What happens to the property when a spouse dies? Given that the deceased spouse is the sole owner and the property is not jointly-owned, Will the widow or widower inherit the property?

If the deceased died leaving a will, the distribution of his estate, in this case, the property, will be distributed according to his wish. If there is no will, the distribution of his property will follow the Distribution Act 1958 (“Act”). It must be noted that the Act only applies to non-Muslims in the Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak. 

according to distribution act, 

25% to deceased parent, 25% to spouse, 50% to children. 

if parent no longer there, 1/3 to spouse, 2/3 to children. 

if no children, 1/2 to decaesed parent, 1/2 to spouse. 

it is good to have a comprehensive will to list out all the available assets and who is the rightful beneficiaries . 

Sometimes the person may have a simple will stated that spouse to inheritate all the assets but the beneficiaries do not aware what types of assets.