Hong Kong Real Estate
"Hong Kong Has Very Little Land
And Many People"

In talking about Hong Kong Real Estate that saying is very true. To accommodate over 8 million population is not easy. That's why real estate is a very good money-making business. Why? Let me give you a couple examples.

A high-end housing estate in Cyber Port in southern part of Hong Kong Island

In 1993, my father sold an apartment which was 1,750 sq. ft. with full harbor view for HK$8 million (which is over USD1 million).

My mom sold her 450 sq. ft. apartment for HKD$3,395,000 (which is about USD425,000) in 2007. And it was mid-grade apartment housing. About a month after she sold it, she bought another one at a better location, but smaller square footage. It cost her even more than the one she just sold.

You can imagine how much it would cost if it came to the one like my father sold.

Here are some pictures to share with you of the apartment my mom sold in 2007. They will give you some insights of Hong Kong real estate. You will get some ideas of the average size of an apartment of a family of 4 lives in.

This is the living room. The door was the main entrance of the apartment. On the right hand side, it looks like a margin of a picture. It was actually the wall of the dining room.

Dining Room

This is the bathroom. On the left hand side, it was a built-in cabinet. A space for washing machine and dryer on top of each other. Then, a stand-up shower.

The kitchen did not have enough room for 2 people to work side by side.

This was one of the bedrooms. The entrance was too narrow to take a good picture. This was the best way to do it. Where I stood, I was leaning on the door on my left. Behind it was the built-in cabinets.

See the door...that was where I stood to take the previous picture. Behind it and also on the left hand side of this picture were the built-in cabinets.

No matter where you live, you can never get rid of one of these 4 categories.

Clothing - You got to have some clothes to keep you warm. There are a few areas where you can buy decent clothes with superb quality and crazily low price. Also, at the same time, you can spend as much as you want.

Food - Eating at home is not only the best, but also the most economic way to save the money. But Hong Kong does have restaurants serving great meals with very reasonable price.

Housing - To most of the Hong Kong people , owning an apartment is their ultimate goal in life. It is because it costs you a lot.

Transportation - Although it is very convenient to go anywhere in Hong Kong, there are some places comparatively not that convenient. It is one of the factors affecting the housing price.

Housing is the major expense of living in Hong Kong among these 4. The rest can be very cheap (if you are not that picky).

Because of that, here are some tips for you if you are going through a Hong Kong real estate agent to buy or rent an apartment or house in this city.

The first 2 terms that you must come across are:

1) Gross Floor Area - the square footage including beam and walls in the apartment that is used for the price and contract. It also includes the area that is share by the public, such as foyer, elevator and so forth.

2) Salable Area - very self-explanatory which is the area used by you.

They could be very confusing and frustrating. The ratio of these 2 numbers varies by the developers and age of the building.

Typically, the older the building, the smaller of the gap of these 2 numbers (vice versa).

Since most Hong Kong people live in the apartments, there are 2 expenses, other than utilities, which are the must:

1) Management fee - It is usually the same company of the developer. They provide security and maintenance for elevator, garbage disposal and so forth. It is always a monthly fee and the range varies depending on the location of the property and the facilities provided, such as gym, swimming pool, inside the building.

2) Tax - It is very similar to the tax you pay to the government annually. It based on the value of the property and its location. Compared to other countries, this is relatively low.

Don't forget the Hong Kong real estate agent commission is paid by the buyer, not the seller. Sometimes, both parties. Make sure to check.

Learn more about Real Estate or Property.

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