How Hong Kong is making it hard for young couples to make wedding plans ... and forces them to live apart after marriage
High property prices and marriage expenses may be snuffing out romance but some lovebirds are adopting alternative mindsets to cope
The love story between Aden Chung Hin-cheong, 28, and his wife began eight years ago in an accounting class at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Every week, their lecture hall on the Hung Hom campus was filled with more than 100 students, but Chung only had eyes for one girl, his future partner, Amy Cheung Yuen-han 29.
The love-struck student literally chased after his romantic interest, and Cheung recalls: “I was walking out of the hall by myself after one class, and he ran after me to ask if I would be able to submit his paper for him next week.”
So, she gave him her number. A few text exchanges and some dates later, they were a couple. Fast forward to March, 2018: they are now newlyweds.
But in terms of their living arrangements, not much has changed. The husband and wife pair still live separately, with Cheung sharing a house with her parents in Tseung Kwan O while Chung rents a home with a flatmate in Kam Tin, New Territories.
The young couple had a traditional wedding in the city – an expensive practice given Hong Kong’s high costs – but they cannot afford a flat because of soaring property prices.