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Ireland to HK in September!

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  1. #1

    Ireland to HK in September!

    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!


  2. #2

    Join Date
    Oct 2005
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    14,414

    Couple of questions first

    1. Where in HK will you be working?

    2. What sort of hours will you be working?
    Will you be working crazy hours thus need to be near work etc

    Don't fall for the expat trap of the mid levels ghetto which everybody will usually say as its where all the action is and so on. If you want to pay $25-30k on a shoebox then more fool you.

    For $16k that can get you a perfect decent two bedroom apartment in west Kowloon with clubhouse gym and pool etc and be only 30 minutes away from central if you're working there.


  3. #3

    Join Date
    Jan 2008
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    11,711

    If you like the party life, be close the intense action, be in hk island, but you will live in a shoe Box, probably walk up building, or do you like a slightly further away ( less than 30 mins commute) with clubhouse facilities, larger apartment, quieter surrounding, etc


  4. #4

    Join Date
    Oct 2012
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    6,531
    Quote Originally Posted by jimbo:
    Couple of questions first

    1. Where in HK will you be working?

    2. What sort of hours will you be working?
    Will you be working crazy hours thus need to be near work etc
    He answered this in his original post: Central and probably "rough hours" (i.e. he doesn't know exactly but expects late).

    goodluckduck: we live in a 2-bedroom converted into a 1+walk-in-closet. It's a good arrangement, as a "second bedroom" in HK is usually basically just a closet-size space (to squeeze in a single bed). But if it's arranged as a walk-in closet, you get maximized storage space. We pay around $21k/month and are within a 20 minute walk of Central (>10 min. taxi or bus ride). It's around 350sq/ft, which is kind of hard for a couple used to more space, but it's been do-able so far.

    Will your gf be able to be sponsored on her own for a work visa?
    goodluckduck likes this.

  5. #5

    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Clear Water Bay (In Da Jungle)
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    Late 20's - 80K per month FFS I definitely went into the wrong fecking industry

    Whatever u do dont live too close to the action, you might catch brown or yellow fever and ditch the GF LOL

    Budget 20K is good as long as you stick to the Blue MTR line you can be in central quite fast.


  6. #6

    Thanks for all the responses

    Quote Originally Posted by jimbo:
    Couple of questions first

    1. Where in HK will you be working?

    2. What sort of hours will you be working?
    Will you be working crazy hours thus need to be near work etc

    Don't fall for the expat trap of the mid levels ghetto which everybody will usually say as its where all the action is and so on. If you want to pay $25-30k on a shoebox then more fool you.

    For $16k that can get you a perfect decent two bedroom apartment in west Kowloon with clubhouse gym and pool etc and be only 30 minutes away from central if you're working there.
    Hi Jimbo, not necessarily into the idea of living in the centre of all the action surrounded by other expats. Will look into west Kowloon, thank you.

    Quote Originally Posted by imparanoic:
    If you like the party life, be close the intense action, be in hk island, but you will live in a shoe Box, probably walk up building, or do you like a slightly further away ( less than 30 mins commute) with clubhouse facilities, larger apartment, quieter surrounding, etc
    Like most Irish men, I do enjoy the occasional few pints now and then but I don't need (or want) to be surrounded by bars and restaurants all the time. I would probably get more out of a quieter place but like I said commutability is the most important thing given my likely work hours.

    Quote Originally Posted by Elegiaque:
    He answered this in his original post: Central and probably "rough hours" (i.e. he doesn't know exactly but expects late).

    goodluckduck: we live in a 2-bedroom converted into a 1+walk-in-closet. It's a good arrangement, as a "second bedroom" in HK is usually basically just a closet-size space (to squeeze in a single bed). But if it's arranged as a walk-in closet, you get maximized storage space. We pay around $21k/month and are within a 20 minute walk of Central (>10 min. taxi or bus ride). It's around 350sq/ft, which is kind of hard for a couple used to more space, but it's been do-able so far.


    Will your gf be able to be sponsored on her own for a work visa?
    Thanks Elegiaque for the info. The '1+closet' arrangement sounds like a good compromise. I don't even know what the square footage of our current apartment is at the moment, it's not massive but I suspect we'll have to downsize.

    It's good to know that my budget should get somewhere nearby Central though. As you say, I'm not certain on the hours but my industry is known for long hours and I certainly don't expect said hours to be any better in HK than Dublin. I lived in London for a bit and it makes a big difference having a 10 minute commute if you're leaving the office at midnight

    We're hopeful that my girlfriend will get sponsored on her own she's a similar profile to me (good qualifications, professional experience etc). She's got a good job in Dublin so we'd both be keen that she find something in HK before handing in her notice (the whole 'easier to find a job when you have a job' thing). We were probably going to get married in the next year anyways so happy to push that forward and try to sort out a dependency visa if all else fails (how romantic) but that's probably for another post.

    Quote Originally Posted by wtbhotia:
    Late 20's - 80K per month FFS I definitely went into the wrong fecking industry

    Whatever u do dont live too close to the action, you might catch brown or yellow fever and ditch the GF LOL

    Budget 20K is good as long as you stick to the Blue MTR line you can be in central quite fast.
    Caught the fever a good while back so too late on that score . One of the benefits of this move is that my (Asian) girlfriend will be nearer home and I get to live somewhere where the weather isn't my fault
    Last edited by goodluckduck; 22-06-2015 at 08:21 PM.
    Elegiaque and wtbhotia like this.

  7. #7

    Join Date
    Jun 2015
    Posts
    6

    Hi goodluckduck,
    i am in a very similar position, 27,male from leeds uk moving to HK 15th July working for a large multinational company.
    i have just been through what you are doing, where to live etc etc. i found with the help of my HK buying office a great location in kowloon, harbour front horizon http://www.horizonhotels.com.hk/harb...orizon-en.html

    good location, good transport network - great views.

    more than happy to email direct if your interested as I've just been through months of research etc etc
    cheers steve

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  8. #8

    Well the move is on track and getting closer, I've been watching the Chinese stock market crash with some trepidation though. My new job would definitely have some exposure to the health of the Chinese economy (presumably most other jobs in HK are similar) so fingers crossed it doesn't impact too much, I started my current job in Dublin just as the IMF rolled into town, now the Irish economy is growing again I'm jumping ship

    Work visa docs are in, in the process of selling stuff I don't need to bring and helping my girlfriend with her job hunt. Added to that my current place seems adamant to squeeze the last drops of work out of me during my notice period so I haven't had that much time to even think about the move, About a month to go now though and getting excited

    wtbhotia and vmlinuz like this.

  9. #9

    I'm a 28 year old Irish lad moving over in a couple weeks myself, goodluckduck. Whereabouts you from?

    I haven't played any GAA since under-12s, but have emailed the local club for the craic anyway. Potentially a good way to meet some people I figure.

    goodluckduck likes this.

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by warriorer:
    I'm a 28 year old Irish lad moving over in a couple weeks myself, goodluckduck. Whereabouts you from?

    I haven't played any GAA since under-12s, but have emailed the local club for the craic anyway. Potentially a good way to meet some people I figure.
    Hi warrioer, originally from Kildare, not really known as a GAA stronghold especially after the results last weekend Might give the GAA club a go - my GAA career ended around age 12 as well but maybe it's time for a comeback!

    For the benefit of anyone else reading this thread: GAA stands for 'Gaelic Athletic Association' and it's the Irish national athletics organisation. We're everywhere

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