Hi everyone!
I've recently accepted a job offer in HK to start this September. Massively excited about the move, had been daydreaming about a move to Asia for the past year or so. Now it's dawning on me that this is actually happening I've been lurking away on the forums absorbing as much info as possible before the big move. I've never actually been to HK before so the forums have been a great resource.
I'm Irish and late 20's professional. Living in Dublin with my gf who's currently looking at opportunities and hopefully will follow me over sometime before Christmas.
No housing allowance but the salary is HKD80k / month which I understand should be plenty for a young(ish) guy without a fancy lifestyle. I wouldn't plan on owning a car and I'll eat pretty much anything. Being brought up on a bland Irish diet decent Asian food is still a massive treat for me
One thing I'd like some help on (although I know it comes up ad nauseum) is where would be a good place to live. Also wondering what would be a reasonable housing budget on my salary - was thinking 20k?
My new employer will put me up for a month and then it's up to me to find somewhere. Given that my gf will be following over my plan would be to find a serviced apartment near work till she gets here. I don't think there's any point in taking a lease without her seeing the place first. Plus she's a bit more exacting than I am - although I'd live pretty much anywhere with a bed and four walls.
We live in a two bed place in Dublin but it seems like a 'spare room' would be a bit of a luxury in HK so there's a bit of a question as to whether a two bed or one-bed makes sense. Would it be normal for a couple with no kids to live anywhere bigger than a one-bed in HK? In Dublin one-beds are the exception and those that exist are usually either Dickensian era bedsits or crappy shoebox new-builds so we're hoping that HK might offer a happier medium if we do go for a one-bed.
In terms of location, I suspect that the hours in this new job will be rough so number one priority is somewhere I can easily commute to Central station. Wan chai and Kennedy town keep coming up but that's based solely on proximity and I don't have much of an idea as to what these places are actually like.
Anyway, that's it for now - thanks for reading through this stream of consciousness post and I look forward to contributing!