https://www.scmp.com/rss/330104/feed Iris Poon senior researcher at Our Hong Kong Foundation. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com A person’s living environment plays a pivotal role in their physical and mental well-being. In Hong Kong, despite the economic prosperity the city has enjoyed over the past few decades, a segment of society may feel they have not benefited, especially in terms of housing and living space. On its current trajectory for housing development, Hong Kong will soon be caught in a situation of “triple lows”, in which land supply, new housing numbers and quality of life will all deteriorate. Fewer – and... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3133072/hong-kongs-housing-crisis-fewer-and-smaller-flats-quality-life-will?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3133072/hong-kongs-housing-crisis-fewer-and-smaller-flats-quality-life-will?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 12 May 2021 22:45:10 +0000 The land supply shortage has long been a major cause of Hong Kong’s housing problems. And the government’s latest land supply programme for private housing shows that the authorities seem to be running out of options. Of particular concern is the low proportion of government land, large sites, and spade-ready sites in the line-up. First, this year’s programme lists only 15 government plots which can only supply 6,000 flats, the lowest in 11 years, and these units make up only 36 per cent of the... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/hong-kong/article/3126766/land-housing-short-supply-and-government-running-out?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/hong-kong/article/3126766/land-housing-short-supply-and-government-running-out?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Mar 2021 01:15:07 +0000 Public housing is an important part of Hong Kong’s social welfare net. But development delays have taken a toll on the supply of public housing, pushing the queue for public rental housing to a record high and spawning an overwhelming demand for Home Ownership Scheme flats. Our Hong Kong Foundation recently published a report titled “Cutting Red Tape to Catch Up with Shortfalls in Land and Housing Supply”. It warns of the severe undersupply in public housing. Over the past seven years, a deficit... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3084260/hong-kong-must-cut-red-tape-and-start-churning-out-public-housing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3084260/hong-kong-must-cut-red-tape-and-start-churning-out-public-housing?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 May 2020 22:30:10 +0000 Many grass-roots citizens in the affluent city of Hong Kong are struggling in shoebox-like living conditions. Queuing for public housing is like waiting for Godot – it takes 5½ years on average and that figure is growing, while the number of households living in inadequate housing, including subdivided flats, has risen to a staggering 116,600. The lag in the supply of public housing is one of the main culprits. What is worrisome is that the lag in public housing supply is getting worse. It is... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/hong-kong/article/2186663/if-hong-kongs-housing-targets-seem-too-good-be?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/hong-kong/article/2186663/if-hong-kongs-housing-targets-seem-too-good-be?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 19 Feb 2019 01:04:03 +0000 The Task Force on Land Supply has finally published its report following a five-month public engagement exercise, dubbed the “big debate” by Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor. The report has proposed a multipronged approach to increase land supply and identified eight short-, medium- and long-term options. However, in the near future, Hong Kong’s quest for solutions to its acute land shortage will face a dead end. The three short-to-medium-term options listed by the task force, when... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/hong-kong/article/2181493/why-hong-kongs-land-crisis-cannot-be-fixed-quickly?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/hong-kong/article/2181493/why-hong-kongs-land-crisis-cannot-be-fixed-quickly?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 10 Jan 2019 22:30:00 +0000