Number of new homes expected under Hong Kong land-sale programme plunges to 11-year low
- Development chief says this year’s programme will yield only 6,000 flats for the private sector
- Shortfall prompts government to advance tender of a newly reclaimed site even though railway station serving development has yet to be built
The number of homes expected to be produced under Hong Kong’s land-sale programme has plunged to an 11-year low, prompting the government to address the shortfall by advancing the tender of a newly reclaimed site even though the railway station serving the development has yet to be built.
Secretary for Development Michael Wong Wai-lun on Thursday announced the rare decision to bring forward the sale of the site at the future Tung Chung East station, admitting that this year’s programme would yield only 6,000 flats for the private sector.
He said the fall in private housing supply was a “necessary conclusion”, given the government’s push to reserve more land for public housing.
But analysts warned that there would be a political price to pay for Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor’s focus on building more public housing without actually increasing land supply in the near term, which would only push up private home prices further in the world’s most expensive property market.
The land-sale programme for the coming financial year will cover 15 residential sites – four on Hong Kong Island, one in Kowloon and 10 in the New Territories.
