High rent, low salaries: how young Hongkongers are scheming to secure subsidised housing
Working-class residents are going to extraordinary lengths to try to secure public housing - even quitting their jobs to become eligible in a bid escape cramped living conditions with their parents.
Wong Yik-mo can't wait to move out of his parents' home in Jordan, and it's easy to understand why. He and his wife are among five adults - along with his parents and older brother - sharing a 500 sq ft flat.
The little personal space means quality sleep is hard to come by.
"My dad has poor hearing. He always watches television late into the night with the volume turned up, which makes it difficult to sleep."
The 35-year-old became so desperate that, in February, he quit his job as a warehouse worker to qualify for public housing.
As incredible as it seems, Wong's drastic action makes sense in light of the dire housing opportunities for young people in Hong Kong.
Wong must apply for public housing as a single person because his mainlander wife is considered a non-resident. The HK$14,000 he earned at the warehouse exceeded the HK$9,670 salary cap for single candidates, which led to his application being rejected this year. That was when he decided he had to give up his job and put in a fresh application.
"I'm now doing odd jobs that pay day rates, mainly on construction sites or as a delivery worker. The pay is so low that I can't contribute household expenses to my parents. However, because it's much more difficult to get a flat than find a job in Hong Kong, quitting is the sensible thing to do," he says.