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Moving alone in HK

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  1. #41

    Join Date
    Jun 2017
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    14

    What's the price range I should be targeting then?


  2. #42
    Quote Originally Posted by nnat:
    What's the price range I should be targeting then?
    nnat, you can live as lowly as you like.

    If you want to experience the most difficult lives in HK, try SSP & MK... just don't come back and whine about it.

  3. #43

    Join Date
    Jun 2004
    Location
    HK
    Posts
    14,624

    @nnat.

    French and moving to HK and working in ICC -> Natixis?

    Anyway, for 58K (base salary) per month (and bonus?) you should be fine.

    Rent you don't have to pay 20k. With a bit of searching (it's easy to find a flat in HK - much quicker than in France), you should get a 400sqf or around for 14-18k depending which area. I would look at:
    Kennedy Town,
    Sheung Wan
    Sai Ying Pun
    Olympic
    Lai Chi Kok (less sexy on paper but good complexes in the area - a bit less good if your social life is on the island tho)

    HK is safe - you don't have to worry much about that.
    HK can be cold in the one month winter we have simply because there is very little heater, so bring some winter clothes.

    shri, nnat, jmbf and 2 others like this.

  4. #44

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
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    θ–„ζ‰Άζž—
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    nnat - budget for what you can afford and then find what you like, hopefully for less. No point stressing about this.

    Start low with the agents / research extensively online. If you don't like anything they show you, find another agent and give them a slightly higher range.

    Make note of the buildings you like / don't like and the apartments you've seen with which agent (you cannot / should not be renting an apartment which Agent A has shown you, through Agent B).

    When I walk around in areas like Kennedy Town / Sai Ying Pun - the new developments are pretty unoccupied and I suspect that there is some negotiability. Feels like there is a net outflow of expats this year.

    jmbf and merchantms like this.

  5. #45

    Join Date
    Jun 2004
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    HK
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    14,624

    Use that website for more accurate pricing per location:
    Centadata - Home Page


  6. #46

    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Posts
    244
    Quote Originally Posted by locust.fund:
    I worked as a realtor about a decade ago, in the West Mid Level area (covering "Lan Kwai Fong" in Central, all the way to Bei-Air in Cyberport). Hated the job.

    To tell you the truth, my manager had told me repeatedly NOT TO bother helping those who were seeking rentals with a budget less than HKD$15k/month. He said it was not worth it, because, first of all, there are very few options available even within the vast area (I could do a search on the company database and saw he was telling the truth), and the few available options are pretty bad anyway so my clientele (a majority of which is western people) won't like them so the success rate for me closing a deal would be low...

    And that was about ten years ago, Hong Kong's rental market has soared since.

    I am just being realistic.
    Well, I saw about 20 apartments in the 13-16k price range on Wanchai, Kennedy town and Sheung Wan and they were all decent. I chose my one as it was newly renovated.

    I feel that perhaps your knowledge is a bit outdated.
    Whilst property prices have been rising, the rental market has been falling. Most of my friends have managed to negotiate a reduction in rent at the 2 year mark.

  7. #47

    I have lived here for 27 years and Chuckster is pretty much spot on, so I recommend you take his advice


  8. #48

    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Posts
    11,884
    Quote Originally Posted by locust.fund:
    I lived in SSP as a teenager. I know it like the back of my hand.
    Good for you.

    Now figure out the difference between prejudice (old homeless people, methadone users) and some kind of logical risk assessment of the likely sources of physical violence in a population.
    HowardCoombs likes this.

  9. #49

    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Posts
    1,507

    Why is rent falling? Too many investors buy new properties to rent them out?


  10. #50

    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Posts
    2,112

    There's sometimes localised drops in rent when new estates open up and a lot of units suddenly come onto the market. The effect is usually fairly short-term though. I haven't noticed any widespread lowering of rents although to be fair I haven't been looking.


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