When even Hong Kong’s super wealthy opt to rent, something is not right
Recently revealed decision by local movie stars highlights need to urgently tackle one of the city’s most pressing issues
Julian Cheung Chi-lam and Anita Yuen Wing-yi are household names in Hong Kong and on the mainland for the many impressive roles they have played in films and TV dramas, and also because they are seen as a happily married, model couple in showbiz circles.
But there’s one thing about this rich and famous couple that you might not know, something I was not aware of until last week: they decided years ago never to buy property in Hong Kong. The reason was simple. Prices were outrageously high and too unreasonable.
At a Mid-Autumn Festival gathering, as some of my friends were sharing viral online messages, one showed us a story from a mainland website prompted by the couple’s recent appearance on a reality show for a local TV station.
“Do you know Cheung and Yuen have a strange habit?” the headline asked. The story went on to explain the “strange habit”: their constant house moving by renting luxury apartments one after another every few years instead of buying a permanent home. Cheung once reportedly remarked: “With the amount I need to pay for a house [in Hong Kong], I can rent till I’m over 130 years old.”
Some saw it from a political perspective and took it as Li’s return to Hong Kong. In recent years, the tycoon has been questioned from time to time as to whether he is abandoning the Hong Kong and mainland markets by shifting to global investments. He has repeatedly denied it.
Others saw this latest move as nothing more than a natural need for a major developer to replenish its land bank.
To be frank, any decision involving Li and his business empire triggers conflicting reactions in this city. But Li, after all, is considered by many to be a man of wisdom and vision. So while some are happy to see Cheung Kong’s return to Hong Kong’s property market, people may also see it as an indicator of rising property prices in the years to come, as predicted by the tycoon, especially in the luxury market.
It has put the government between a rock and a hard place in deciding whether to put the vested land interests of powerful rural groups ahead of the pressing public housing needs of the underprivileged.