CY Leung threatens a vacancy tax on unsold new flats
Developers could be punished for hoarding homes, chief executive warns, but experts doubt this would boost housing supply
The government would not rule out the possibility of imposing a vacancy tax on unsold new homes to stop developer hoarding, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying warned yesterday.
The idea - first floated a day earlier by one of his allies, executive councillor Barry Cheung Chun-yuen - would punish developers for dragging out sales. The vacancy tax could be a percentage of the rental value.
"I will not rule out any measures," said Leung, criticised last week for failing to boost the short-term housing supply in his maiden policy address.
"If there really are attempts to hoard and hold prices high … I will not just sit and do nothing.
"It is not pure commercial behaviour that the government sells land to developers for construction. We rely on them to deliver homes in a timely manner to address people's needs."
Secretary for Transport and Housing Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung said the vacancy rate for private homes, new or second-hand, was 4 per cent. "This is not a high rate ... but if it can be lowered to 3 per cent, it'll be even better, of course."
Developers must complete construction before a date specified in the land lease, but there is no deadline to sell all the flats.