Over half of Hong Kong couples are saying “I don’t”

They're also giving-up on having babies, too.

The high-cost of living has forced 53% of middle-class unmarried couples who participated in a city-wide survey to say they were delaying marriage to try to save cash.

The same survey also found that 45% of Hong Kong’s middle-class couples have abandoned the idea of having a child. The new survey commissioned by Citibank blames the city’s high cost of living for the middle-class' souring on marriage and parenthood.

Nearly half of married respondents said the statement, “Because having a kid is too expensive, my spouse and I have decided against having one/having another,” “quite” or “totally” described their situation.

Another 29% felt neutral about the statement, while only 26% of married respondents said it didn’t apply to them.

Experts said such findings can be partly explained by the outrageously unaffordable prices for Hong Kong housing, which have surged 120% since 2008.

A modest 650-square-foot apartment on Hong Kong Island, for example, costs some US$1 million, according to government statistics. Citibank said the middle-class in Hong Kong spend some 40% of their income on housing alone.

The survey polled 1,000 adults in April aged 30-40 with monthly income between 20,000 and 50,000 Hong Kong dollars (US$2,580-US$6,450).