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SCMP Reporter

Public housing tenants who do not move out within a month of buying their own home will have to pay triple rent.

 The policy will take immediate effect, a Housing Authority committee decided yesterday.

 The aim is to deter tenants who purchase properties with government subsidies from keeping two flats.

 It followed an Ombudsman's investigation which found about 9,000 flats had not been returned to the authority within the specified two months between 1992 and 1997.

 In one case, a flat was not surrendered until 12 years later, although the majority of delays did not exceed six months.

 The Ombudsman said the policy of no deterrent or penalty had deprived 145,000 waiting-list applicants of affordable homes.

 Under the new policy, even if tenants pay three times the rent, they can stay on only for two months.

 'The policy is aimed to deter people from getting double benefits. If they want to hang on to the old flat, they have to pay a high rent.

 'But they can only keep two flats together at a maximum of three months,' said Vincent Tong Wing-shing, business director (management) of the Housing Department.

 'Extreme cases like the bread winner suddenly passing away or a family member being too ill to move will be considered,' Mr Tong said.

 Chairman of the Rental Housing Committee Chan Kam-man said the Housing Authority should not have to subsidise tenants once they had bought new flats.

 'Home renovation, decoration . . . will no longer serve as an excuse to hang on to the old flat under the new policy,' he said.

 'I understand each family has its own difficulties. But our consideration is that once they have bought a new property, we have no ground to subsidise anymore,' Mr Chan said.

 The Rental Housing Committee yesterday waived a rent increase, due in April, for four public-housing estates because of the economic climate.

 A total of 12,476 households in North Point, Sai Wan, So Uk and Wah Fu (1) estates will benefit from the concession, which will cost the housing body $27.7 million.

 The average rise next year will be 14.2 per cent.



Triple rent penalty for flat 'cheats'