The Economist Intelligence Unit has just released their report on Worldwide Cost of Living 2019 and I happened to have spent time living in 2 of the top 10 cities in 2018 — Hong Kong, China and Tel Aviv, Israel. Here’s how it was like.
Some background information. I lived in Hong Kong for 9 months and Israel (Tel Aviv mainly but other cities also) for 3 months. For work I had weekly visits to Copenhagen for 2 months but I will leave this part out of discussion since I didn’t ‘live’ there exactly (although I can tell you that city is EXPENSIVE).
Now let’s get to it. How is it like to be living in the top 10 most expensive cities?
You (almost) feel posh being a foodie
Foodie is how you call someone who goes out frequently to try out different food and perhaps gives comments/ reviews. Well, in Hong Kong, the definition has to be changed to ‘someone who WANTS TO go out frequently to try out different food’ because obviously, dining out is too expensive.
The Big Mac index doesn’t really show how expensive it is for the food in Hong Kong (USD2.55, ranked 43th) and Tel Aviv (USD4.58, ranked 8th). But just to give you and idea, going for a casual dinner in Hong Kong and Tel Aviv would be around USD20 and USD 30 per person respectively, which do not sound too bad, yet.
Since we are talking about COL, rather than cost of going out when you are on vacation in another city, we have to consider other factors of living, such as income and other expenses.
Your paycheck looks okay but your bank account doesn’t
To be honest, the salary level in Hong Kong and Tel Aviv are actually quite good. The average monthly income (calculated by dividing all annual incomes and profits by the amount of the countries’ population, more on the calculation here) are USD3,859 and USD3,106, ranked 15th and 27th in the world.
Another simple figure I could offer is that according to my personal knowledge, for an university fresh graduate with a non-professional bachelor degree, the average starting salary would be around USD1,800 for both cities.
So your bank account has to look fine! That must be what you are thinking. Well, that is because I haven’t told you about the transport and housing yet.
You pay a ridiculous amount of money to live in a shoe box
‘Hong Kong’s tiniest flats start at 123 sq ft — less than the size of a parking space’ according to a recent news article. Not sure if you are aware but Hong Kong is literally a dot on the map. And considering the scale the city is actually smaller than the space a dot occupies — that is how incredibly small it is, not to mention around half of the land is taken up by mountains.
Oh, and that 123 sq ft shoebox can cause up to USD1,000 per month, without utilities. Yeah, I know.
In Tel Aviv it is a bit less crazy, considering the size of Israel as opposed to the size of Hong Kong. Based on my personal knowledge, USD1,000 can get you something like 400 sq ft for a month. It is not a shoe box but hey, the monthly income of an university fresh graduate (around 21 years old) is just around USD1,800.
You hate yourself for being outgoing (literally going out of your house)
You have no idea how expensive cars and parking are in these two cities. When people’s ‘apartments’ are as small as a parking space, you know how pricey it is to park a car. So in Hong Kong most people take public transportation, subway and buses mainly. A 30-minute ride can cause you a Big Mac.
In Israel I would say most people drive. Parking usually cause you an Israeli Big Mac, given your income/ savings allows you to afford the car and the gas.
Putting it all together
Now let’s do the math. Suppose you are 22, have one year of work experience after graduating from a non-professional university bachelor degree, and have a monthly income of USD1,800.
22 is the age (if not before that) to be independent and to support at least your own living. So you moved out from your parents’ and are now living in Hong Kong in a shoe box of 200 sq ft (let’s say you found this ‘bargain’) for USD1,000.
You take the subway to and from work and that costs USD3 per ride. You spend USD15 for food per meal (let’s say you cook sometimes and go for cheaper options when eating out).
USD1,800–1,000–3×22–15x3x30 = USD616 plus utilities, entertainment, shopping, family etc.
Conclusion
Without a doubt living in such expensive cities is not easy. You think really carefully before making any money-related decisions (you better do). It is almost like whatever you think about involves money —whether to meet a friend, to get the burger you have been craving for, to buy a little something for your family and so on.
Sometimes you focus too much on money and life isn’t about money, in my personal opinion. Life is about me. But when I try to be a better person for example to be independent and live by myself, money is the main hurdle in front of me.
Don’t get me wrong. Hong Kong and Tel Aviv are both amazing cities. Really gorgeous, advanced, nice people, incredible food — if you haven’t been, you should put them on your list because you will absolutely love them. Just that the cost of living is really high in these cities and it is making local people struggle for their lives.
What is important is that although the money issue is unavoidable, keep in mind that it is not the only factor contributing to the standard of living. Spending more time with your loved ones, doing more sports, read more, all these make your life better, even spiritually. So I’m going to end this article with a cliche — money can’t buy happiness.
Tip Jar — Just like when you go to a restaurant and enjoyed the souffle (my fav dessert), you can leave a tip to show your appreciation. If you enjoyed my work, here’s a link to encourage me to keep pursuing the writing path. This is 100% your decision and if you don’t feel like it, leaving me a message below will work just as well:) Thank you.
Barney's Paws 