Housing and Real Estate in Hong Kong, Hong Kong

An octopus card is key to navigating Hong Kong, so obtaining one should be a priority upon arriving in the city. It can be easily purchased at any Mass Transit Railway or MTR station. While it is more commonly as a transportation payment method for the train or buses, an octopus card can be used for more than that. It is one of the more popular payment options in the city, widely used in shops and restaurants. It can even facilitate immediate fund transfers between users and vendors without going through a bank by binding the octopus card to a debit or credit account. Hong Kong residents even use their octopus cards to pay for utility and mobile phone bills by visiting a 7-11. Octopus cards can be personalized, enabling functions for certain users. While there are more common functions such as elderly or student discounts, more unique features have been gradually built into octopus cards as well. For example, newer housing estates have allowed residents to register their octopus cards as a form of building entry authorization, eliminating the need for residents to carry a separate entry card or key fob to enter their homes.

Hong Kong is unique and international city. Despite it being part of China, many people in Hong Kong can understand English, thus it’s not necessary to learn Chinese. However, it would be beneficial to learn the local language. Hong Kong is also one of the most expensive cities in the world; make sure you are prepared to pay high rents and other high living expenses. Hong Kong is very convenient to travel to other nearby cities within East Asia.

Hong Kong is far more expensive than you think. Even looking up “price of living” online can lead you to underestimating how much you’ll spend moving here, renting an apartment, and buying the essentials.

If someone moves to Hong Kong, he should think about what situation he will face in the new place. He need to think of the housing issue, the transportation issue, etc. Also, he need to think if the culture is one of the concern. There are also many to think.