Posted by
aidenl
14 yrs ago
Hi everyone,
I will be relocating to Hong Kong in June with my wife and 10 month old son. My wife is also pregnant and we are seeking some advice and suggestions.
I've traveled numerous times to Hong Kong but have never had to find a permenant home.
Here are some questions we have and please forgive us if they seem silly to any of you.
1. We've looked at apartments in Central, Discovery bay, and Happy Valley. Are there any other areas you would suggest that were in the range of 30-50K per month, 3 bedrooms, fairly new or fully renovated, near MTR and near shopping areas?
2. Would you recommend buying furniture in the states and bringing it over to HK rather than purchasing it locally? ie. matresses, bedroom furniture, baby furniture, etc?
3. How is the organic food supply in HK? We know its pricey but are there any specialty stores like Whole Foods in California?
4. Electronics - should I bring my own TVs, Computers, etc? or just buy locally? Will they work? etc?
Again apologizes if these seem to be silly questions...
Thanks again!
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Ed
14 yrs ago
Great for organic food http://www.threesixtyhk.com/
Not a bad idea to stay in a serviced apartment to get your bearings... then commit to a longer lease later...
http://hongkong.asiaxpat.com/property/serviced.asp
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Furniture you should probably get over here, its going to be much cheaper than buying in the states and shipping. If/when you leave, Asia Expat does run a great classifieds section where you can offload your kit.
Electronics are also much cheaper out this way. If you want to bring your US gear, remember to pick up a transformer, otherwise you could end up blowing your equipment (TVs, Blenders, ect). A custom built, top of the line laptop will run you about HK$5,000 in Mong Kok or Sham Shui Po.
Property is a tough call, just depends where you want to live (Mid Levels, Happy Valley, Sai Kung, Stanley, ect) - check out the property section here, or give squarefoot.com.hk a go. As Ed says, may be a good idea to do a serviced apartment initially, see all of the city, and then make a call as to where you want to be. Serviced apartments are all over the shop right now (there is even an ad for Ovolo next to this post).
Couldn't help you with the organic food, but there seems to be a fair supply.
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1. We've looked at apartments in Central, Discovery bay, and Happy Valley. Are there any other areas you would suggest that were in the range of 30-50K per month, 3 bedrooms, fairly new or fully renovated, near MTR and near shopping areas?
Midlevels, Sai Ying Pun, Kennedy Town, Sheung Wan. Granted those are not THAT close to MTR, but there are tons of buses and minibuses. Also Star Street in Wan Chai.
2. Would you recommend buying furniture in the states and bringing it over to HK rather than purchasing it locally? ie. matresses, bedroom furniture, baby furniture, etc?
The answer is "it depends". Certainly you can find all that stuff here. It may be cheaper in the US or cheaper here. Sorry there is no definitive answer. I would say that if you have free shipping of the stuff, buy what you want in the US since you know you can get hold of it.
3. How is the organic food supply in HK? We know its pricey but are there any specialty stores like Whole Foods in California?
Sure. Three-sixty in Landmark is all "organic". Great and many other stores have big organic selections. You can also order delivery from places like Aussie Organics.
4. Electronics - should I bring my own TVs, Computers, etc? or just buy locally? Will they work? etc?
First issue: voltage. US is 110V. HK is 220V. Many appliances can handle both so bring those. For 110V only stuff, I would only bring low wattage items (less than 200W) as larger transformers are big and clunky.
Second issue: TV signal. Check that your TV can handle PAL signals or you won't be able to get local broadcasts.
Electronics are not really cheaper in HK than in the US actually. Maybe 10 years ago, but now cheap US retailers like Best Buy and Newegg beat HK prices any day.
No way you will get a top of the line laptop for 5000, either in HK or the US. Top of the line you're talking at least 15k.
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Thanks for the info everyone. We do have a free crate by sea and a couple of air shipments.
Will likely get most items in the states but am concerned with the space in the apartments in HK vs Cali...
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Well, you will most likely have less space. But as long as you are aware of this you should be fine. Purge purge purge.
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Feel free to pm me. We are from saffron also moving in may. We have a 22month old. My husband will work in central. We are in HK this weekend to look for housing.....I just called last night and cancelled my furniture orders in USA.....no way will they fit. We also have a free container paid by company. The rooms are super small especially the 2nd and 3rd rooms. They are about the size of my walk in closet.....probably 6 ft by 5 ft so you can fit a crib and a changing table. I ordered a bunk bed twin over full but cancelled because the full size bed will take the whole room. So maybe buy bunk bed twin over twin here. Can't fit a wide dresser but could fit tall chest with twin. I can give u more details. Our budget is 40 to 50k... You might consider larger 2 bedrooms too. We have narrowed down to park view bel air and kolwoon station. Park view being top choice with family friendly facilities. Since you will have 2 young kids...I don't think midlevel is good unless your wife wants to push double strollers up and down hills similar to nob hill and in heavy traffic...
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Hi, I hope that you don't mind if I join in this discussion. I am a SF'er moving to HK as well this summer. Can I ask which moving company you are using? and whether or not you are packing up a house to put into storage. We are moving with a small company that has offices in Tokyo, London and HK, so they are expecting us to organize all of the move on our side. We have lived internationally before, but in areas that seem much more international move friendly than SF. I also had many of the same questions re: furniture. Talked to some friends in HK who said bring beds, as sizes available in HK are UK, which are slighly more narrow and generally a bit longer. (Unless you want to have to rebuy all your bedding) Also, looking for a good area to live in. Was on a visit a couple of weeks ago and liked the mid-levels, but I like walking around SF hills, so maybe its just me. I don't like to have to get in a car to get milk/coffee etc... Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
THanks,
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I would be wary of a company that wants you to do everything. Companies like Asian Tigers and Santa Fe cost more, but they take care of all the red tape, of which there is a lot. The big companies don't let you pack because they want to be exactly sure what is being shipped so there are no snags at customs or anywhere.
Many parts of Midlevels are only minutes from the hiking trails. Then again most of HK is not far from hiking.
Milk and coffee. Depends on the area. Some buildings are up a steep drive and a pain if you don't have a car. Others have a Pacific Coffee and a grocery store on the ground floor. HK is even more hilly than SF so maps can be very deceptive. The only way to really figure out if a place is conveniently located is to take a walk around the area.
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Lots of good advice already, but here goes anyway for what it's worth.
Re furniture, the comments about space in HK are bang on. Apartments here are likely to be substantially smaller than you are used to in the US. Not a terrible issue, just takes some getting your head round, and, as far as furniture goes, it means that you will probably struggle to fit all your US furniture/appliances into a HK apartment.
Definitely a good idea, if you can, to rent a serviced apartment for the first little while and take your time checking out living areas and viewing apartments once you've picked an area you like. Generally, you will get more for your money the further you live from Central. Sounds obvious, but once you've spent a little while here, you'll have a better sense for the trade off you're willing to make between living centrally and the convenience of it, and the price you're willing to pay/amount of space you can afford.
Many with families live a little away from Central. Discovery Bay is very popular with families, but is of course a 25 minute ferry ride from HK Island. Personally, my wife and I spent many years in Mid-Levels and loved the convenience, but moved out to Pokfulam (west side of HK Island) a few years back and love it out there. Longer commute, but not in amongst all the high rises. We have a car, so can pop to the shops, movies etc. in that, and that also helps with the convenience factor.
As always, it's horses for courses. You're doing the right thing doing your research, but strongly suggest you spend some time here before you commit to a certain area/apartment.
Good luck!
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Hi.
Welcome to HK.
For electronics, you can go to Fortress at Times Square.
For furniture, you can go to ITO FUTON for Futon sofa bed as guest/spare bed. HK rooms is extremely small especially those new flat. Try the old but renovated building.
Do some research first.
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No need to go to Times Square. There are Fortress all over. ;)
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electronics are actually a lot cheaper in the US. a sony tv (60 inch KDL-60NX801) was usd3000 plus tax from costco (priced from a year ago), whereas the same tv (same specs, diff model number) here in hk is almost dbl the price. we ended up buying it in hk due to the voltage and shipping issue.
as for furniture, depends on what you like. i find that here in hk, there's no midrange furniture as there are in america w/ crate and barrel or ethan allen, etc. it's all either cheap, disposable ikea stuff that will break down, or ugly chinese-type furniture (e.g., giormani, tequila kola, etc.), or then you have the really expensive italian brands like b&b italia and minotti.
if you like wood stuff, tree makes great furniture. but overall, the level and quality of furniture available here is pretty shabby on a bang for the buck basis.
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I agree with johnk348 on all points. US electronics are way cheaper. This is probably due to the much higher competition (no oligopoly like in HK) and the much lower distribution costs (huge chain stores and online shopping.
One note though: If you do buy something in the US, check the warranty carefully. You don't want to have to ship it back to the US to get it repaired. Worldwide warranty, or at least one-time-transferable to HK, is a must.
As johnk348 says, there is indeed a lack of midrange. Where's Crate & Barrel or Restoration Hardware?
Personally, we go for semi-antiques from China or Mongolia for storage. Looks nice and built well.
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Hi Annie. we are using Santa Fe. They have a local company Grabel that does the san fran side. They've been great. we didn't have to do anything. They packed up and shipped 2 days ago. We probably took 1/2 of the stuff we have here after realizing how small the apts are. Especially some of the newer ones where the bedroom is the size of my closet now.... crazy. We willl stay in service apartment for a month and figure out where to stay. We really like Parkview as they have 'normal size' rooms, comparable to what we have here in the US. It's little far but it has all the amenties and only 15 minutes to central. the cab is a lot cheaper in hong kong and also more available compared to san fran! hope that helps! we did bring our queen size bed...
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There are tons of places with "normal size" rooms. You just have to look at buildings that are not all new and shiny. ;)
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Will you consider Sai Kung? a leisure place in HK. I found many foreignor live there.
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We have just moved to HK from California back in July so I know exactly what you are going through. Have you checked out Bel-Air? It is only 15min to Central and there is the shuttle bus to Sheung Wan. I have looked for housing everywhere (including Parkview) before settling at Bel-Air. It is very family friendly and they have 'normal' size rooms. We love it here and the views are great.
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good luck living in a shoebox for us$10K. if i woz u i stay in sf
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Belair not that convenient if you are in a hurry as the traffic can get pretty bad and you won't get much on that budget. The Mid-levels area is also probably out of your budget but Tin Hau and Braemar Hill maybe do-able and possibly Happy valley - which has a villagey feel. Don't expect US-sized apartments. If you go down that route, it will cost you an arm and a leg. If you are looking for a large flat in a resort-type place, take a look at Park Island on http://www.parkisland.com.hk Again, most locals won't even go there as a 25 minute journey is too far. However, the quality of the flats is high and there are beaches and lots of swimming pools. Very well managed. Ferry also a lot cheaper than Discovery Bay and there are many shuttle buses to Tsing Yi MTR.
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I haven't read through all the responses so apologies if I am stating the same as above. If your wife is not working then would definately recommend DB as a place to live. She will be able to easily meet other Moms with small kids and everything is relatively easy in terms of entertaining small kids, wheeling a stroller, convenience of grocery stores, availability of playgroups etc. We moved there after 5 years in Midlevels and never looked back. Midlevels is great without kids but I am happy to take the commute into work from DB into Central (on the ferry)anytime when it means we can entertain the kids easily with parks, playgrounds and the club houses in DB. In my experience, Midlevels with a toddler is a difficult place, lots of roadside pollution, busy traffic (scary to grip tight to the hand of your toddler who just wants to walk themselves!), narrow sidewalks (near impossible for a stroller) and small playgrounds.
Just my 2 cents of course ...
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uh, lloyd, that is just ridiculous, and the type of advice that scares ppl from moving to hk - 30-50k is plenty to live in the midlevels. for that budget, you can expect a nice renovated apt in an older building w/o all the amenities (gym, pool, etc.). one caveat though is that the midlevels is not close to any mtr station, you would have to walk down the escalator for 20 minutes, or take the bus. the street on where i live has a number of buses going to central for work (56, 12, 4), i think you will find that more convenient than the mtr.
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Johnhk348. I think 30-50k for a 3 bedroom flat in Mid-levels is a bit tight.
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Check out Braemar Hill, just off Causway Bay
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Hugie
14 yrs ago
Buy a car move to the N.T! Whole house with pool 38K plus..........
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Look for long established electronics stores off the tourist traps . New and used TVs of all kinds and sizes are much cheaper in places like Chungking (TST), first floor . 32 inch brand new LCD tv for HK$ 1800 . Transport anywhere in HK is easy and fast . Especially with convenience of Octopus card . Find anywhere that is suitable and family friendly for your wife and do not worry too much about distance to get somewhere 'coz it is fast , especially compared to what you ar used to back home .
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