Q & A about living in Hong Kong

hi everyone in steemit,

My name is Steve,  I was an accountant and now studying programming and machine learning through online resources. I was born and have lived in HK for over 30 years, so I am writing about HK as a sort of self-introduction.   

Q1. Where is HK located? 

Ans: HK is a city located on China's south coast. It is a former British colony and returned to China in 1997.   

Q2. Is it expensive to live in HK? 

Ans: It depends on where and how you live. The highest cost is housing rental which on average constitute more than half of a person's income. Generally speaking, a small flat of 500 sq.ft worth about USD $1M in 2017. Yet if you live in public housing, you only need to pay rent of around USD$200 a month. For food it is quite economical usually, a Big Mac costs about USD$2 only and a fast food restaurant meal should cost less than USD$6. For transportation, you better stick to buses or subway which cost USD$1-$3 a ride. However, if you choose to own a car and drive, the government charges 100% tax when you buy it, then it cost you at least USD$1.5 per litre of gas and USD$500 a month of parking fee.  

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Q3. What is the culture in HK like? 

Ans: HK has a diverse culture like New York, most people speak Chinese and know a fair amount of English. There are also many people from different countries all around the city. Most of the citizens concentrated on making money in the past, but nowadays the new generations of people start to care more about other topics like politics, environmental protection and traveling.     

Q4. HK is one of the international financial centers. Any advice for investing in HK? 

Ans: It is generally easy to gain (comparing with other major markets) more than 20% by investing in HK stock index (Hang Seng Index) if you are patient enough to buy its index ETF when it is low (say below 250 weekly SMA line) and hold for 1-2 years when it peaked. Yet I strongly advice against buying individual small cap stocks as scam occurs frequently in the market. I will write more on this topic if readers like it.   

Q5. Is it safe to live in HK? 

Ans: The government did a good job in crime control (at least superficially). Murder rate is low and normal citizens seldom experience crime. Gangsters do exist like in the movies and can be recognized by their tattoo, yet most of them now work in legitimate businesses as the city's economy develops (though I suspect a few of them may still have side income at night). Most of the real crimes happen in the form of scams, violence do occur but mostly happen at night and only between the gangsters.      

I will write more about HK if you guys like this post. Thanks for reading!