Midland Realty is a giant amongst the estate agent world in Hong Kong. They have a huge number of…read morebranches, covering every square-foot of the island, the mainland, and outlying islands. Their reach is quite impressive. However, I want to highlight one store and one agent in particular. If you are ever looking for a property in Tin Hau, I would suggest visiting the Electric Road branch and asking for Simon. Simon is a lovely, good-natured agent, who works incredibly hard to find suitable properties for you, but is never pushy. His English is also excellent. What I particularly like about using a large agency like Midland Realty, is that they have access to properties beyond the area that the branch, and you, are perhaps looking in. On a recent property scouting trip to Tin Hau, I was not sure if I would eventually want to move to this area. As such, Simon hunted out properties in different areas of HK Island and Kowloon, that suited my needs, but where perhaps not in the specific area that I had originally requested. There in fact proved to be quite a few gems. What Simon also specialises in, is the new developments. He seems to have access to, and again this is perhaps due to being part of a large agency, a number of developments being built, that can only be bought off plan. If you are able to wait, and happy to buy off plan, you can get some real bargains in these brand-new buildings, before they are released to the general public. Sure, if you are looking for something very specific, in a very specific area, the local mom and pop agencies may suit you better. However if you're search is a little more general, or you are interested in brand-new developments, try some of these bigger agencies. As Simon has proved they're not all huge and anonymous.

Fairview Park Property Management building is the office of the estate management. This management…read moreoffice consist of administration, accounting, shuttle bus service, security, maintenance and customer service office. They manage the largest low-rise residential development in Hong Kong. As each house comes with its front and rear garden. It requires security to patron the estate 24/7, covers 12.5 million sq ft, and over 5000 houses. The management building is a unique architecture located north of the Central Lake (an artificial lake), which is the biggest artificial lake in Hong Kong. Around the lake is a 700-meter Lakeside Path which is a good place for jogging and walking dogs. At the side of the Central Lake, you will find Country Club, Church and Community Centre,l, Children Playground, Fire Station, Park, Open Stage and Car Park. As a resident, the management office is where we pay management fees, register/renew parking permit, contact security or customer service. It's also the closest washroom by the playground. It is convenient to visit Fairview Park. There are shuttle services to and from Yuen Long, Sheung Shui, Tsing Yi, Central, Hung Hom and Tsuen Wan.

If you are ever looking for a house in Cheung Chau, I thoroughly recommend you seek out Kenneth…read moreYeung of Region Property Management & Agency Co.. Kenneth is a delightful fellow, who modestly claims not to speak English, but is in fact very good, so ex-pat buyers, you would do well to come to him. Kenneth is somewhat the kingpin of the Cheung Chau property scene, everyone knows him, and rates him highly. The properties he holds covers the full range available on the island, with properties to match all budgets. Ultimately, there is only so much property on Cheung Chau, and Kenneth seems to have them all covered! What I particularly like about the way that Kenneth works, is his liberal use of media. HK agencies are a real pain in the proverbial, when they offer detail on a property, but don't have any photos to show. As Cheung Chau is a bit of a trek to get around (there are no cars and Mrs L finds cycling unladylike), and Region Property has limited staff to tour around with you, Kenneth has made sure he videos all of his properties. This way, he can show you lots of videos and photos on the big screen in his office, without you having to step out in to the hot sunshine and schlep across the island, just to realise the proposed property is no good. Whilst I sing Kenneth's praises for his media use, do remember he is an estate agent, so can sometimes be flexible with the truth. For example, the smell coming through the housing estate is not "somebody's cooking" or "natural sea smells", and the noise is not "children playing", but in fact the smell and noise of the pig abattoir next door. Why do I suddenly feel that Clarice Starling is about to pop up?

Chevalier Garden in the Ma On Shan part of Sha Tin was my home base when I was visiting Hong Kong…read more Chevalier Garden is a public housing estate comprising of 17 apartment buildings built in 1988. The estate has numerous facilities including a school and recreational facilities like basketball courts. There is also a commercial shopping complex full of restaurants and shops. And is well served by numerous bus routes at the Chevalier Garden Bus Terminus. Stayed in Block 17. It is a bit of a walk to the shopping center and bus stop, but not that far. The apartment I was staying in was decent size in regards to space compared to a couple other public housing apartments in HK that I have visited. It also has a view of Ma On Shan which is one of the tallest mountains in HK. There is a security guard stationed in the lobby as well as a key code entry system so it is pretty safe. In staying at Chevalier, I got that there was a real sense of community as people greeted each other as they walked within the complex. The reason for the three stars is that the ventilation in the building is not the best. If it is hot outside, it is going to feel the same inside. Making air conditioning a must. I had a few sleepless nights due to the hot weather. It also limits your ability to cook since a dish requiring high heat is probably not a good idea. Fortunately, there are a few restaurants downstairs so it would be easier to order these dishes as takeout instead and save you the trouble. Living at Chevalier is convenient from a commute standpoint too. They have a bus (85K) that goes to Sha Tin Station so you can get on MTR as well as a bus (A41P) that goes directly to the airport. It also is close to the MTR Tai Shui Hang Station though I did not use that station as I found the bus easier. While it may not be in urban Hong Kong, I did not find it difficult to get from Chevalier Garden into the city. There are plenty of commute options. I enjoyed my stay here. A bit of a distance away from the urban sprawl, but not too far.

Buying a property in Hong Kong can be a little bit of a minefield. For us mere mortals, who cannot…read moreafford one of the brand-new buildings offered by the larger chain estate agents, we are relegated to using some of the more colourful local agents, with old stock that is perhaps more suited to our budget. If you happen to be looking for a property in Tin Hau, I recommend that you go to Ngan Mok Street. Down this street there several estate agents, all of which hold a lot of reasonably priced stock in the area. Fion Li with Park View Property was particularly refreshing to deal with. She understood, and most importantly, followed our budget requirements. There was no addition of a few percent here or a few percent there. She looked for property at our budget. Of course when we were looking, many of the properties were not available to view immediately. We were able to make an appointment with Fion on the following day, and unlike many of the other agents, she was able to secure access to each of the properties on the day arranged. The only issue of having so many agents in a small area, is that they all hold the same stock - literally. So what was happening, was Fion was taking the keys from another agent to show us a property which the other agent would also be showing. As such, we ended up seeing many properties that we had already seen with another agent, and as is Hong Kong law, we were obliged to continue with the previous agent. Fortunately, Fion was very gracious about us turning down viewings. She must be quite used to this by now. Last note, Fion's English was very good, so we were able to communicate with relative ease. Again, a refreshing change to most local agents. I mean, how on earth do you hand signal, "are there any mortgage encumbrances on the property?"?

There's probably not a great deal one could say about a property agent. They advertise and sell…read morehouses, they are really only as good as their stock, and they tend to stick to one area (unless it is a chain). Well, if you are ever thinking of buying or renting in Wan Chai, do take a moment to seek out Good Luck Property. They are located near the Wan Chai / CWB border, and tend to stock properties in that side of town too. It means you get a Wan Chai address, but without being above a girlie bar. Their stock is good, especially for the lower end of the market (I suppose if you have a HKD20million flat to sell you will go to Centaline or Midland), so there is often plenty to choose from. Ask for Louis (pronounced the Jerry Lee way as opposed to the French king way). He is a really nice bloke who exudes a wonderful honesty in his work. He never badgers or pesters, just shows you properties and waits for you to come back with a yeay or nay. He will negotiate well on your behalf, he did so for me and shaved a few hundred off the asking rent on my last place. He is also educated in Oz, so his English is excellent. Go see them for your property needs, and "Good Luck" - haha, see what I did there!

It is one of the more modern complexes in the Sai Wan Ho area. You pay about 15% premium when…read morecompared to older complexes like Taikoo or Lei King Wan. Overall this is a nice complex. The clubhouse has a gym, sauna, pool, study room, movie theater and on site dry cleaning. The service provided by the employees is exceptional and part of what you are paying for in increased rent is the extra services. Grand Promenade is especially kid friendly. They offer a lot of activities (need to pay) for kids and there is a kid friendly swimming pool, play area, outside playground which is really good if you have kids under 5. What stands out the most is going to be the sea view and it's pretty dynamic. The negatives are the price and the unit size. Additionally, I get a howling sound from the wind which can't really be fixed when it is really windy.

For many, buying a property in the Mui Wo area on the south side of Lantau Island, is potentially a…read moregood idea. For HKD8-10million, you can pick up a wonderful three story plus roof terrace village house, in one of villages behind the Silvermine Hotel. If you do find yourself in the position of buying in Mui Wo, I would thoroughly recommend Findley Leung Realtors. They have a couple of shops along the road beyond the bus terminus from the ferry pier, and have really cornered the market for properties in Mui Wo, Pui O, and Cheung Sha. What was particularly refreshing was the attitude of the staff. I really did feel as though they were making an effort to help me find a property that I would buy, rather than just trying to flog me what was vaguely similar on their books. I was very well looked after, to the point of being driven around to view properties. On HK island, it's all about the walking - ugh! The local and legal knowledge of the staff was also excellent. Most of them live on the island, and couple of them are actual "natives" and entitled to village land, so they know all the nuances of buying villages houses. It's great to have this insider knowledge, as there is so much speculation as to rights and access to village land, that it feels worryingly difficult to buy, when in fact it is quite simple. Ultimately, if you are looking to buy in South Lantau, you will most likely come to Findley Leung, as one of the only (and probably biggest) realtors on this side of the island. I found them particularly good, I hope you do to. With their staff taking off a lot of the stress, you should only need to think as to whether or not you really want to be living the island life!