ACCOMMODATION: Hong Kong is an expensive place in which to live and top of any cost of living index is rent. In the annual surveys, it usually comes out number two to Tokyo.

Quality flats (unfurnished) generally rent for about HK$20 per square foot on up.

That translates into US$3,000-4,000 a month, plus taxes and management fees, for a 1,200-1,500 sq ft, 2-3 bedrooms apartment.

Bigger flats in posh locations can top US$10,000-$40,000 per month.

Two months' rent in advance as a deposit on two-year leases are the norm, but you can usually insert a one-year break clause.

Furniture is rarely provided, but there are companies that lease furniture.

Also, furnished "service flats" are available for long- or short-term rentals.

It's possible to find comfortable, well-appointed accommodations within a few minutes' commute from the office.

Some of the areas favored by expatriate businessmen with offices on Hong Kong Island include the Mid-Levels, Repulse Bay, Shouson Hill, Happy Valley, Pokfulam, Chung Hom Kok, Stanley Village, Jardine's Lookout, Braemar Hill and The Peak.

Many who work on the Kowloon side prefer living in the New Territories, where there's more breathing room, in such places as Clearwater Bay. Sai Kung, Shatin, Marina Cove, and Hong Lok Yuen.

The Outer Islands are a big attraction to many who really want to get away from it all. Discovery Bay on Lantau Island is the fanciest of all the island communities and has its own ferry -- the others are dependent on pubic ferry service.

Many choose to live on other parts of Lantau in the villages, or on tiny Cheung Chau Island or at Yung Shue Wan Village on Lamma Island.