So give me a quick intro to Hsin Chu

For the past 3.5 years we’ve been living in Tainan, and we’ve really put down roots. However, I might be looking at taking a job in Hsin Chu, in the city. What’s there? All I get from locals here is that it’s industrial and expensive.
Here in Tainan I’ve learned where all the restaurant supply places are where I can get stuff like tortillas, good spice selections, sour cream, etc. Would I be able to easily find the same in Hsin Chu?
How easy is it to get around town?
What are the rental prices like? (3 bed, 2 bath, preferably with a car parking space) I pay NT$10,000 for that now, including the guard fee.
How easy is it to get from there to Taipei? Not that I would want to do it that often, but just wondering.
Thanks for info.

You would be looking at 15-20k for same type of place in Hsinchu, perhaps more if you had the budget. It’s actually one of the richest places in Taiwan. Tainan would be a lot bigger, there not really much to Hsinchu city, a few leftovers from Japanese times, the zoo, a few parks and the stream through the centre. You would probably live in the city or Zhubei to the north which is a newly developed area where the HSR station is located.

Best part of Hsinchu is Hsinchu county and easy access to Taipei and the North and the airport.

Depends what you’re looking for and how “far out” you’re willing to go. A swanky place in the middle of the city or the newer (HSR) area of Zhubei will set you back quite a bit. If you’re willing to live further away from city centre, your prices will go down and you’ll get bonuses like a yard or even a house in a gated community. You definitely won’t get what you’re used to for what you’re spending in Tainan, but here, fewer people spit on the street, so it’s a fair trade-off!

I’m paying exactly 10,000 right now for 3 bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms, but yeah its a little further out. Hsinchu’s just opened a huge Hyper City with a City Super so you can get most western food supplies there. I don’t know where “industrial” comes from, there’s not much industry left here, just the Science Park. The industry is in places like Hukou and Zhunan. Obviously Zhubei is the place to live if you want to do Taipei runs. its only 30 mins away on HSR.

Definitely don’t need to be near HSR or have a fancy (expensive) apartment. I’m used to driving all over Tainan to get the western cooking ingredients we want from various locations, so knowing where to find stuff is nice. Still not sure we’ll be moving there, but I also just learned there’s a Costco there, which helps.
Living on the edge of the city or a bit outside is fine if it means cheaper rent and quieter neighborhoods.

It definitely does. Will you be travelling by scooter, car, bicycle, or public transportation? If you’ve got a car, the outlying towns/villages or countryside may be your best bet. If you’re on a scooter only, maybe try Xiangshan; it’s still technically Hsinchu city, but there are mountains and countryside all round. If you’re in the countryside, you may be able to find a place for 8-10K, but count on a bit more for Xiangshan. There’s a set of “military houses” in Xiangshan (nothing fancy, but it’s detatched, single-storey housing); I know of several people there who pay 6-13K/month, depending on the landlord.

Xiangshan is a total pit, don’t go there. The only place south of Hsinchu worth living that is within driving distance of Hsinchu is Zhunan. I lived there for three years, and have written about it a few times, the last time just a few minutes ago (in a thread about Toufen). I can tell you more, if you’re interested.

What’s wrong with Xiangshan?

Yeah, there are some divey areas, but you’ve got mountains, oceans, and a lot of nice houses. There’s the grasslands, and the aspect of being in the country without the “Deliverance” vibe you get only a few minutes south. You don’t settle right on Chunghua Road; It’s just a means of getting home; if you’re not at least 500m away, yeah, you’re going to hate it! Jhunan/Toufen are the backward, yucky places, IMHO.

Zhunan is 100 times better than Xianshang. Zhunan has everything Xiangshan has (mountains and ocean) and the “downtown area” is actually quite nice (unlike Xiangshan), has like 100 restaurants, 3-4 book stores, a bus station that goes all over Taiwan, the train station is both mountain and ocean lines, so every train stops there (unlike Xiangshan which is a tiny, ancient, dirty station that only local trains stop at)… Oh yeah, and the beach at Xiangshan is really nothing but mudflats, unless you go north or south quite a ways. The beach in Zhunan has a surf shop with a community of local and international surfers, windsurfers, and kite surfers, a great vibe, nearby is a fish market where you can buy fish fresh off the boat or go to one of the restaurants and eat fish from the market. I could go on and on. I thought about moving to Xiangshan before and went there to check it but quickly changed my mind.

I’ve officially been offered a job in Hsinchu City. I don’t know the area or where the best places are to begin looking for housing. We don’t mind living a bit out of the city but Zhunan looks like 8-10 miles out from where I would be working. I’m commuting 10 miles every day by scooter now and it gets kind of old. What are the areas to the SE like?
Also, I’m on Tainan Bulletin down here which is a great resource for expats. Is there anything like it in the Hsinchu area?

[quote=“kjmillig”]I’ve officially been offered a job in Hsinchu City. I don’t know the area or where the best places are to begin looking for housing. We don’t mind living a bit out of the city but Zhunan looks like 8-10 miles out from where I would be working. I’m commuting 10 miles every day by scooter now and it gets kind of old. What are the areas to the SE like?
Also, I’m on Tainan Bulletin down here which is a great resource for expats. Is there anything like it in the Hsinchu area?[/quote]

Just take the train. All trains, ocean and mountain lines, stop at both Zhunan and Xinzhu. If you work near the Xinzhu train station that will be the fastest and most convenient way to get to work. It was faster for me to take the train from Zhunan than a bus from within Xinzhu (near the Xinzhu science park) to get the area around the Xinzhu train station.