I imagine it depends a lot on what line of work you are in. If you can get hired by a company that will pay you dollars or dollar equivalent salaries to work in Malaysia, then you’ve got it made. The cost of living is lower here so your money goes farther. If, like me, you want to compete for local jobs and get paid at local pay scales, you are not going to come out ahead vs the US, assuming you’re American. I’m making a fraction of what I made back in the States in dollar terms; even adjusting for cost of living, my bottom line took a hit by moving. I sort of assumed the pay scales in UAE were excellent, though I know cost of living is killer. My wife and I are both in academia and we’ve flirted with job applications to UAE. I’m a bit surprised to hear you say they don’t pay well. It sure looked good to me.

I’ve always been interested in living in Malaysia. Is it easy to get a job there? I’ve tried living in the UAE, but while it is easy to get a job there, they usually don’t pay very well. How is it in Malaysia?

JazakhAllahar and Salaam,
NMC

My father has been making strategic decisions to weather the collapse of the US my whole life, actually. That link about living on the margins of society goes to my parents’ family farm. It was not an insignificant influence on my decision to emigrate to Malaysia either.
The economy is still strong in Malaysia, and to my eye, fundamentally sound. The country has a strong industrial and agricultural base and is a net exporter of petroleum. Malaysia leads the world in palm oil export, which, though not without its faults, may well be the single most efficient species on earth for food tonnage per hectare. That won’t go away in bad economic times. On the flip side, the US is Malaysia’s single largest trade partner. I’m sure, like other “asian tigers” Malaysia would be hurt by a US depression.