Rents near border on par with Taikoo Shing as mainland parents move in

Demand from mainland parents for accommodation close to kindergartens and primary schools near the border has driven rents for subdivided flats in North District to levels on a par with those in blue-chip housing estates in Taikoo Shing.

Midland Realty says an estimated 60,000 children born in Hong Kong to mainland parents will reach kindergarten or primary-school age over the next two years.

Many of the parents of those children are now seeking accommodation close to schools in the northern New Territories. They want to live in the area after education authorities and 60 kindergarten principals in Tai Po and North District said earlier this month that Hong Kong parents who lived in the area would receive preference in admission but that surplus places would be allocated to families living closest to the pre-schools.

While children born in Hong Kong enjoy permanent resident status, their mainland parents do not, and many keep renewing three-month tourist or business visas in order to care for their children in Hong Kong schools.

"Those mainland parents are now seeking to rent accommodation in the border area to ensure they have a better chance of gaining admission for their children to a Hong Kong school," said Sammy Po, a director at Midland Realty.

Sham Wai-tong of Lung Fung Properties said he had witnessed an increase in the number of mainland parents renting flats in the area for older children over the past two to three years. "The trend is becoming more pronounced this year."