Retirees to Guangdong are golden opportunity: John Tsang
Hongkongers have been tipped-off about opportunities in the silver-haired market in Guangdong by Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah. After a visit to Zhongshan, Tsang blogged that cheap accommodation, a low cost of living and brilliant golf facilities were attracting retirees to the mainland city.
Hongkongers have been tipped-off about opportunities in the silver-haired market in Guangdong by Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah.
After a visit to Zhongshan, Tsang blogged that cheap accommodation, a low cost of living and brilliant golf facilities were attracting retirees to the mainland city.
He noted that this ageing population would require a whole host of services in their new location, creating fresh business opportunities.
"Many retired colleagues in the civil services have properties in Zhongshan," Tsang wrote.
"The living environment, air quality and other facilities were the major factors in their consideration of buying flats there, besides the [lower] flat prices and [cheaper] living standards.
"They picked Zhongshan, just because of the high-quality golf course in the city."
Flat prices in Zhongshan are at about 5,000 yuan per square metre (HK$575 per sq ft), compared to 25,000 yuan per square metre in Shenzhen and 16,000 yuan per square metre in Zhuhai, making the city an "undoubtedly very attractive" option to the retired population of Hong Kong, said Tsang.
He believed such financial advantages would prompt more people to spend their retirement on the mainland, and advised Hong Kong businessmen to look to the Pearl River Delta.
"It's worthwhile [for businessmen to look] at opportunities outside Hong Kong," he said.
According to the Census and Statistics Department, 115,000 people aged 60 or above retired from the city to the mainland in 2011. The trend, he said, meant demand for housing, elderly care, medical services, and other products in the silver-haired sector was growing.
On Wednesday, Tsang visited Zhongshan's finance and commercial hubs, a residential estate with a high volume of Hong Kong residents and the new Cui Heng district.
