Flat Rate vs Effective Rate

Kos sebenar pinjaman
RM 974
/bln
RM 80,000 · 9 tahun · 3.50% kadar rata
APR efektif
6.34%
Faedah
RM 25,200
Lebih mahal
+RM 11,824
Kiraan utama

Apa yang anda tahu?

Tempoh9 tahun
1 thn5 thn10 thn
Pilihan lanjutan
Yuran · kaedah APR · Rule of 78
Kaedah APR efektif
Kadar rata nampak lebih rendah daripada kos sebenar.

3.50% kadar rata bersamaan kira-kira 6.34% APR efektif untuk senario ini.

01
Banding dengan baki berkurang
Beza sekitar +RM 11,824 sepanjang pinjaman
The flat-rate cost

Same loan, two ways to price it.

Your loan above (RM 80,000 / 9 years) is quoted as a 3.5% flat rate. If the same headline rate were applied as reducing-balance — the way mortgages work — your monthly payment would be lower and the total interest dramatically smaller.

Same principal · same headline 3.5%
Flat-rate framing · 3.5%
What dealers quote
RM 105,200
Total payment over 9 years
Principal · RM 80,00076.0%
RM 80K+RM 25.2K
PrincipalInterest
Monthly
RM 974.07
Interest
RM 25,200
Interest is calculated once, on full principal, then split evenly across all 108 months. Required by Hire-Purchase Act 1967 for car HP.
Reducing-balance · same 3.5%
What mortgages use
RM 93,376
Total payment over 9 years
Principal · RM 80,00085.7%
RM 80K+RM 13.4K
PrincipalInterest
Monthly
RM 864.59
Interest
RM 13,376
Interest recalculates monthly on the outstanding balance. Used by home loans, BR-anchored facilities, and bank cash-line products.
The cost of flat-rate framing
+RM 11,824

over 9 years · ≈ RM 109/mo more

Same headline 3.5%. Same RM 80,000 principal. Same 9-year tenure. Different math — different reality. The advertised “flat rate” hides about 88% more interest than the reducing-balance equivalent.

True effective APR
6.34%
vs 3.5% advertised
Reducing-balance calculation uses standard PMT formula. Effective APR uses Newton-Raphson IRR. Numbers above use deterministic midpoint — no Monte Carlo.
02
Lihat formula & penyelesaian awal
IRR · Rule of 78 · baki pinjaman
Deep dive
Year-by-year payment schedule
Flat-rate means every monthly payment is identical: RM 740.74 principal + RM 233.33 interest. The interest never declines, unlike reducing-balance loans.
YearPrincipalInterestCumulativeBalance
18,888.892,800.0011,688.8971,111.11
28,888.892,800.0023,377.7862,222.22
38,888.892,800.0035,066.6753,333.33
……………
88,888.892,800.0093,511.118,888.89
98,888.892,800.00105,200.000.00
If you settle early — Rule of 78 rebate
The Hire-Purchase Act 1967 (s.16) sets the formula for unearned interest rebate using the Rule of 78 (sum-of-digits). Earlier settlement returns more interest, but rebates are front-loaded — settling halfway through doesn't refund half the interest.
Turn on "Apply Rule of 78 rebate" in the form to see your settlement numbers.
Jumlah bayar
RM 105,200
Baki berkurang
RM 864.59/bln
Common questions

Soalan lazim · flat rate

Why is the effective APR higher than the advertised flat rate?
Flat-rate interest is calculated once, on the full original principal, then split across all payments. Reducing-balance interest recalculates monthly on what you still owe — which shrinks every payment. Over a 9-year tenure, the math compounds: a 3.5% flat is roughly equivalent to 6.30% reducing-balance. The longer the tenure, the bigger the gap. A 1-year flat ≈ same rate effective; a 9-year flat ≈ ~1.8× the rate effective.
Are flat rates legal in Malaysia? Why do dealers quote them?
Yes — the Hire-Purchase Act 1967 mandates flat-rate pricing for car HP and other hire-purchase agreements. Dealers don't choose the framing; the statute does. The same law (s.16) governs the Rule of 78 rebate formula for early settlement. Personal loans, koperasi loans, and Ah Long-adjacent products often use flat rates by convention even though they're not HP — partly because it makes monthly payments easy to quote, partly because the headline rate looks smaller than the equivalent reducing-balance figure.
How does HP flat differ from personal loan flat?
The math is identical — both use P × R × N interest split across N×12 months. What differs is the regulatory wrapper. HP loans are governed by the HP Act 1967 (mandatory flat, statutory early-settlement rebate, repossession rights to the bank). Personal loans are governed by the Banking and Financial Institutions Act and BNM Responsible Lending Guidelines — they can use flat or reducing-balance, and there's no mandated Rule of 78 rebate. Always ask the lender how they'll calculate early-settlement interest.
Can I negotiate a lower flat rate?
For car HP — yes, especially if you have a 90%+ CCRIS score and bring multiple dealer quotes. Banks typically have a band (say 2.5–4.5% flat for new cars, 3.5–6% for used) and your dealer earns a kickback above the bank's floor rate. For personal loans, rates are tied more rigidly to credit risk tiers, but you can sometimes negotiate by bundling with salary-crediting or auto-debit setup. Koperasi rates are mostly fixed by union/scheme.
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Where these numbers come from

Sources & references

Verified 2026-05-17
Hire-Purchase Act 1967 (Act 212)
Mandates Term Charges (de facto flat-rate) for HP loans · Rule of 78 rebate (s.16) · Seventh Schedule APR formula
Term charges
Seventh Schedule defines APR computation under the pre-2026 regime. Flat-rate is the de facto market practice that the formula is built around.
Source
Rule of 78 rebate
s.16 formula: Rebate = TermCharges × n(n+1) / N(N+1) where n = remaining months, N = total months
Source
Last amended
Act A1384 (2010); consolidated text reprint by KPDN dated 1 Sep 2024. NEW: HP (Amendment) Act 2026 effective 1 June 2026 abolishes flat-rate + Rule of 78 for new agreements.
AGC link
Hire-Purchase (Amendment) Act 2026
Gazetted 30 Jan 2026 · Effective 1 June 2026 · Abolishes flat-rate + Rule of 78 for new HP loans

Replaces flat rate + Rule of 78 with EIR + reducing-balance for HP loans signed on or after 1 June 2026. EIR caps: 17% p.a. ≤5yr · 16% p.a. >5yr. Pre-cutover contracts are grandfathered. ABM/AIBIM banks have committed to goodwill discounts for early settlement of existing flat-rate HPs after the cutover.

Source
Bank Negara Malaysia
OPR (2.75% as of May 2026) · monthly stats bulletin · Responsible Lending Guidelines · HP Consumer Guide 2026

BNM publishes OPR (currently 2.75%, held at May 2026 MPC), monthly weighted-average commercial bank lending rate (4.559% Mar-2026), and the Responsible Lending Guidelines (2012, updated 2019) defining DSR ceilings and minimum down-payment requirements. Their 2026 HP Consumer Guide explains the upcoming EIR transition.

BNM HP Consumer Guide 2026
AKPK · Credit Counselling Agency
Consumer credit advisory · indicative rate bands · free debt counselling (1-800-88-2575)

AKPK publishes consumer educational material including flat-rate to effective-rate explainers, indicative MY rate bands by loan type (Car HP 2.40–4.00% flat, Personal Loan 4–15% flat, Koperasi 3.5–6% flat), and a free Debt Management Programme. Their rate bands are the source for the sanity-check ranges in this calculator.

akpk.org.my
KPKT · Ministry of Housing & Local Government
Licensed moneylender registry · 12% secured / 18% unsecured ceiling for non-bank lending

KPKT (NOT KPDN) administers the Moneylenders Act 1951 (Act 400) and maintains the licensed moneylender registry. Statutory simple-interest ceiling: 12% p.a. secured, 18% p.a. unsecured. Non-bank lenders quoting rates above 18% flat without KPKT licensing operate illegally. The sanity warning in this calculator (fires at flat ≥ 18%) routes users here to verify lender legitimacy.

kpkt.gov.my
This calculator provides estimates, not financial advice. Actual installments depend on lender margin, processing fees, insurance, and stamp duty additions. Consult AKPK (1-800-88-2575) for free, independent debt counselling.