There is a shortage of housing in Hong Kong. Actually, there seems to be building all the time and new flats are being regularly put on the market, but they are expensive. Indeed a trawl through the real estate adverts reveals a less than 500sq foot flat (1 bedroom) that is on sale for just over $10 million (HK), which when you do the conversion is a bit under $1.3 million US. This is not a particularly spectacular flat in a particularly spectacular location. This is about normal. It will rent for about $31,000 per month (about $4,000 US/£2,500), which is also normal. The thing is, according to the last census, nearly 60% of the population earns less than $25,000 (HK) per month. In fact, if you think about it, to get a mortgage for this ONE BEDROOMED flat, you would need to earn in excess of $100,000 (HK) per month, quite a bit in excess. The same census figures reveal that less than 5% of Hong Kong’s population earns more than this. There is a numbers problem here. So what do people do? Continue reading
Author Archives: geofoodie
Everything on 4 legs, except the table
There is a saying about the food culture in China that what is edible includes everything on four legs, except the table. Of course, the food culture includes a whole host of things with fewer legs as well. As a result I was not surprised that the recent European Horse Meat scandal has not had much of a ripple here in Hong Kong, with the exception of the local Ikea stores supposedly withdrawing their meatballs (as reported in the Huffington Post). Continue reading
Ya Ma Tei Fruit Market
Wholesale Fruit Market build in 1913.
In the center of Mong Kok is what appears to be an old, run-down market; its single-story stature at odds with the high-rise buildings that surround it. If you wander past by day you might think that the market is just hanging on as only a few sellers on the periphery will be open and selling fruits. A meander through might also leave you thinking this is largely an abandoned space, and yet it beckons. Continue reading
Do you know where that box comes from?
Have you ever wondered about the life of that recycled cardboard box that your child’s new toy came in? Many of these boxes will have come from Asia, where there are armies of elderly people who collect them and then recycle them as a way to make extra money to make ends meet. This practice is another side to neoliberal approaches to economic freedom. Continue reading
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