Hongkongers are financially unprepared for retirement and death, exposing the risks of living in the world’s most expensive city
- Married couples with children face shortfall of HK$4.65 million between their bequests in event of sudden death, and their present income, according to survey
- The December survey canvassed 1,224 affluent residents, defined as those with between HK$300,000 and HK$1 million in assets
Hong Kong’s residents are financially unprepared for sudden deaths, with shortfalls between their intended bequests and income that leave their loved ones vulnerable to the challenges of living in the world’s most expensive city, according to a survey.
For singles who are still working, the shortfall between their income and what they bequeath to their parents can be as high as HK$2 million, while the gap is narrower for retirees at HK$1.05 million, according to Citibank’s December survey of 1,224 affluent residents, defined as those with between HK$300,000 and HK$1 million in investment assets.
For married couples with children, the shortfall is the widest at HK$4.65 million (US$592,700) while the gap for childless couples narrows to HK$2.11 million on average, the survey found.
“Those families with children need to prepare for their education, so they would need to prepare more” financially in the case of unexpected deaths, said Gordon Tsui Luen-on, managing director of Hantec Pacific in Hong Kong.
The poll underscores how Hong Kong’s residents struggle to make ends meet, even among the affluent segment of society that makes up Citibank’s survey sample.