Hasn’t the real lure of Monopoly always been its disengagement with reality? For those finite hours of gameplay, players are empowered by wads of fake cash, access to some of the world’s most expensive real-estate, and the option to exploit friends and family with no lasting repercussions.
The ruthless realists at Weroom have already tried to put Londoners in their place by comparing average present monthly rental prices with the far more attractive figures on the board.
Now, an equally unforgiving Coconaut – who goes by the name of Justin Cheuk, should you wish to know who has shattered your entrepreneurial dreams – has highlighted the real picture of Hong Kong’s notoriously pricey housing market, illustrated in the impressive infographic below:
As with the original, Cheuk’s Hong Kong Monopoly board goes by location rather than by streets. The prices shown on his creation, however, reflect a calculated average for all property transactions between September and November 2015 in the featured areas.
As to be expected, Cheuk’s board reaffirms some well-established facts about Hong Kong’s property market, namely:
– The most expensive properties are all located in – take a wild guess – Hong Kong Island. Kowloon Tong marks the only exception to the island’s domination of the right side of the board.
– Commutability matters; take the three “cheapest” locations: Cheung Chau doesn’t even have a road link to the city centre, and Tin Shui Wai and Fanling are nearer China than central Hong Kong.
– Hong Kong’s monthly median income, a respectable HKD14,480, will not even land you a single square foot of property in six of the featured locations.
Potential Peak-property investors will need to pull their weight a little more than the average Hongkonger, it seems. Who knew?
Check out Cheuk’s Facebook page/blog here.
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