Published stories from 2024 to 2026 show a consistent picture of living in JB and working in Singapore: people save substantially on housing and daily costs (one family estimated 30–50%), gain more space, and value being near family, but the price is time. Commuters interviewed by The Star in 2026 describe reaching the JB checkpoint before 6am and trips home of up to three hours at peak. The single most repeated wish is a predictable crossing, which is why homes within walking distance of the CIQ and the RTS Link (targeted for February 2027) keep coming up.
Brochures can tell you distances; they cannot tell you what a weekday feels like. So for this guide we went to the published record instead. We gathered eight stories about people who live in JB and work in Singapore, families who moved across the Causeway, retirees and semi-retirees, and Singaporeans who bought JB homes, all reported by The Star, the New Straits Times, Mothership, EdgeProp Singapore and the South China Morning Post between 2024 and 2026. We describe each person generically, summarise what they said in our own words, and link every story to its source. None of these people are our clients; they are simply the clearest public accounts we could find. For the practical side of the same decision, read our guide to living in JB while working in Singapore and our JB to Singapore commute comparison.
How we chose these stories
We only used experiences published by established media between 2024 and 2026, and we kept the people anonymous even where the outlet named them.
- Published sources only: every story below comes from a named news outlet and is linked in the Sources list.
- Paraphrased: we summarise in our own words and use at most one short quote per source.
- A mix of people: daily commuters, families, retirees and buyers, so you can find the situation closest to yours.
- Figures as reported: costs and times are what the interviewees told the reporter at the time; they are not our estimates.
Daily commuters: what the Causeway routine looks like in 2026
The daily commuters in recent reports share one pattern: they leave very early to beat the queues, and the evening trip home is the hardest part of the day.
Story 1: An IT engineer who walks across the Causeway
Who and where: a 35-year-old IT engineer living in Johor Bahru, interviewed by The Star in April 2026, alongside a 24-year-old marketing executive and a secretary in her 50s.
Routine and costs: rather than wait for a bus, the engineer walks across the Causeway, which takes him about 15 to 20 minutes, leaving at around 6:30am. He told the paper that bus queues at the JB CIQ (Bangunan Sultan Iskandar) can reach an hour, and that even before 6am he could wait 30 to 40 minutes. His return bus fare is S$2.60. The marketing executive reaches the checkpoint before 6am every day, and said his trip home at peak can take up to three hours. The secretary’s husband, a land surveyor working in Singapore, comes home on Friday nights.
Good and hard: all three plan to use the RTS Link and expect the co-located immigration to cut bottlenecks. The engineer’s wish list is practical: better lanes near the CIQ and Bukit Chagar, and park-and-ride. The marketing executive summed up the group’s view: “Affordability would be crucial in encouraging widespread use.”
What it means for you: when you can walk to the border, you control the first leg of the day. Living within a short walk of the CIQ and the RTS station takes buses and car queues out of that leg.
Story 2: A young bartender who crosses every day
Who and where: a 20-year-old senior bartender who travels to Singapore daily, interviewed by The Star in March 2026 together with a 33-year-old store manager.
Routine and costs: he spends about RM450 a month on bus fares. The store manager said her bus trip across the Causeway can take up to an hour depending on traffic, against the roughly six-minute RTS ride.
Good and hard: both welcome the RTS Link’s speed; their concern is the fare, which had not been announced at the time (and still had not been as of November 2026). For a daily commuter, transport is a monthly budget line, not an occasional cost.
What it means for you: budget the commute as a monthly cost and check the official RTS fare once it is published. Our JB RTS fare guide will carry it.
Story 3: A technician renting a room in Singapore who would move back
Who and where: a 36-year-old Malaysian technician who has worked in Singapore for 13 years, featured by the New Straits Times in March 2026.
Routine and costs: instead of commuting, he rents a room in Sembawang for S$1,200 a month and shares the flat with four other Malaysian men. The paper reported that road commuters typically set aside 1.5 to 3 hours for the crossing, which is why many workers rent in Singapore instead.
Good and hard: renting near work saves time but costs a lot and means living away from home. His condition for moving back was simple: “If the commute becomes predictable, I would definitely consider living in Johor again.”
What it means for you: analysts quoted in the same report expect some of this group to return to JB once the RTS runs, adding rental demand close to the stations. Our guide to renting near the JB RTS and CIQ covers that market.
Families who moved from Singapore to JB
For families, the stories are less about the commute and more about space, schools and the kind of childhood they want for their children.
Story 4: A Singaporean civil servant raising his children in Johor
Who and where: a 42-year-old Singaporean civil servant who lives in Johor with his wife and children and still works in Singapore, profiled by Mothership in May 2026 with other Singaporeans who made the same move.
Routine and costs: Singapore is about an hour away. The article noted that international school fees can run to S$40,000–50,000 per child a year, so a move to JB is not automatically cheaper for every family.
Good and hard: the family values more space, a slower pace, a close-knit neighbourhood and more freedom for the children. The hard moment was the Covid-19 border closure, which separated him from home. His summary: “What’s important is the kind of life we want for our family.”
What it means for you: families should plan schooling, healthcare and the commute together. Being close to a reliable crossing reduces the risk of getting stuck on the wrong side.
Story 5: A Singapore-based actor who moved his family to JB
Who and where: a Malaysian actor in his 40s who is a Singapore permanent resident and works in Singapore, interviewed in June 2025 about moving his wife and two daughters to Johor in 2024.
Routine and costs: the family rents a bigger home in JB, and he estimated they save 30% to 50% on living costs. He travels to Singapore whenever filming needs him, and described a 45-minute to one-hour trip as manageable.
Good and hard: a larger home, lower costs and relief from rising education costs; he has not ruled out living in Singapore again. In his words: “I don’t think it’s a downgrade. I’ve upgraded my lifestyle.”
What it means for you: people who need to be in Singapore on some days, not all, often get the most out of JB. A home with an extra room for remote work adds to that.
Retirees and semi-retirees choosing JB
Retiree stories focus on stretching savings and enjoying space, while staying close enough to Singapore for family and healthcare.
Story 6: Singaporeans in their 30s to 50s weighing a quieter life
Who and where: The Star spoke in April 2024 to a Singaporean in his 50s planning to move to Johor, a self-employed business owner in his 40s already living in Gelang Patah, and a private-sector employee in his 30s who lives in Kota Iskandar and works in Jurong.
Routine and costs: the Kota Iskandar resident said his commute to Jurong takes less than an hour. One interviewee said his monthly expenses in Singapore could reach S$3,000, compared with about RM2,000 in Johor.
Good and hard: lower living costs, calmer surroundings, good food and access to Singapore hospitals. One said Singapore “has become too busy for me.” The challenges they raised were the rules: foreigners generally face Johor’s RM1 million minimum price.
What it means for you: western Johor suits those working in western Singapore; the city centre suits those heading to Woodlands and the TEL. Our Johor foreigner minimum price guide explains the threshold.
Story 7: Semi-retired Singaporeans with “the best of both worlds”
Who and where: EdgeProp Singapore reported in August 2026 on a semi-retired Singaporean who has lived permanently in JB since 2017 with his JB-born wife, and a semi-retired former corporate executive who rebuilt his family’s childhood home in JB in 2016 while keeping his flat in Singapore.
Routine and costs: the former executive put his household spending in JB at about S$1,500 (RM5,000) a month, broadly stable for a decade, including a domestic helper. Off-peak, he said, the trip to Singapore can be about 30 minutes door to door. He described the arrangement as “the best of both worlds”.
Good and hard: lower costs, space, a slower pace and proximity to family. He also flagged the last-mile question on the JB side of the RTS, including traffic around the CIQ and ride-hailing availability. Consultants quoted in the piece said many people considering the move are in their early 50s and that today’s interest is cost-driven.
What it means for you: his last-mile point is the strongest argument for living within walking distance of the station rather than relying on a car or e-hailing for the first leg.
Singaporeans who bought a JB home
Buyer stories in the media tend to combine a retirement or holiday plan with the RTS Link.
Story 8: A Singaporean buying a JB retirement home before the RTS
Who and where: a 45-year-old Singaporean corporate solutions specialist, interviewed by the South China Morning Post in 2024, who had just bought a 2,659 sq ft high-floor condo unit on the JB waterfront for RM2.5 million.
Routine and costs: she lives in a Singapore condo with her husband and daughter; the JB home is a future retreat and retirement base, about twice the size of their Singapore home.
Good and hard: she cited the value of the home and the coming RTS Link, and said she had factored in currency swings: “The ringgit is still lower compared to last time.”
What it means for you: buy for a use you would be happy with in any exchange-rate year, such as own stay, family use or long-term rental, and plan the currency side. Our guide for Singaporeans buying in JB covers HDB, CPF and funding.
Data from the same period supports the trend. The Straits Times reported in January 2024 that Singaporeans made up 40% of buyers at R&F Princess Cove, a completed condo near the JB checkpoint (via Mothership), and PropertyGuru data reported in August 2024 showed that more than four in ten people searching for homes in Johor Bahru in April 2024 were from Singapore.
Recurring themes: what the stories have in common
Across all eight stories, the same handful of themes come up again and again.
| Theme | What people reported | Stories |
|---|---|---|
| Lower living costs | Savings of 30–50% for one family; S$1,500 a month household spending for a semi-retiree; RM2,000 vs S$3,000 for another | 5, 6, 7 |
| More space | Larger homes, gardens or units about twice the size of a Singapore home | 4, 5, 7, 8 |
| Early starts and long evenings | At the checkpoint before 6am; up to 3 hours home at peak; 1.5–3 hours budgeted for crossing | 1, 3 |
| Predictability matters most | Commuters would change where they live if the crossing became reliable | 1, 2, 3, 7 |
| Transport costs | About RM450 a month on buses; S$2.60 return bus fare; RTS fare still awaited | 1, 2 |
| Family and community | Close to relatives, slower pace, more freedom for children | 4, 5, 7 |
| Planning ahead | School fees, healthcare, buying rules and currency all need a plan | 4, 6, 8 |
The published numbers behind the stories
The individual stories sit inside very large flows of people across the border.
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Travellers through Singapore’s checkpoints in 2025 | About 245 million, a record, with about three-quarters using the land checkpoints with Malaysia | ICA figures via SCMP |
| Daily Causeway users | About 350,000 | The Star, Apr 2026 |
| Malaysians working in Singapore | More than 1 million, of whom 300,000–400,000 commute daily (estimates) | NST, Mar 2026 |
| Time road commuters set aside for the crossing | 1.5 to 3 hours | NST, Mar 2026 |
| RTS Link capacity | Up to 10,000 passengers per hour per direction | The Star, Apr 2026 |
| Singaporeans among JB home searchers | More than 4 in 10 (April 2024) | PropertyGuru via Malay Mail |
| Singaporean share of buyers at R&F Princess Cove | 40% | The Straits Times via Mothership, Jan 2024 |
The RTS Link passenger service is targeted for February 2027 (LTA–MOT, October 2026). Its ride between Bukit Chagar and Woodlands North takes about five minutes, with immigration for both countries cleared once at the departure station.
What these stories mean when choosing where to live in JB
The clearest lesson is that the commute is decided at the JB end: people who can walk to a crossing describe their days far more calmly than people who depend on buses or cars.
- Put walking distance first. Every daily commuter above talks about queues for transport to the border. A home within walking distance of the CIQ and the RTS Link removes that step. See our JB–Singapore border crossing guide for how each crossing works.
- Match the area to your workplace. City-centre homes near Bukit Chagar suit people working in Woodlands or along the Thomson-East Coast Line; western Johor suits Jurong and Tuas.
- Plan for hybrid weeks. The people most positive about JB often travel to Singapore on some days rather than all, so an extra room for remote work earns its keep.
- Budget the whole month. Include transport, school fees if relevant, and the costs of buying as a foreigner. Our JB property calculator helps with the purchase side.
- Keep a backup route. Living near both the RTS and the road CIQ gives you a second option on days when one is disrupted.
In JB city centre, Causewayz Square is about 800 m from the RTS Link Bukit Chagar station and about 600 m from the JB CIQ, so the first leg of a commute from there would be a walk. A pedestrian link bridge towards the CIQ and RTS is proposed by the developer, and the project is targeted for completion around 2030, by which time the RTS should have been running for several years. WhatsApp us for floor plans and the latest SPA price list.
Sources
- Johor residents pin hopes on RTS link (The Star, 30 Apr 2026)
- Regular commuters to Singapore hoping for lower RTS fare (The Star, 12 Mar 2026)
- RTS Link set to trigger ‘rent shift’ (New Straits Times, 30 Mar 2026)
- Singaporean families who moved to Johor (Mothership, 3 May 2026)
- Singapore-based actor saves more after moving family to Johor (The Star, 11 Jun 2025)
- S’porean retirees eye Johor (The Star, 14 Apr 2024)
- A more expansive life: why Singaporeans are eyeing retirement in Johor Bahru (EdgeProp Singapore, 7 Aug 2026)
- Ringgit’s rise not deterring Singaporeans buying Johor homes (SCMP, 2024)
- Cross-border trips push Singapore checkpoint traffic to a record in 2025 (SCMP, ICA figures)
- RTS keeping Singaporean demand for Johor real estate alive (Malay Mail, 8 Aug 2024, PropertyGuru data)
- S’poreans buying Johor condos as RTS Link progresses (Mothership, 22 Jan 2024, citing The Straits Times)
- RTS Link passenger service targeted for February 2027 (LTA, Oct 2026)
This guide is general information, not financial advice.