# Salary/Rental Advice please!



## hollywood

Hi, 
I work in construction and have been offered a package with a total monthly salary of HK$61K inclusive of HK$15K housing allowance. I will be provided with temporary accommodation on arrival but am wondering if the salary is a reaosnable one??
Ideally, I think my wife and I would like to live on the Gold Coast (is this commutable daily to the centre?) If not, how good a lifestyle/rented accommodation could we afford in the city?
My wife is a fully qualified and experienced primary school teacher so once over there she will seek a job in an international school. This may take a few months though so I am wondering if my salary alone will be enough to support us?

Apologies for all the questions!!

Thanks


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## soojenn

Depending on the responsibilities of the job, HK$61 K is okay, if you don't have kids. hK$ 15 k should get you some thing nice in Gold Coast but it is a bit far from central. There are however buses there. It takes I believe about 45 mins to central if you don't mind the travel. You can try Discovery Bay which is much closer to central, and if you wife wants to work for international schools in the future, as most of these schools are on the Hk island, and Kowloon.


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## Supernoodles

$61k is fine unless you are particularly into partying/drinking etc, remember that you pay tax at the end of the tax year so you will have better cash flow until your wife finds work, also the tax is a lot lower, you will notice the difference straight away coming from the UK.

Why the gold coast? It wouldn't be my first choice personally, it is quite remote and the buildings and facilities aren't that great comparatively to other places....I admit the marina is nice though so work it if you are living on a boat for lifestyle, or if you live in one of the $80k beach houses.


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## hollywood

Thanks for the advice guys. Sure we will survive and hopefully have a good standard of living on my salary which is great news. We do enjoy partying and drinking but are aware that we will need to curb our lavish nights out when we hit HK!

Any top tips on where to live then? I will be working central so perhaps causeway bay? Luckily I'm in temporary accommodation when we arrive so can scope out the local neighbourhoods. I'm thinking of a budget of $25k per month for a 2 bed place, where is the best value in a nice neighbourhood?

Thanks again all info gratefully received!


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## Supernoodles

Best idea would be to pound the pavement when you get here as we don't know what kind of things you like in a neighbourhood.
Hong Kong has such variation in quality and types of accommodation that it is hard to compare without knowing you. 
Some things to think about, whether you will want amenities such as a swimming pool or gym on site, whether you value space and (relative) quietness over super convenience, would you prefer to live somewhere with lots of other foreigners? will you want to walk to work, get the MTR or use the bus, greenery? want a sea view? it's all about preferences.
Personally, I couldn't live in causewaybay, way too urban and dense for me but you're really in middle of everything there. 
Have you ever been to HK ? If not, I think you will be in for shock at how small apartments are and how crowded it can get.


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## hollywood

Thanks lots to think about then! No we haven't been before but having looked into a few apartments/districts on line we are becoming increasingly aware of the lack of space! Ideally we would like somewhere quiet yet near central, preferably with good amenities and as much space as possible.... Probably an unrealistic list for our budget so something will have to give!

We have a few weeks when we get there to hunt around so hope to find something suitable.

Thanks again for advice


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## silviofisher

there is a bus that will take you to central from the goldcoast, but with 15k, its probably not so easy for you to find a decent size place on the island... 
as for your wife, the Harrow International School is right by the gold coast, maybe she can apply to there?


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## Supernoodles

For space, you will get way more for your money off HK island, with the best value (imo) being on the outlaying islands (ferry to central) BUT really you have to know where your wife will be working before committing to a lease somewhere remote (i.e. gold coast, outlaying island) in case your wife ends up working somewhere difficult to get to.


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## hollywood

Thank you for the tips. I now have my contract and the housing allowance is actually $17k, though I think we will look to spend around $20k to afford us a little more space. After some research, we like the look of discovery bay or perhaps somewhere else on Lantau. My wife will probably get some supply work when we arrive then apply for permanent posts once we have decided where we want to live and where is accessible. 

Anyone know where the best rugby clubs are? I would like to be based near a good one as I'm a keen player!

I've just returned my contract and visa documents so finger crossed it will be cleared within 6 weeks and we will be moving out there soon. Anxious times waiting for the visa to clear - we've heard it can be a tricky process but hopefully it will be straight forward.


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## mrcannonblast

Hi Hollywood.... my situation is similar to yours..similar salary and have a wife who will look for work once i am in HK. How do you find the place now? And any recommendations on where i should look for a house?


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## Dawei

So Hollywood and MCB, how did your moves go? Have they happened yet? I'm relocating to HK in a few months myself, and although I've looked for industrial property both for sale and purchase previously at my last job, I've never looked for residential space there. I've been to HK over 20 times, sometimes for a month at a time, shooting into the mainland just so that I could come back to HK and stay longer without having to get an HK visa as I always maintained a China visa. A little strange, but my company had its Asia WH in HK so there was a lot of work to do there.


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## Dawei

Supernoodles said:


> For space, you will get way more for your money off HK island, with the best value (imo) being on the outlaying islands (ferry to central) BUT really you have to know where your wife will be working before committing to a lease somewhere remote (i.e. gold coast, outlaying island) in case your wife ends up working somewhere difficult to get to.


What are these outlaying islands? I've been to some of the New Territories areas like Tuen Mun, but never any of these islands. I had heard of some of the small islands being vacation spots, but never within the framework of a cheap place to live.


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