Luisa Tam

My Hong Kong | We’ve all had enough of Hong Kong’s housing crisis – break the city’s ‘shoebox curse’ or people will leave and never return

To buy an extremely modest flat in Hong Kong you’d need to save every cent you earn for 9 years; renting a subdivided flat costs a third of median income

It is untenable that so many Hong Kong people pay so much for a place to call home. Something has to be done about the housing crisis before they leave forever

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Why you can trust SCMP

Luisa Tam

Published: 9:15am, 2 Jul 2022Updated: 6:14pm, 4 Jul 2022

It’s no surprise to see that, for the third year in a row, Hong Kong ranks as the world’s most expensive city in which to live – ahead of New York, Geneva, London and Tokyo.

Although the survey by software company ECA International is intended for expatriates, this doesn’t mean that Hong Kong is any less expensive for locals.

The only difference is that they have the option to seek out public housing or stay with their parents to save money.

Considering that the current median monthly wage is HK$18,400 (US$2,300) and the median monthly household income is HK$28,700, it’s no wonder that Hongkongers are fleeing the city in search of greener pastures. (Of course, there are many other reasons for the exodus.)

A woman walks past a property agent’s window in Hong Kong. To buy the cheapest flat in Hong Kong would require saving every cent you earned for at least nine years (no eating). Photo: AFP

Although the wages seem promising in a city that has affordable daily necessities, such as a “two-dish-rice” meal box for as little as HK$25, sky-high rents account for over a third of one’s net income.