I live about 20mins from midtown now.  What is within 20mins of central with that kind of rent?  Also, remember that my son will be school age soon and most of the private schools we'll consider are on the island.  My friend lives in Kowloon Tong, and he loves it, but literally, trains are so crowded in the morning, you have to let 3 go by to just get on, and it is at least 30 minutes door to door to say Landmark.

I was born and raised in San Francisco.  SF is the BEST FUCKING PLACE TO LIVE. PERIOD!!  I'm in finance though, and so it is really, NYC, London or HK.  That said, if Obama and his minions decide to go too far with regulation, then I might be headed to HK to just find employment.  I've had 10+ close friends up root themselves (usually forced) just to find employment in Beijing or HK.

I really wish they'd go after the people that cause this mess: Rating agencies and stupid poor people.  It should be mandatory to take a class in finance before you get a mortgage, a car loan or a credit card.  Congress can curtail the supply, but this will hurt middle America and bankers will just do stuff overseas.  They need to fix the demand side and educate people.  Sorry for the rant.

Anyone also worried about the fact that China seems like a giant bubble?  I'd also be worried that I'd get there right as the bubble bursts, and it is very hard to come back to NYC.

If you can tolerate 25min from Central, you can live in Tsuen Wan. The rent in its "upscale" Discovery Park there is only about US$1400 for a 650 sqft flat, The subway won't be crowded and you will have seat to sit all the way from Tsuen Wan to Central.

HK hands down. You have so much more access to do so much more in HK. Prices to play and monger are cheaper than in NY. However the standard of living may be better in NY, but you can always live a bit further away from the HK side of things and closer to China and the prices for homes or rent will be cheaper. On top of that you have the freedom to go in to China and play and that in itself is a big perk!

Hate to be a downer, but I think when you have kids, their long term priorities have to trump anything else. Air quality in the pearl delta region for example. I read recently that middle class locals are sending there children to unpolluted areas of China for their schooling, due to the dumbing down effect air pollution has on children growing up in it. If there are no kids in the picture then I would go for HK over NY every time.

[ Last edited by  atomic3d at 26-4-2010 07:22 ]

Sheung Wan is probably where we would rent to start, and then we would see if we could grab something in Midlevels when real estate dips.

Atomic3d-- good point on air pollution.  Any facts to back up it hurt kids development?  I just remember lots of people getting cancer in their 50s in HK.  Thatsaid, it has to be better than NYC.  Whenever I am in HK, I lose weight.  The second I come back to NYC, I usually gain it all back because of all the hormones in the food here.  That said, been back for three weeks now, and I'm down 20 lbs net from when I left for HK.  Hurrah for me!!

This is why I am losing weight:

http://forum.sex141.com/eforum/v ... &extra=page%3D1

No one calls me fat!  I might be, but at least she said I had a big dick and fucks like a machine!  I should move to HK just to make this girl my ernai and then I can get skinny from titty fucking those beautiful tatas!

Discovery Park is fine for its shopping and dining, but the units are starting to age and its still 5-10 minutes walk to the MTR station.  It is 5-10 minutes undercover mind you, so that's a benefit.  There are other housing estates in new towns where you are above the MTR, have full clubhouse facilities (e.g. swimming pool, gym, bowling alley, pool table, tennis courts, badminton courts, etc, etc, etc), have a balcony (though small) and have lots of nearby parks and areas for you to go riding.  25-30mins from Central.

If I were you I'll probably move back to HK and fuck the hell out of them chickens!

You are so wrong brother...  being from NY and knowing a whole lot of HK'ers and well as NY'ers, it's vice versa.  ABCs from NYC absolutely love HK, because they feel more welcome, in NYC you are a Chinese person, in HK, you are simply a person.  It's a huge mentality that can not be understood by anyone other than an ABC.  On the flipside, people from HK love NYC because it's so vast compared to HK.  You can just pick up and drive for days to other places in the USA, the housing is much bigger and much more affordable compared to HK standards, you can actually afford a car here, and I can't think of the other reasons but all my HK'er friends ADORE NYC and America, and would never want to go back to HK.  Weird huh?

if money wasn't an option, then probably hk. must be a growing up facing discrimination and wanting to fit in type of mentality, being chinese. but since i don't have money and hk housing cost is through the roof now, probably not feasible. people from china really driving up the prices. not worth it in my opinion. apartments are so cramped.

the food is great, yes, but the msg overload is too much sometimes. and there are days when you can't see the sun cuz of the pollution. the ladies are so much better, though, for my tastes. that plays huge part for single guy.

why don't you rent out your NYC apartment when you move to HK and this will cover some of the cost if not all the cost of renting an apartment in HK....

from what you wife knows.. you better be careful if one of your reasons for moving to HK is for all the chickens.. you mite just get busted and there goes your familyhood..

personally, i cant read or write chinese so my options are limited.  nyc is a grind town and so is hk, so honestly youre hopping out of thr frying pan and into the flame with either choice.  none of these options will lead to a long and healthy life.

Yeah!  Damn those stupid poor people!!  Who the fuck gave them 3 trillion dollars to blow!!!   

Looks like Pandaboy just outted himself, he's not really ABC, he's LOLYD BLANKFEIN!

As to the HK vs. NYC question, I'd err on the side of NYC if I had school age children.  More outdoor space beyond the city and easier to get to.  If it was just me livingthe single life I'd go HK.  Love the neighborhoods, the people, scene, etc.  And . . . better architecture!

One issue is, do you have ROA in Hong Kong? If not, it might be tougher to find a job in HK, especially if the job you are looking for a local can fill it.  Another issue is, is your wife a US citizen? If you have a PRC passport, she might not be able to move to HK with you, even she is married to a US citizen.

I don't know about NYC, never been but i've lived in England all my life and it's got nothing on Hong Kong.

Hong Kong has hands down changed my life for the better.

I'm Chinese Canadian who is looking to make it big in Hong Kong.

There is an article in wikipedia on the air pollution problem in Hong Kong see attached:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_pollution_in_Hong_Kong

They don't mention the article I read directly, but I know the pollutant connected to poor brain development is lead, which is why it was banned from petrol here more than 20 years ago. I believe the lead comes from poor quality coal used in power stations.

To most New Yorkers who live in HK, HK is just a smaller version (a big village) of NYC that is safer and more convenient.  

Some of my opinions about raising an ABC son in HK.

1) He will be very confident of who he is without any of the blows to his masculinity and ethnicity that he would face in the USA because of his race.  

2) He will get to legally drink alcohol at 18 and who knows, get to experience all the shit that comes with drinking alot with his high school peers.  By time he gets to Uni back in the States, he will be the most responsible person there because he has already 'done that'.  Some of the Americans here who grew up in HK were so blase about heavy drinking by time they went to uni in the States.  

3) Because HK is not really a place for engaging in outdoor activities or sports (because a lot of locals hate to sweat), your son make grow up looking like most of the young guys here.  Pasty and weak.  If he comes here, you make sure he gets into sports so that he will at least fit in if he should go to uni in States.

4) Will be a more naive about ppl's intentions than if he grew up in NYC.  One of the consequences of ppl growing up and living in HK which is so damn safe, is that ppl get easily scared by the petty crime stories they read about that occur in China, USA, and the rest of the world (except Japan and Singapore).  Ppl here are generally are not as street smart as those who grew up in NYC unless your son ends hanging out with the triads and ktv girls.  

5) Son will become spoiled with having a lived-in maid who will pickup after him for every little shit.  You may have to teach your son how to clean, cook, and wash clothes otherwise he will be the laughingstock when he goes abroad for uni.  

6) Son will be truly a global citizen, able to interact and accept all the differences from meeting ppl from different cultures and backgrounds.  Of course you have a part in exposing him to all these experiences.  HK is a great hub to travel to many places.  Hopefully he won't be as racist and narrowminded as those who grew up and never left the States.

7) Though your son may be very global, he may not become as Chinese as you want.  How Chinese he becomes really depends on you and your wife and with whom you interact with.  Though the international schools have great standards, practically most of the students interact mostly in English, not Chinese.  I have known of some international school graduates (abcs) whose Chinese level is not really good.  So you may have to get him exposed to a more Chinese environment outside of school.  Plus some of the HK elite or the professionals are not so Chinese in traditions.  Some of them only converse in English or have been so westernized that they cannot read highlevel Chinese.  

In conclusion,

HK can be a great place to raise a child who is worldly, cosmopolitan, and sporty only if you are willing to put some part in guiding his development.  Then for uni, you send him back to the States to get some street smarts.  If you don't want to get involved in his overall education, then NYC is probably better.

Although not perfect, much of what you say is on target.  But how Chinese he will get, he will be much more Chinese than if he grew up in NYC.  I am very Chinese, but I wished I were more.