FBOZH, your statement about a € salary is completely wrong!
The quoted salary is in HK$. The cost of living is in HK$, nothing to do with €.
It has been said before on other threads that what sounds decent when quoted in € or £ is nowhere near the equivalent spending power in HK$. This is one of the most expensive cities in the world. It's a fact, nothing is cheap.
BIG expense no. 1: housing.
because you'll need 50% of that just to cover the rent for a 50 m2 apartment in the middle of nowhere.
Pretty much sums it up.
If you meet the experience requirements that would have permitted you to apply for a DESO position on the previous expat terms, then don't sell yourself short. The "forgivable loan" is the equivalent of about 27 months of housing allowance, assuming that you don't need to spend any of it in their training machine. With retirement age of 65, that's a long time that you are here without housing allowance, and struggling to save enough to leave.
On the issue of 27 months, how long do you need to stay employed before they will totally "forgive" the loan? A wee bit longer than 27 months, I can assure you.
Add in the fact that you will pay tax on that cash gift at some point. Housing isn't the only benefit you'll miss out on, there's a whole lot more to the expat package, than just housing. The concept of the expat package was to attract qualified people to move from their home country. That hasn't changed.
Just 2 numbers to remember - 27 months, and 65 years of age. Think carefully.