The redevelopment of Hong Kong’s sole privately owned low-rental housing estate will be pushed back by a further two years, the firm behind it has said, meaning its 2,000 flats will only come on the market in 2029.
The Hong Kong Settlers Housing Corporation on Friday said current residents of Tai Hang Sai Estate in Shek Kip Mei would be given until March 2024 to move out and surrender their units before redevelopment work began.
“We had to postpone the schedule to give the residents more time to decide their rehousing arrangements,” said a spokesman from the firm, which is associated with property giant Henderson Land Development.
The project is now set to be completed in 2029, instead of the previously estimated 2027. It aims to provide 3,300 flats – more than double the current 1,600 units.
About 1,300 of the new homes will be used for rehousing existing tenants, while the remaining 2,000 will be allocated to the Urban Renewal Authority to be sold as so-called starter homes. The initiative offers flats at below-market prices for first-time buyers who cannot afford to buy on the private market, but also do not qualify for public housing under the government’s Home Ownership Scheme.
According to the corporation’s spokesman on Friday, 82 per cent of current tenants, or 1,012 households, had submitted their eligibility assessment forms, which determine the number of people in a family and their assets.
Of them, 676 households were deemed eligible for rehousing and given two options: move back in upon redevelopment completion or leave permanently.
Both options would include allowances of varying degrees, depending on the number of people in the household.
A family of four, for example, would receive a rental allowance of HK$810,000 (US$103,000) and a payment of HK$54,000 to settle in interim housing on their own or apply for transitional housing through social workers.
Families would be given a one-off allowance of about HK$1 million, on top of a HK$27,000 removal payment, if they decided to depart for good.
Meanwhile, another 324 households were considered ineligible for rehousing for various reasons, including owning other properties, enjoying public housing benefits or no longer living in their flats.
These families would still be given a special removal allowance of up to HK$700,000, the firm said.
The remaining 12 per cent of residents, or 224 households, had not handed in their forms, with the organisation adding that it was “unclear” why they were being unresponsive since they were not in need of help from social workers.
He warned these residents may face repossession without compensation if they continued to refuse to hand in their forms.
“If we were forced to come to this final step but still offered them the same compensation, I think it would be unfair to the other residents who responded in a timely manner,” the spokesman said. “It poses a moral hazard.”
But some tenants have cried foul and accused the developer of moving ahead without their agreement.
Kate Au Yeung Kit-chun, who leads a group of residents from the estate refusing to accept the latest arrangements, called the corporation’s statements “outrageous” and accused them of running a “black box operation”.
She said many of the so-called unresponsive tenants had indeed replied by handing over an alternative form explaining why they rejected the arrangements, with reasons including that they wanted a “flat for a flat”, or that the firm had failed to respond to queries or clarify terms.
The corporation emphasised on Friday that residents of Tai Hang Sai Estate were renters, not homeowners.
The government has launched initiatives to ease the city’s housing crunch, including providing affordable flats for first-time homebuyers in 2019.
The Urban Renewal Authority offered about 500 flats in Ma Tau Wai as starter homes in 2019, which were sold at discounts of up to 38 per cent.
Authorities also plan to sell another site in Tsuen Wan for such projects in this financial year, with a target of providing about 1,000 affordable homes.
Source: SCMP