Hong Kong
Hong Kong remains one of Asia's great commercial cities — a low-tax, common-law financial centre with world-class infrastructure and direct access to mainland China as a Special Administrative Region with its own currency, judiciary, and immigration regime. Its territorial tax system taxes only Hong Kong-source income, with salaries tax capped at 17% and no capital gains, dividend, or inheritance tax, long making it a preferred base for finance professionals across Asia. Permanent residency requires seven years of continuous ordinary residence under a qualifying visa. The city's expat landscape has been visibly reshaped since 2019. That year's political unrest, the 2020 National Security Law, and some of the world's strictest pandemic border controls drove a substantial outflow of long-term Western residents, many relocating to Singapore. Hong Kong's government has since pushed talent-attraction schemes to rebuild the pool of skilled foreign professionals, and the international business community, smaller and different in composition than a decade ago, remains active and well-resourced. Real estate remains among the most expensive in the world, which keeps most foreign professionals renting rather than buying. Hong Kong is not a budget destination or a residency-by-investment shortcut; it suits professionals with a specific Asia-based career reason to be there.
Neighbourhoods
Mid-Levels
The traditional Western-expat enclave on Hong Kong Island, connected to Central by the Mid-Levels escalator, dense with international schools and Western-facing amenities.
Rent 1BR: 2200-3800
Sai Ying Pun
West of Central, gentrified over the past decade, MTR-connected, popular with younger professionals seeking Hong Kong Island living at a relative discount to Mid-Levels.
Rent 1BR: 1800-2800
Kennedy Town
The westernmost MTR terminus on the island, harbourfront promenade, strong café culture, popular with younger expat couples.
Rent 1BR: 1700-2600
Discovery Bay
A car-free, ferry-served enclave on Lantau Island, low-rise and family-oriented, popular with families wanting space and a quieter commute trade-off.
Rent 1BR: 1600-2500
Sai Kung
A laid-back coastal town in the New Territories known for hiking and watersports, popular with families and those willing to trade central-district convenience for space and greenery.
Rent 1BR: 1800-3000
Happy Valley / Wan Chai
Central, historic racecourse district bordering the main business core, a mix of long-term local and expat residents.
Rent 1BR: 1900-3000
Real estate snapshot
- buy per sqm usd
- 9000-30000
- rent 1br centre usd
- 2000-3500
- rent 1br outside usd
- 1400-2200
- notes
- Hong Kong is consistently ranked among the most expensive real estate markets in the world, and per-square-metre prices vary enormously by district and building age, so the figures above should be read as a broad indicative range rather than a precise benchmark. Foreigners can buy freehold property with no general restriction, but non-permanent-resident buyers pay an additional Buyer's Stamp Duty on top of standard stamp duty, which pushes most foreign professionals toward renting rather than buying unless they plan to stay long enough to qualify for permanent residence.
Transport
- • Metro / subway
- • Tram
- • Ride-hail (Uber / Bolt)
- The MTR is one of the best metro systems in the world — fast, extensive, and highly reliable — and the default way most residents get around. Hong Kong Island also has its own historic tram network (the 'Ding Ding'), a slow but cheap and scenic east-west route along the island's north shore, plus the separate Peak Tram funicular. The Octopus card (or its app equivalent) works across nearly all public transport and many retail purchases. Uber operates in Hong Kong but without a formal car-hire-permit framework equivalent to licensed taxis, so it exists in a legally contested grey area; drivers have periodically been fined, though the service remains widely available and commonly used. Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) is connected to the city centre by the Airport Express rail line in about 24 minutes.
Expat community
Hong Kong's international community has historically been one of Asia's largest, anchored by finance, law, and banking professionals, but it has visibly contracted and changed in composition since the 2019 political unrest, the 2020 National Security Law, and some of the world's strictest pandemic-era border controls, all of which drove a meaningful outflow of long-term Western families, many to Singapore. The government has since introduced talent-attraction schemes aimed at rebuilding the foreign professional pool. Mid-Levels and Discovery Bay remain the traditional Western-expat residential cores, though the community today is smaller and skews more toward shorter corporate postings than the multi-decade family postings that were once common.
Related on The Citizenship Desk
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