S'porean man moves to Johor for 1 year after BTO delay, explains why he prefers living in S'pore

A Singaporean man who moved to Johor with his wife in 2023 while waiting for his Singapore Build-to-Order flat to be ready cited Singapore's conveniences as reasons for moving back.

He was sharing his experience of living in Johor on an episode of Mediacorp's "Frontline".

Move to Johor

According to the programme, the man, Zhang Wei Jie (transliteration), stayed in Johor on a tourist visa.

Zhang, who runs a personal finance blog, shared that his BTO was delayed by a year.

He and his wife took the waiting time as an opportunity to try living in a new city.

Zhang's wife was from Malaysia but is now a Singapore Permanent Resident.

They decided to move in with her parents in Malaysia for a while.

The pair resided in Malaysia for a year and is now back in Singapore.

Trade-offs

Zhang told "Frontline" that because his work as a content creator is flexible, his experience was "pretty good".

"However, if your work requires you to go to an office, then it'll be more challenging," Zhang said.

Zhang also noted several downsides to living in Johor, even though the pace of life was slower.

For example, he noted that telecommunication lines were above-ground in Johor and were exposed to the elements.

An animal once bit through the lines and disrupted the internet connection, which forced Zhang to work from a café.

"I am reliant on the internet for work. If the internet connection is disrupted, it would disrupt my lifeline as well," he remarked.

Zhang also compared the convenience of amenities.

"You cannot get the same level of convenience as in Singapore, like having a coffee shop below your block, having a supermarket, a hair salon," he said.

However, while Malaysia is different in this aspect, he acknowledged that it is part and parcel of living in Malaysia.

Another point Zhang raised was about the maintenance of public utilities.

"Whenever they [in Malaysia] want to carry out maintenance works on, for example, water utilities, they would shut off the supply for a while. So you have to start rationing water a couple of days before," he shared.

Zhang said he sees Singapore's faster pace of life as motivation.

Johor still better for some

However, some Singaporeans who moved to Johor still find the way of life there more palatable.

Xie Jia Ying (transliteration) and her husband, who moved to Johor in 2024, told "Frontline" that they had to make some mental adjustments before the move.

Xie's husband pointed out that the "Singaporean mindset" might lead to a feeling that everything is too slow.

Xie said that Johor has a lower population density and feels less "crowded" and more peaceful.

Although Xie sends her child to an international school that costs more, the trade-offs are worth it, she told the programme.