Housing in Hong Kong Shocks in Cost and Size
香港房價點燃青年怒火
By Alexandra Stevenson

HONG KONG – There are breathtaking views of Victoria Harbor from a 23rd-floor apartment that recently sold for $722,000 in the new Le Riviera building. The high-end German appliances and marble countertops evoke European luxury. In the entrance of the building, wire mesh sculptures by Spanish artists hang from the ceiling.
新建的香港里維拉大樓一間23樓公寓最近以72.2萬美元賣出，可以收攬維多利亞港令人驚嘆的美景。高檔德國家電與大理石廚房檯面散發歐洲的奢侈風。大樓入口處，西班牙藝術家的金屬絲網眼雕塑品自天花板垂下。

There is just one catch. The apartment is only 25.5 square meters, with a bedroom just large enough for a double bed.
只有一個問題。它只有25.5平方公尺（約7.7坪），臥室只放得下一張雙人床。

“If we don’t buy now, we might not be able to afford it later,” said Frank Wu, 60, the new owner of this “microflat” on the northeastern edge of Hong Kong Island.
60歲的法蘭克．吳是這間位於香港島東北隅的「微型公寓」的新主人。他說：「如果我們現在不買，以後可能買不起。」

Real estate defies logic in this city, one of the world’s most expensive places to live, with once improbable living spaces selling quickly at astronomical prices.
香港是舉世生活開銷最高的城市之一，曾經不適合居住的空間如今迅速以天價賣出，房地產行情違反邏輯。

But the housing boom, and the inequality it has exposed, has been taking a toll. The high property costs faced by young people added to the discontent that prompted thousands to take to the streets in pro-democracy protests this autumn.
然而房市熱絡與它暴露的不平等已經衍生代價。年輕人面對高房價，也使讓大批港人今秋上街參加民主示威的不滿情緒火上加油。

For many young adults who live with their parents, it is becoming harder to imagine having a place to call their own. Rents have skyrocketed. And some here now worry that the real estate market could stumble, particularly if the United States Federal Reserve starts to raise interest rates next year. Lending here is tied to the American rates.
對許多與父母同住的香港青年而言，擁有自己的窩已經越來越難想像。房租飛漲，部分港人如今擔心房市可能崩盤，如果美國聯準會明年開始調高利率，可能性更大。香港的借貸與美國的利率掛鉤。

Since a low point of Hong Kong’s property market in 2003, average house prices have increased by more than 300 percent, according to data compiled by the real estate agency Centaline and the City University of Hong Kong.
根據香港中原地產代理公司與香港城市大學彙整的數據，香港房市2003年陷入低點至今，房價平均漲了3倍以上。

Helping propel this rise has been Hong Kong’s economy, which expanded over the last 10 years after the rapid growth of China. Strong demand from wealthy mainland Chinese and limited land supply have also helped to prop up prices, although this effect has slowed with government cooling measures, like additional taxes paid on property purchases.
香港的經濟是肇因之一。中國大陸快速成長之後，過去10年香港經濟大幅增長。來自中國大陸有錢人的強力需求，以及土地供應有限也使房地產大漲，不過政府採取對不動產額外課稅等措施已發揮一定的降溫作用。

First-time buyers now dominate the market, spurred on by the ultracheap interest rates.
在超低利率帶動下，首購族如今已成為房市主力。

“The mortgage rate is below 2 percent, so it is very attractive for the buyers,” said Patrick Wong, a property analyst at BNP Paribas.
法國巴黎銀行不動產分析師派屈克．王說：「房貸利率不到2%。這對購屋者極有吸引力。」

Mr. Wu, a retired structural engineer who lives in the Mid-Levels, a more expensive part of Hong Kong Island, bought his microflat as an investment. He already has a potential tenant and said he planned to charge more than $2,000 per month.
法蘭克．吳是退休工程師，住在房價比較高的香港半山區。他把購買微型公寓當成投資。他已經有個潛在的房客。他說，他打算把月租訂在2000美元。

To Pui-lui, a real estate agent who has sold two units of similar size in the building, hints at looming trouble ahead. She recently advised her daughter, a doctor, against buying right now.
不動產經紀人杜珮蕾（音譯）已經賣出里維拉大樓2套面積類似的單位。她說，未來可能有麻煩。她最近建議擔任醫師的女兒不要現在購屋。

“It’d be disastrous if the price falls from such a high point,” Ms. To said.
杜珮蕾說：「如果價格從如此高點下跌，後果不堪設想。」

Developers seem undeterred as they continue to build new properties, increasingly with incentives like tax waivers, which can amount to a 10 percent discount. Microflats are a small, but growing, part of the offerings.
開發商似乎毫無畏懼，繼續大興土木，而且配合諸如稅賦寬減的誘因。這些辦法可能相當於打9折。微型公寓是其中的一小部分，比重卻越來越大。

Mr. Wu, who acknowledged the risks of buying his microflat when prices were so high, does not seem too concerned.
法蘭克．吳承認在行情這麼高的時候買下微型公寓可能有風險。不過他似乎不是很擔心。

He and his wife could always move in, he said, surveying the bedroom. “It’s all right for me.”
他打量這間公寓的臥室，表示他與妻子隨時可以進住。他說：「對我來說還好。」

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/19/realestate/hong-kongs-tiny-apartments.html

2014-12-09聯合報/G5版/UNITED DAILY NEWS 陳世欽譯 原文參見紐時週報八版下