 December 2025)
- LHDN STAMPS, statutory declaration for P.U.(A) 54/2021 read with P.U.(A) 449/2025 (first home up to RM500,000, SPA by 31 December 2027)
- Ministry of Finance, Budget 2026 tax measures, Appendix 15 (extension of the first-home exemption to 31 December 2027)
- Ministry of Finance, Budget 2027 tax measures, Appendix 16 (proposed first-home scheme for SPAs 2027 to 2030, not yet gazetted)
- Solicitors' Remuneration Order 2023, P.U.(A) 207/2023, gazetted 12 July 2023, in force 15 July 2023 (Malaysian Bar Circular 185/2023)
- Malaysian Bar Circular 258/2023, English rendering of the SRO 2023 scales
- Legal Profession Act 1976 (Act 166), section 2 (application to Sabah and Sarawak only by order)