Posted by
expatinhk
17 yrs ago
This is more for people with kids / babies. We have our first baby on the way and are feeling the need to move. We can't afford huge 20M+ houses / units on the South Side and other exclusive areas.
But we want somewhere where there are other westerners with babies for socialising, ideally a place with facilities, where it's easy to go for walks and where there are supermarkets stocked with decent western produce. We travel a lot so easy access to the airport or airport express would be essential. We are not planning on a full time helper either, if we can manage it, so things like a short stroll to the shops with a pram-friendly walkways would be essential.
Is this possible to find in HK???
And how essential would it be to you to have a 1500sf+ 3-bedroom home without facilities and easy access to shops as opposed to a 1500sf 2-bedroom home with facilities, shops next door etc? Is size everything or does life-style win when you have a newborn?
What else should we consider??
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I would say try to move to South Side anyway. There are smaller, less expensive units. I would rather live somewhere smaller in a better area and in a nice complex.
Repulse Bay (yes not the cheapest) is very stroller friendly for HK. The local Wellcome (now Jason's) has all the expat stuff, as does Taste in Stanley. The area is awash with westerners with small kids.
Another option is Sai Kung, but I am not terribly familiar with the area.
"And how essential would it be to you to have a 1500sf+ 3-bedroom home without facilities and easy access to shops as opposed to a 1500sf 2-bedroom home with facilities, shops next door etc? Is size everything or does life-style win when you have a newborn?"
Not so much size as a nice building is important to us. We live in a fab townhouse complex. The fact that as you walk out your door you meet your neighbors makes an enormous difference compared to a tower block. In our complex we have a very nice community. People know each other, help each other out, etc. More importantly, the kids tend to play together. There's no need to make playdates. Just ring your neighbor's door. This is the main reason we like the complex and don't want to move.
Having said that, a playground and pool are nice to have, and we do. We have less need for a gym and such. And our building is not the most flashy. It's a nice place to live without that marble and gold leaf interior.
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Thank you for your replies axptguy38 and cara. We thought of DB and did a bit of research there already but we aren't convinced - can't have a car there and few other things just make us think twice although it is still an option.
axptguy38, if you don't mind and know the south side well, would you be able to send me a PM with some recommendations on which areas specifically might be worthwhile considering? I spoke to some real estate agents but we never seem to get very far as they all say we need at least 17-19M to get something.
Anyway, really appreciate your comments or any others that might come!
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second DB...nowhere in HK is more baby/parent friendly
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plenty of people raise 1 or more children in HK on far less than 1500sqft.
there are tons of playgroups, public facilities with pools, and many areas have easy access to the plentiful trails in hkg.
most places are also with easy reach of shopping.
if you must have western groceries look around a taste, great, apita, city super etc is never far away.
hkg is not particularly pram friendly anywhere outside db. buses, trams, subways etc are all pretty anti-foot traffic let alone prams.
not sure having a car will make all the much difference unless you are in the NT areas. taxis are cheaper than parking and driving here is not easy.
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I prefer Tin Hau Temple road .....There are numerous reasons for that 1) its right next to Causway Bay and Victoria park ( where u have excelent facilities). 2) Being next to Causeway Bay, Its 10mins walk to city super as well as central library(Its wonderful, the 1st floor is a kidz zone full of touch screen computers and nice play area, etc). 3) U can also become a member of South China Sports club and acccess all the facilities such as golf, olympic size swimming pool, etc 4) Tin Hau temple road has huge beautiful apartments within 50K which is definitely more affordable than Repulse Bay 5) U will find lots of Expats there and many excellent International Kindies close-by. 6) Moreover If u work in Central then it will be just 15mins drive from there in peak hrs. 7) The older apartments on Tin Hau Temple road has free parking just like South side and pokfulum.
If your budget is lower than that like say 40K or lower and u want a 15000sqft apt. then u can try Tai Koo or Grand promenade(off course higher price). There are also very child friendly. You have Jusco and Apita right next door and the varities here are very International. Moreover MTR station right under your nose which is a requiement from my perspective as U wouldnt feel like taking ur car downtown in Hk because of Parking woes (expensive and always full on weekends especially around central and Causeway Bay).
Well just check theses places before making a choice....
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"axptguy38, if you don't mind and know the south side well, would you be able to send me a PM with some recommendations on which areas specifically might be worthwhile considering? I spoke to some real estate agents but we never seem to get very far as they all say we need at least 17-19M to get something."
Most of the places on South Bay Road, South Bay Close and Headland road are quite nice. Pricey though.
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The thing is, we have lived in HK for a long time, also had no car at first but after about 6 years we decided to get one - we enjoy not having to cab all the time and be able to get to places without needing a cab (of course, not necessarily places like Central or shops but more like remote beaches and just do a nice family outing when we want)
We would also prefer to buy not rent which limits our choices a little - lots of good complexes are rent only or the car-praks are rent-only at a crazy price.
And yes I totally realise that most people raise kids here in less than 1500sf but it's just something we would prefer to have if we can find it within reasonable price.
Very interesting about Tin Hau Rd - will check it out.
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Check out also Baguio Villa if you don't mind the flats to be too old. The price are attractive in southern. Minibus to central, own swimming pool, have their own Park'n Shop or take a drive for couple minutes to Cyberport where mall with western produce shop and restaurant located. Right next to the great estate Bel-Air.
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cd
17 yrs ago
You could buy a 2100sf village house in Sai Kung for around $12m. Its easier out this way if you have a car, but if you get a house close to Sai Kung centre then you can also walk to the shops, good selection of food available, a good Welcome (just being refurbished), a small PNS, 2 good bakers and butchers, several small parks, public swimming pool and tennis courts, nice restaurants etc. But also a short car ride to Country parks and beaches.
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ldavy
17 yrs ago
expatinhk, if you have lived in Hong Kong for a long time then you probably know the answers to your own questions as well as, if not better than, anyone else. You want places where there are other Westerners with babies for socialising? They are all over Hong Kong. If you mean you want to live somewhere which is predominantly Western, then you need to be in Sai Kung or DB, the south side, or Bel-Air. But if a lot of agents have told you that you need around 17M to 19M, that's probably because that's how much flats cost in those areas.
I'm an agent and I'll have a look, and let you know if I can find anything a bit cheaper.
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ldavy
17 yrs ago
expatinhk, I have just sent you a personal message.
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ldavy, yes been in HK for a long time but never with a baby which changes things and requirements, at least in my view. Hence I was asking for advice from other parents.
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I'm going to be a contrarian here. I don't like Bel-Air very much. No beach close by and it's very much "mass living". Also I have heard that the guards tell kids not to bike past the entrance, even if there are no cars (feel free to correct this impression). I find that a bit typical HK, as in "we are here to enforce the rules, not to make it a great place to live". In our small complex it's the opposite. the guards stop cars so the kids have time to bike past.
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Seen Bel-Air - why they didn't build Wellcome /Parkn'shop in a place of this size is beyond me. How people do it if they need to pop into the shops to get a carton of milk? That is, if they don't have an amah to send! :-)
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i would throw in park island as something to consider as well. similar to DB but beach right in front, more club house facilities and playgrounds for very small kids and less travel time to central as the ferry stops right at the development.
no parking at the development though. that would have to be in tsing yi or tung chung reachable by shuttle bus
another idea: have you considered heng fa chuen (especially heng fa villa)? great outdoor living environment by convenient into town plus your own car park
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Cara, are you thinking the Cyberport complex? As that's like a 15-20 minute walk from the complex (one way). When we had a look through there last time there were definitely no shops (groceries) at the complex.
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