Tenants fear eviction from tiny flats
Tiny flats in industrial buildings are illegal, but those who live in them have nowhere else to go
A tenant living in a 30 sq ft subdivided flat in an industrial building sees no hope of moving to a bigger home unless the city's severe housing shortage can be eased.
Casual worker Yu Wai-chan, 50, can barely afford the tiny flat, which has no windows and is barely big enough to fit a single bed, for a monthly rent of HK$1,300. It is so small he keeps his belongings in makeshift racks and cabinets on the wall.
His is among the 29 households sharing a 2,000 sq ft unit at an industrial building in Tai Kok Tsui.
Yu is one of about 20,000 tenants in subdivided flats in industrial buildings in Hong Kong, according to the Society for Community Organisation.
When the society interviewed 100 such tenants between August 2011 and March this year, it found that 90 per cent were living in spaces of less than 70 sq ft each, the minimum recommended by the Housing Authority.
Subdivided flats in industrial buildings are rented on average for HK$1,400 a month, with a HK$300 deposit. Yu said he could not afford space in a subdivided flat in a residential building as they cost HK$2,000 to HK$3,000. He earns about HK$10,000 a month for his family of three; his wife and daughter now live in Shenzhen.
On September 18, the Buildings Department served eviction notices to tenants in Yu's building, which is supposed to be for industrial use. The tenants were given a month to move out.