If you’ve lived in a major metropolitan area, you’ve probably experienced the unique pain that comes with shelling out more and more money just to park somewhere (trust me, I watched $US200 ($257) burn a hole in my pocket every month just to park at my own complex in Austin). But nothing compares to this $US1.3 ($2) billion space in Hong Kong that just shattered all records to become the most expensive parking space in the world.
Now, this isn’t entirely out of character, as the BBC reports. That specific spot is located at a high-end luxury development in The Peak, which is one of the most expensive areas in all of Hong Kong. We’re not even talking ‘penthouse’ nice. We’re talking “you could have bought a country with that much money” nice. And, as you can imagine, this development is being built on a mountain (in this case, Mount Nicholson) to overlook Victoria Harbour. A mountain home with waterfront views? Yeah, that’ll get pricey.
Costs are unavailable for this particular apartment building, but other Wheelock Properties developments can be rented for up to $US2 ($3) million per year, Bloomberg reports. So, with this Very Expensive Rent paired with your Very Expensive Parking Space, you’d be spending over $US3 ($4) million per year just to live in a place you don’t even own.
The cost of living is already high in Hong Kong, which is so crowded that being able to secure a space of your own, even if it’s just a 100 square foot apartment, can come with an extreme cost. Parking spaces, which don’t provide anyone a space to live, work, or generate income, are even more expensive, since they’re a luxury.
Hong Kong was the locale for the previous record for parking space costs. Back in 2019, one space was set to cost $US980,000 ($1,256,948). Six figures seems measly compared to the current going rate.