City Beat

Even Olympic gold is not enough to buy a decent home in Hong Kong’s notorious property market

The HK$7.5 million awarded to fencer Edgar Cheung for bringing home the city’s first gold in 25 years may seem like a princely sum

But even modestly sized flats can go for much more in a city that has long struggled to increase its share of affordable housing

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Hong Kong fencer Edgar Cheung got HK$7.5 million for his gold medal, but if he hopes to buy a house, he will probably need significantly more. Photo: AFP

Tammy Tam is the Publisher of the South China Morning Post, overseeing both editorial and business strategy and operations to drive the publication’s development and commercial growth.

Published: 3:45pm, 15 Aug 2021Updated: 11:04pm, 15 Aug 2021

A windfall of HK$7.5 million (US$960,000) may sound like a dream come true for someone yearning to own a home, but what is it really worth in Hong Kong’s bloated property market?

To put it into perspective, consider the lottery grand prize that a major developer recently offered to boost the city’s sluggish inoculation rate – a brand new single-bedroom flat measuring 449 sq ft, or 42 square metres, valued at HK$10.8 million.

As exorbitant as it may sound for such a small living space, the market price is quite reasonable, given the extremely convenient location of the property above a major MTR station.

HK$7.5 million was the amount that Hong Kong fencing champion Edgar Cheung Ka-long received after winning the city’s first Olympic gold medal in 25 years. HK$5 million came from the government’s Athletes Incentive Awards scheme, while HK$2.5 million was a personal donation by Hong Kong Sports Institute head Lam Tai-fai, who promised years ago to help any future Olympic medallist become a “homeowner”.

But how much can you get for HK$2.5 million in today’s housing market? To be fair to Lam, he might not have anticipated back then the trajectory of Hong Kong’s runaway property prices.