Posted by
macdoue
14 yrs ago
We are looking to move to HK with my husband's job. We have a 10month old baby boy. I lived in HK in 2005 as a single expat in Midlevels, but have been told a family is best suited in one of the above. Can somebody give me some advice ie expected rent, types of places, lifestyle, commuting to Central?
Many thanks,
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They are all very different.
- Repulse Bay is the most costly, but also the closest to Central timewise. A taxi in the morning takes about 15 minutes and the bus takes 25 or so. Many of the buildings have great facilities. There are three pre-schools in RB. You can easily get by without a car.
- Clearwater Bay is a hefty commute by HK standards (and pretty light by any other standards) but you can get a nice house for less than a 3 bed in Repulse Bay. You will need a car.
- Disco Bay is a planned community that people seem to love or hate. It is by all accounts very family friendly. The commute is by ferry. There are no cars.
I can only speak for the rents in Repulse Bay but you're talking 60-120k for a three bedroom place. I don't actually know if there are any 2 bedroom flats. Never seen any.
I'm biased since we live in Repulse Bay, but we find it great. Very easy to get "downtown", great hiking five minutes away. Excellent if pricey grocery store in RB with one more in Stanley. Three beaches within walking distance. And everyone delivers at the lowest rate, something which is not always the case for Disco Bay and Clearwater Bay. One downside is that there is very little nightlife in RB itself. I'd kill for a nice little pub. Still, a short hop to Stanley for some good food and a 20 minute taxi ride to Central for bars. Not too shabby.
It depends really what you want out of the lifestyle. I never liked living in a house in the suburbs, so RB fits me pretty well. It's not in town but it's not really "out there" either.
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BTW you should also look at Pok Fu Lam, Cyberport, Shouson Hill and Stanley. I am loathe to recommend Parkview but many people seem to love it.
All are just as "family friendly" as the three bays.
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i would add that DB is accessible by train/bus combination as well as ferry (for those averse to ferry travel/during typhoon 8+) though it is a longer ride, prob. close to 1 hour from DB Terminus to Central...
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I'd add this to cara's excellent point about going there: get out of the van and walk around a bit. Walk from some candidate building to the bus station, the grocery store, the pre-school etc.
HK is remarkably hilly in most areas, not least Repulse Bay. This is very hard to gauge from a map. Getting out and walking a bit gives you a much better idea of the lay of the land.
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lalib
14 yrs ago
I would go for Repulse Bay in a second, due to the close proximity and scenery.
I live on DB, its nice, but people are too stessed out and love to complain.
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With either place you choose bear in mind the air will be putrid. The pollution really is shocking! Once you realise how bad it is for a young baby you may not stay long.
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lulux
14 yrs ago
Having lived many many years in HK & having lived in DB, HK ISL & SK - Sai Kung is my choice. SK/Clearwater Bay area is a great area to live in for families with all the creature comforts an 'expat' likes without being an Expat Getto. Theres heaps going on in SK Town. Activities for families go way beyond the Soccer Tots, Mini Rugby, Ballet classes, Brazillian Soccer, art classes, Yoga, Pilates, Tennis, Squash, Music classes, playgrounds, sailing, windsurfing, kayaking etc etc. The shop keepers are all friendly & you can pretty much get anything in SK Town without needing to go to the city. Theres even a new M & S store not far away in Hang Hau, just 5 mins from Clearwater Bay. Another great thing about SK is the sense of community. Residents really do make an effort to 'Shop Local' & support the individual shop keepers & restaurants instead of just shopping at the major Supermarket chains. Sometimes friends will say - ' Wah but the traffic is so bad & it's always congested getting into SK' - The answer is easy - yes true on a Saturday afternoon / Sunday when the rest of HK likes to drive into SK - but hey if you live in SK you're already there then anyway so don't get stuck in that traffic coming in! Good Luck with your homefinding. At the end of the day - It's what you make of it wherever you end up.
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Same here..Have lived in DB but feel people are complaining all the time. We moved to Singapore two years back and are moving back to Hong Kong again. Need some information on commute from Sai Kung to IFC2 ? If we stay there, we plan to drive. How much time are we looking at? Shortest way? I saw some threads but they were dated 2004. So not sure if they are still valid.
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Hi Cara,
We are being shown a house on New Hiram's Highway. I am not at all familiar with Sai Kung, so not sure how far this is from Central. Any guidance will be really appreciated.
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Thank you everybody for such great information. I am worried about the pollution, it was bad when I worked there years ago, and now with a baby it is worrying. We also have the opportunity to work in Singapore. Can anybody give me some advice here, Singapore or Hong Kong? And if Singapore where should we look to live? Thanks,
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In regards to pollution there is no contest, it's Singapore hands down!!!!!
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As mentioned Singapore is less polluted and just generally cleaner.
It is a matter of taste of course but Singapore has a very straitlaced reputation compared to HK. No smut, no spitting out gum, no long hair for guys. Some people find Singapore boring compared to HK. Singapore has been described as "Disneyland run by fascists".
AFAIK you will afford house-wise more in Singapore.
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NHYM
14 yrs ago
I have just moved to HK with 2 children and chose to live near Stanley, not sure what the 'official' air quality is like but you can definitely see the pollution as you can't see very far! However I don't smell it or really even notice it and was very worried about it before we got here, more so after reading a lot of scaremongering on Asiaxpat! Have lived in Tokyo and London and it doesn't feel much worse. Southside living is great, views from Repulse Bay are gorgeous. Send me a PM and I'll let you know whats available in the area for property as have just looked at nearly everything.!!
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I would agree that if you are willing to live outside of the city center then the south side is a pretty good area, if not the best. The only downside is the price. But I think if you look hard enough, you can find something in Stanley that is reasonable. I don't know much about Sai Kung but I've heard good things. The only downside with Sai Kung is that it is far in HK standards, further than the south side. Another option is Pokfulam which is also a little away from the city center but much closer to Central than either the south side or Sai Kung. A minibus ride to Central only take about 20 minutes. It's not as nice as the south side and you won't have the space as Sai Kung, but you get a little more space than mid-levels and it's also pretty nice compared to most of HK. The main thing is that it is close to Central yet fair away enough to escape the hustle and bustle. There are quite a few schools in the area as well.
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NHYM - Not scaremongering - fact! The air here compared to Tokyo and London is worse and by a huge amount! Look at the statistics! I guess if you have came here with two children you are just in denial about it or making excuses. From Repulse Bay today I can just about see the sea the smog is sooo bad!
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Hugie
14 yrs ago
Been here 16 years. pollution not that bad all year round. Lots of beautiful sunny clear days. I don't like the busy xpat areas. If I could afford it, I would live in Sai Kung country park.......I can't, so I bought a village house almost 2 years ago close to Hok Tau nr Fanling................fantastic! The country parks are breathtaking and I am close to two lakes that are so secluded that you can sit up there all day and only seeing a few people. The local village store knows my family by name, the bus driver will wait if you are running late in the morning. My son goes to a local school and speaks cantonese even though neither my wife nor I are Chinese. We ride our bikes to the organic farms and pull the veg from the ground ourselves. Never been to Singapore and don't want to either. Enjoy your time in HK, why not try Hon Lok Yuen.......great Park N Shop.
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Just moved from Singapore, was in HK for 4 yrs- moved to SP for 2 yrs and back to HK. I might have very strong views about SG, so please don't take offense but its a big Mommy country. The whole rules and regulations lobotomize the living population slowly and its boring like anything. Space wise of course you get more in SG, but life wise it is too much of a compromise.
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