A potential buyer collects an application form for the eResidence starter homes project. Photo: Sam Tsang
Source:
https://scmp.com/news/hong-kong/hong-kong-economy/article/2183692/first-hong-kong-starter-homes-project-draws-huge Hong Kong economy
First Hong Kong starter homes project draws huge number of applicants
- More than 20,800 people, mostly young and single, tried their luck to buy one of 450 flats in Kowloon at a 38 per cent discount
- The government is to consider a number of factors before embarking on further similar schemes
Hong Kong’s first “starter homes” project has drawn more than 20,800 applications, with most of the demand coming from young single applicants, according to the Urban Renewal Authority.
The response means that applications from hopeful owners for the 450 flats in Hung Hom, Kowloon have been oversubscribed 46 times.
The authority, which was tasked by the government with managing the Starter Homes pilot scheme, said two-thirds of the applicants were single, and 86 per cent were aged 18 to 38.
Of the family applicants, the majority were two-person households.
Housing chief Frank Chan Fan said that the government would consider its next step for further starter homes projects after taking several factors into account.
“The starter homes pilot scheme has proved to be very popular. We have reserved a site on Anderson Road for starter homes, but we will have to examine the overall situation, such as sales arrangements, the sale’s popularity and the authority’s experience in handling such a scheme, before we can make any further decision,” Chan said on Friday.
The project is part of a new government initiative aimed at helping eligible middle-class families and single young professionals to get onto the property ladder. Only first-time property buyers and those who meet certain asset and income criteria are eligible.
The flats, which range in size from 261 to 507 sq ft, will go on the market from HK$3.14 million to HK$6.6 million (US$400,193 to US$841,170) after a 38 per cent discount.
Some 82 per cent of the flats at the “eResidence” project are studio and one-bedroom flats. The rest are two-bedroom units.
Applications opened on January 3 and closed on Wednesday. The authority will hold a lottery in March to determine the sequence for applicants to pick the flats in June, with priority given to family applicants. Flat owners are expected to be able to move in by mid-2020.