[Poll] Stay or Leave Hong Kong

merchantms · 06-07-2018, 02:56 PM

Originally Posted by Beanieskis:

Thankfully, my husband and I are in the position where we can afford kids' education in HK. I did caveat the start of my post by saying you need to earn over a certain threshold here - and clearly that threshold is higher with a family.

With a family we still have to make a living, and the real alternative for us would be London. But London loses for all the reasons I listed above.

We live in Discovery Bay and we love it, I can't think of a better place to raise a family whilst still being able to give them the opportunities working in a financial centre enables, and such accessibility to the great outdoors.

We can afford international schools for our kids, but I still think that the private schools back home are better than the international schools here, and even a lot of the public (i.e. government) schools are as good or better in terms of results and facilities.

DB - I assume you're aware there are only two international through schools in DB and wait lists are extremely long. If you end up one of the many families who only gets a school place off DB requiring a long commute for your child I think you will reconsider how amazing it is.

Mat · 06-07-2018, 03:00 PM

Originally Posted by merchantms:

We can afford international schools for our kids, but I still think that the private schools back home are better than the international schools here, and even a lot of the public (i.e. government) schools are as good or better in terms of results and facilities.

Clearly depends which country you are coming from.FIS for example - hard to get better back home (Facilities. care. level etc)

mrdollars · 06-07-2018, 03:04 PM

As much as I love HK (and I do) I just can't see it as a sustainable option in the future. Who can afford to retire here and actually live well? Maybe retired bankers or people that have got in early on the property market. That's certainly not an option for me. I don't want to wait till I'm too old to adapt or be employable in another country before I find my way to the airport.

In an ideal scenario I would definitely come back to HK from time to time (winter, of course). I have a great network of friends here, indeed, that will be the biggest wrench of all.

Beanieskis · 06-07-2018, 03:05 PM

Originally Posted by merchantms:

We can afford international schools for our kids, but I still think that the private schools back home are better than the international schools here, and even a lot of the public (i.e. government) schools are as good or better in terms of results and facilities.

DB - I assume you're aware there are only two international through schools in DB and wait lists are extremely long. If you end up one of the many families who only gets a school place off DB requiring a long commute for your child I think you will reconsider how amazing it is.

We couldn't afford private schools in the UK as our net income would be so much lower. To get a place in a good state school we'd need to buy in an expensive school catchment area. In fact I don't even know how we'd make childcare work in the UK, as we don't have the kind of jobs that would allow a fixed pick up time from daycare and we couldn't afford a nanny.

The waitlist for DBIS these days seems to be a couple of years long from what I've heard lately, and if you don't get in there are a number of good alternative kindergartens and primary schools which is where the main pressure is. Given that our first child will be born in October and be put on the wait list at birth, I think we have an okay chance anyway. We'll also put the name down on other school waiting lists in case we decide to move or don't get in to a DB school. I understand the pressure has eased off schools here quite a lot since the recent batch of schools opened.

hullexile · 06-07-2018, 03:07 PM

Took my kids to small town UK and they loved me for it. Even the teen.

Beanieskis · 06-07-2018, 03:10 PM

Originally Posted by mrdollars:

As much as I love HK (and I do) I just can't see it as a sustainable option in the future. Who can afford to retire here and actually live well? Maybe retired bankers or people that have got in early on the property market. That's certainly not an option for me. I don't want to wait till I'm too old to adapt or be employable in another country before I find my way to the airport.

In an ideal scenario I would definitely come back to HK from time to time (winter, of course). I have a great network of friends here, indeed, that will be the biggest wrench of all.

I wouldn't retire here, but nor would I retire in any other expensive global city. We'd like to spend our retirement split between our place in the Alps, perhaps Lisbon and wherever in the world our children decide to lay their hat. That's a long way off though!

merchantms · 06-07-2018, 03:17 PM

Originally Posted by Beanieskis:

We couldn't afford private schools in the UK as our net income would be so much lower. To get a place in a good state school we'd need to buy in an expensive school catchment area. In fact I don't even know how we'd make childcare work in the UK, as we don't have the kind of jobs that would allow a fixed pick up time from daycare and we couldn't afford a nanny.

The waitlist for DBIS these days seems to be a couple of years long from what I've heard lately, and if you don't get in there are a number of good alternative kindergartens and primary schools which is where the main pressure is. Given that our first child will be born in October and be put on the wait list at birth, I think we have an okay chance anyway. We'll also put the name down on other school waiting lists in case we decide to move or don't get in to a DB school. I understand the pressure has eased off schools here quite a lot since the recent batch of schools opened.

HK is great when your kids are small because of the childcare issue. It's less so when they are school aged in my opinion. When our oldest is ready for primary school (a few years from now) we are hoping to head back home.

MerMer · 06-07-2018, 03:18 PM

Originally Posted by TheBrit:

The pollution is shit. Housing is shit. Musuems, arts and sports aren't a patch on London or New York. There are far less activities and new places to visit than living in a bigger country. Here we ski in the winter and scuba dive in the summer - all within an hours public transport. I personally think the lack of civility to others, money-worship and overt racism towards FDH's set terrible examples to children, but are widely ingrained in local culture.

There are plenty of upsides to living in Hong Kong but pretending there are no downsides is something only you could come up with.

100% agree.

MABinPengChau · 06-07-2018, 03:53 PM

I just need to hang on somewhere long enough to qualify for Medicare (age 65). I am 54 now and health insurance in my state in the US runs about US$1000 per month if you are self-employed like me. Grateful that HK will cover my sorry self in this time when anything could break down...

Not sure if I will be in HK the whole next 11 years but anywhere I don't have to pay usurious rates for health insurance/healthcare is fine by me.

"Kid" is now 29 and I didn't have to deal with HK for schools. Educated in 5 US states, Tokyo, and the UK (for uni). Had my share of "can't find a decent school" moments, glad that part is over with. Probably couldn't live on Peng Chau if I had a kid...although some English-speaking kids do go the local (Cantonese) primary school...