As Home Prices Soar, Couples Drop Family Plans

Housing prices and high rents are driving more and more people in Hong Kong to decide against starting a family.

A survey among couples in the city has found that people's desire to have children has hit a five-year low, with 53 percent of those polled saying they do not plan to do so.

The reading in last year's poll was only 28.5 percent.

The Hong Kong Women Development Association said expensive housing was cited by an overwhelming 83 percent of people as their main reason for deciding not to have kids.

A majority of those in the survey said their earnings were not sufficient to meet the financial burden of bringing up children, given the rent and other expenses they would have to meet.

The association said an increased supply of public and subsidised housing could encourage people to have children.

The survey polled more than 800 men and women aged between 20 and 49.

It also found that men now are more inclined to have children compared to women, reversing a five-year trend since the annual survey began.