Posted by
moonbeam
14 yrs ago
Hi there, We are relocating to Hong Kong and have begun searching for a modest apartment in or around HK island. We are unsure about the location of our office, so for now, we can look anywhere. Where is the best area to live?
1. we want to be immersed in HK culture but ideally near a nice expat community
2. we are start up creatives, on a limited budget
3. our baby girl is 14 months, so we are not worrying about schools at this point
4. we are looking for serviced apartments for rent, not buy
thanks for any advice!
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i think you will find HK pretty limited and quie difficult to meet all your needs.
south wanchai has service apartments, some local culture etc left (but not for long), is very centrally located. and TONS of service apartments there.
budget could be an issue as it would be anywhere on or around HK Island.
sheung-wan could be another alternative. a bit more local in flavour. a few service apartments, still very central.
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Thank you for your response.Â
Please allow me to clarify. Yes, we understand hong kong has a very high cost of living. We are looking for something nice and comfortable but not necessarily luxury. I mean to say we are on a finite budget, relative to the cost of living in HK, but we are planning on moving into the city itself.Â
In terms of culture, I know HK is unique in what constitutes as "local culture," I mean to say we would prefer to not be in a completely self-contained living complex.
I will look into South Wanchai and Sheung Wan. Thanks!
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we are only going to be in HK 6 months to a year, tops. 25k HK$ is probably the top of our budget. if we hired any help, it would only be part time.
thanks for the help!
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if you are only here for a short period, probably a serviced appt will be your best bet. renting contracts run a year + . having a small baby myself, you might find the south island much nicer to live, as its not so crowded. but that depends what you are looking for. as for a helper, you may find a part timer, but usually they are live in and full time, unless you find someone that can do some additonal work at your place.
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Ed
14 yrs ago
http://hongkong.asiaxpat.com/property/serviced.asp
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Serviced apartments would be your best bet but they can be very expensive if you live in prime areas of Hong Kong. In case you end up staying for a longer period of time perhaps Tung Chung in the New Territories would be a good bet. I have a 1,200 square foot apartment for $18,500 HK per month. Only 29 minutes by train into Hong Kong and a fairly large sized expat community. I live in the Caribbean Coast complex and would estimate it is about 20% expats. The only bad thing is the lack of good restaurants. Also try some places in Kowloon. Kowloon is close to HK with alot of great restaurants, shopping etc... Good luck. By the way some of the nice serviced apartments can run $30K per month or more so they are expensive.
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I am a bit out of touch with serviced apartments these days, but I remember some years ago when I looked at some that they did not have a decent washing machine/dryer. That would seem to be a priority need for a family with young kids.
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Try sai kung you can rent some nice houses here I know someone whos got a 1000 sq/ft for 15,000 a month. Although sai kung is out of the way it's a great place for children to be brought up
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Ma On SHan is the IDEAL place for moving to with baby, and getting more popular for expats, close enought o sai kung to get your fill of them, but very local still. I have loved it for 5 years and my kids grew up here. PM me if you want to know full details about this area as I know it inside out.
And there are great servied apartments here called Horizon Suites Tolo Harbour. They over look the sea, air is cleaner and lots of mums with babies in the playroom to keep bub occupied.....seriously good choice in my view. And I run a Dance drama studio in the area and know tons of other people who have started their own businesses here.
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Hi there, most landlords in HK won't do the kind of short let you are looking for and the short lets/serviced apts on HK island can get pricey for what you get. If you don't mind a little bit of local color, you can go to a number of nice and reasonable short let/serviced apts a stone's throw from the Jordan MTR B exit (Jordan is 3 stops on the red line from Central). Chi Residences, Excellent Court, and 3 Jordan Rd. I stayed at 3 Jordan and recommend it as a very affordable furnished alternative, probably half the cost of Chi Residences. 3 Jordan is not serviced, so you do your own cleaning. I had a small 1bd, paid HK$13K not too long ago. Furniture is basic and you have to buy some utensils/cookware if you plan to cook at home. Location is convenient, Security is friendly, the laundry a block away will deliver to the building, the view diagonally overlooks the Kowloon Cricket Club bowling lawn, Intl Park & Shop and another grocery a block away, etc. BTW I never crossed into the area on the other side of Nathan Rd. # for the management company (Properous Orient Ltd) is +852 25151331, ask for Mr. Steven Wong. Good luck.
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Thank you for all the great suggestions. I guess I was confused on my terminology. We are really just looking for a furnished apartment, not necessarily a serviced one. Our Chinese partner is doing the leg work for us and it very much depends on where we set up our office, but I will take these suggestions into account when we talk to him!
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