13 minute read
Living independently?
• Do young people like where they live or do theywanttomove? • Among this group, five live independently and theotherseven livewith ornearparents. • All buttwoofthem envision livingelsewhere.
• 青年喜歡他們的居所嗎？還是希望能搬離現有 居所自立成家？ • 受訪青年有 5 位獨自居住，而有 7 位跟父母住 在一起或住在附近方便照應。 • 只有兩位預期會改變居住現況。
Advertisement
Hong Kong is a small, crowded city with good public transport. Most schools and jobs are in the urban area within easy commuting distance, so few young people need to leave home for full-time education or work. This partly explains why it is normal to live with parents until getting married, but high property prices mean many are encouraged to postpone finding homes of their own.
Four walls
Simon , now in his early 20s, realized he couldn’t stay with his parents any longer when he was in his late teens. Like many others, he didn’t have much space to himself. Now he lives with four other young people in a sub-divided flat in Sham Shui Po.
“I pay about HK$4,500 on rent. It’s better than living with my parents but there is still little privacy. That’s something I’ve never really had. I have visions of a flat in Kowloon with my own toilet and kitchen. About 200 sq ft would be OK. But one day, I want to own a real home, four walls of my own. That would be 400 sq ft and it would probably cost me HK$5 million, if I could pay the mortgage, but that would take up a lot of my income.”
Window on the world
Cora , in her late 30s, has lived independently since she left home at 17 for an exchange year in Denmark. She went on to do a degree in Canada and then worked in mainland China. At the age of 27, she had second thoughts about living on her own and realized she wanted her parents to know she still cared about them after her years away. So she moved back into their 700 sq ft flat for a while. Meantime, her older sister and brother, single like Cora, had never left home.
“It felt cramped there and once I had been back for a few years and realized my parents would be fine without me, I moved out again to a rented flat on Lantau Island. It’s not too far away, almost the same size as my parents’ place and I can afford it. Still, my parents can’t understand why I prefer to ‘waste’ my money rather than living cheaply with them.
Another of my brothers got married, moved out and had two sons. One of them is more like me. He left home at 19 and lives in a converted old factory in Kwun Tong. The whole family is upset and worried about him, except me. He pays about HK$4,000 in rent and says the place fulfills all his needs: privacy, a private bathroom and wifi.”
Roof overhead
Hailey “I’m in my mid-thirties and have a 500 sq ft flat in Tseung Kwan O to myself. I can afford to pay off the mortgage at a rate of about 20-25% of my income. When I bought the flat in 2012, my family helped me. Otherwise I would have had to buy somewhere much smaller in the New Territories. That would have been too far away for them. Even now, they live about an hour away but I have never wanted to move back in with them.
Owning a home has become no more than a dream for many young people. There is a lot of resentment. Most young people have no choice but to live with their family to save money. They also think that people who buy flats purely as an investment has been going on for far too long. The concept is totally detached from the basic needs of Hong Kong people for a roof over their heads and inequality is growing. This should be the focus of the government.
Also, preferences and priorities have changed a bit. Young people do not want to be tied down by mortgages. They prefer other options, like investing in a startup, moving to Taiwan or spending spare cash on travel. I dream too, of a home of 1,000 sq feet with a balcony and space to dry my laundry. Space is my main priority, in fact. I would consider living in Taiwan, UK, Australia or New Zealand to get what I really want.”
Space to breathe
Vincy, in her 30s, lives in Siu Sai Wan. “I rent a flat there with my partner. It’s about 20 minutes away from where I work and 45 minutes by MTR from my family’s home. I lived with them for nine years after graduating and contributing HK$5,000 a month to their expenses, but in the end, I couldn’t take it. I felt stuck.
Although our place is small, it’s convenient and affordable for us two. We both pay about HK$12,000 on rent and that’s less than 20% of my income. I don’t think it is wasted. I could probably afford up to HK$15,000 on mortgage repayments and that’s the future I see for myself within the next 10 years. For two of us, I think 500 sq ft would be OK but it needs to be within 15 minutes walking distance of an MTR station. To be ideal, it would be on HK Island, within 30 minutes from work and with a swimming pool, hiking trails and friends living nearby.”
I lived with my parents for nine years after graduation but in the end I couldn't take it. I felt stuck.
Private places
Bin-hung has a family home is Guangzhou. He in in his early 20s and left home to go to university in Hong Kong. “I didn’t go back to Guangzhou to get a job and I think commuting would take too long. Instead, I live with my partner in a privately rented flat in an old Hung Hom building. All I need is my own private space. My bottom line is a room with a bed and a table. I wouldn’t really mind sharing other facilities in a communal area or living room.
I currently expect to pay HK$4,500-HK$6,000 a month and think property prices in Hong Kong are unreasonable given salary levels and the cost of living. The maximum anyone should be paying for mortgage repayments as a proportion of their income is 40%. If I had a freelance job and could work at home, I would look at places like Tung Chung and Lamma Island. I prefer being near the sea, somewhere the pace of life is slower and the pressure is less.”
Building ambitions
Lee-yi I like living with my folks. I have my own room in a Sham Shui Po public housing flat. They do all the cooking and housework. If I lived by myself, I would have to buy food and cook, but I work shifts, from 1pm to 11pm, and usually get home well after midnight.
I’m in my early 20s and planning to get married in a few years’ time when we can afford to be independent. But rents are so high and I can only afford about HK$5,000 a month. There is no rent control. It is as if we are just helping landlords pay their mortgages. It makes it hard to develop a sense of belonging because you have to be ready to move house at any time.
Ideally, I would buy somewhere convenient but quiet in Kowloon so that I could get to the New Territories easily at weekends and to Hong Kong Island, where I work. If we won the lucky draw for the government’s house ownership scheme, or if the price of flats dropped, maybe we could afford a 300 to 400 sq ft flat on the private market.
In fact, without the help from parents, it would be nearly impossible for me and my partner to buy a flat when we get married. We would want somewhere about 500 sq ft. If flats are too small that doesn’t help anyone who wants to bring up a family. Also, it’s absurd and unreasonable to expect anyone to save all their salary for 21 years to buy a flat, and yet that is currently the cost. As it is, HK people need to use most of their salary for mortgage payments. The government should make more land available for housing. There is a problem of unfair misallocation of resources here, unlike Singapore. Still, I prefer nowhere in the world to Hong Kong.”
Real life realty
Tsz-ching, in his early 30s. lives in Kwai Chung. “I’m single and I think it’s reasonable to give my parents up to HK$5,000 for expenses each month to have a room in their flat. Still, privacy is important to me and I hope to be living in my own place within three years from now. 150 sq ft would be enough for me as long as I could pay between HK$5,000-7,000.
I dream of having my own flat one day, somewhere convenient, with the mortgage paid off. I wouldn’t mind if it meant having to pay 20-25% of my salary on repayments. But would that be enough? In real life, I travel from Kwai Chung to work on HK Island every day. It is about 24 km and it takes an hour to get there. That’s the maximum I want to do for commuting. For better options, I would consider Taiwan.”
Digging foundations
David, in his late 20s, has a room in his family’s home in Tseung Kwan O. His brother also lives there and they each contribute about HK$5,000 to family expenses each month.
“I like living with my family but I can see that one day it would be better to move out. I expect to have to pay 20-25% of my income for a decent flat and the government could help make it feasible by building both more public rental housing and more Home Ownership Scheme flats. That would reduce the pressure on the market instead of making more money for private developers.
I like the Singapore model with a transition period means young people can rent a flat first but I also think Hong Kong could convert more industrial buildings. Perhaps container homes and pipe homes are solutions and we could all try something new.”
Nothing lasts for ever
Jay “It was hard to get used to being back with my parents. I’m in my mid20s and have been living with them in Jordan for about four years. Before that I’d had a few years of independence in Canada, sharing with friends while I did a degree in finance. It’s OK and nothing is for ever. They take care of me and in return, like most young people in Hong Kong, I contribute to their expenses.
But housing for young people in general is a big problem here. I think it has been one of the main reasons for the protests, not only because of unaffordability but because of the way poor quality housing can affect relationships within families.
Flat prices in Hong Kong have risen to an absurd level and government must do something about it. I could only afford a very small place now, too small to live in, so I would treat it as an investment and rent it out. Monthly mortgage payments of HK$20,000 would be ok and that would be 20-25% of my expected income. My dream house? It would cost HK$20 million.”
After the baby was born, I stayed with my parents in Happy Valley and Jonas moved out to a flat in South Horizons. For us, it's been the perfect answer.
Unconventional solution
Ally and Jonas got married when both of them were 28. They have jobs in the retail sector and neither is well paid. For a while, they lived with Ally’s parents. Nevertheless, they were determined to have children and, realizing that the flat was not big enough for a multigenerational household, they came up with a rational Hong Kong solution.
“After the baby was born, I stayed with my parents in Happy Valley and Jonas moved out to a flat in South Horizons. The arrangement works really well. It is very convenient. Grandma looks after our little girl while we are working and she can go to a nearby kindergarten. At weekends, we spend our time on Ap Lei Chau, sleeping at Jonas flat and having fun as a family. For us, it's been the perfect answer.”
Concrete ideas
Bella “I’m in my mid-30s, married with a little boy and we live in a big Lam Tin flat owned by my mother. She lives five minutes away. I wouldn’t choose to live with her. It would definitely be stressful. I’m sure we would not have much privacy and could never relax. Most importantly, we would argue a lot about the way to bring up children.
I moved here when we got married. I was 26 then. Our home is around 1,500 sq ft, with four rooms, two bathrooms and a big balcony. I think everyone in Hong Kong who works hard should have the right to own their home. The model for public housing used in Singapore could apply to those from a deprived socioeconomic background, but any middle-class citizen of Hong Kong should be able to afford a flat on the private market in my view. Personally, however, I think that anyone who doesn’t work and relies on social assistance should not have that right. Instead, better mortgage plans for young people who want to buy a flat should be available.
If I didn’t have my own place, I think public housing would be an option because of the low rent and the good environment of the new public housing estates. I wouldn’t mind moving to another country either, if it meant being able to get better housing. I think a remote area of Taiwan or Japan would work ‒ they are close to Hong Kong and there is less discrimination against Chinese people.”
Cementing the future
Man-ling is in her early 20s. Single and living with a partner in Yuen Long, she says she is still just a minute away from her parents. “I moved out because we had no privacy there. I didn’t like having to ask their permission all the time. I want to be able to close the door when I go to bed. I could live in 200 sq ft as long as it has its own toilet and living room.
But in about five years’ time, I hope we can afford somewhere bigger, big enough for three ‒ me, my partner and a baby ‒ and in the urban area too, not out here near my folks. It takes me an hour to get to work now. I’m prepared to pay HK$15,000 a month on a mortgage but young people like me shouldn’t spend all their money on housing. The government needs new policies to put an end to this crisis.”
