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The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Housing Authority:
The Housing Authority's Subsidised Housing Committee today (May 15) approved a set of interim measures to tackle under-occupation in public rental housing estates to safeguard valuable public resources.
Committee chairman Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung said that a priority list would be drawn up, basing on the households' living densities and the periods of under-occupation. The most serious cases would be on the top of the list while elderly tenants and households with disabled members would be given the lowest priorities in transfer.
Four housing offers, either in the residing estate or other estates in the same District Council district, will be given to the household to be transferred.
Domestic Removal Allowances in the range of $2,750 (one-person household) to $9,023 (six-persons or above household) and transfer opportunities to new estates, subject to the availability of resources, will be offered to the households that have accepted offers to move to smaller units.
"As a start, we have identified 2,000 cases for this exercise. A total quota of 1,000 flats will be set aside in the Allocation Plan in the coming two years of 2007-08 and 2008-09 for the relocation of the under-occupied households," Professor Cheung said.
"PRH flats are allocated to households according to family sizes under the established allocation standards. Owing to subsequent moving-out, decease, marriage or emigration of some family members, the remaining members may enjoy far more living space than is allowed under the established standards, rendering the family an under-occupied household," he said, adding that under-occupied households should move to a PRH flat of a size which the Housing Authority considers appropriate in accordance with the existing tenancy agreement.
However, under-occupation standards are more generous than the allocation standards. This is to allow reasonable flexibility in implementing the allocation policy by not treating households undergoing a small change in the number of family members as an under-occupied household.
"Taking into account the shortage of supply of small flats and the lesser demand of larger flats on the waiting list, it was agreed to tackle the problems of under-occupation through a step-by-step approach until the supply of small flats improves," he said.
A comprehensive review of the under-occupation policy will be conducted two years after the implementation of the interim measures.
Ends/Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Issued at HKT 17:58
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