I've been living in KL for the past 2 years in a 3 bedroom condo in Brickfields - nice place, fully furnished - that's costing me US$555 per month (2000 rm). Food is cheap, especially if you shop at the markets or eat at hawker food (which is often cheaper than cooking at home). We use public transportation and do not have a car. So, living comfortably - going to movies, eating mainly non-imported foods, occasional wine or beer, health care, clothes, transportation, utilities, trips to get away now and then, rent, health care, eating out 3 or 4 times a week (at least twice at local or hawker type places, and once or twice at nicer places) - our average monthly expenses are under US$1500 per month (5400 rm). Obviously, if you need to have a car, gas, insurance, etc would add more onto that.

Most Malaysians earn somewhere between 1000-1500 RM per month and are able to get by pretty well. So, much of it depends on the lifestyle that you want to have. And KL is probably the most expensive part of Malaysia to live, so your living expenses would be less if you wanted to live in attractive Penang, for instance, or Ipoh (where housing is really cheap and it's a nice part of the country to live, too).