Plan to increase discount in Hong Kong’s Home Ownership Scheme will hurt Housing Society financially, says chairman

Marco Wu says he hopes to speak to the government about the idea, announced last month by city leader Carrie Lam as part of measures to ease housing crisis

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Hong Kong is the most expensive place in the world in which to buy property. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:05pm, 7 Jul 2018Updated: 11:15pm, 7 Jul 2018

A plan to sell subsidised housing at almost half the market rate will leave one of the groups running the sales out of pocket to the tune of up to HK$1 million (US$127,000) per flat, its leader said on Saturday.

Housing Society chairman Marco Wu Moon-hoi said he hoped to speak to the government about the idea.

Last month Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor announced measures to ease Hong Kong’s housing crisis. They included reforming the way prices are set for flats on the Home Ownership Scheme run by the society and the Housing Authority (HA) and subsidised sale flats provided by the society. The Home Ownership Scheme helps young couples and families struggling to buy property.

The government intends to set prices at 52 per cent of the market rate, instead of the current 70 per cent.

Wu told a radio programme on Saturday the new measure would put great pressure on the society’s finances in the long term.

Marco Wu said the government’s plan to increase the discount on subsidised housing would hurt his organisation. Photo: Jonathan Wong

“Under the present arrangement, the Housing Society needs to pay half of the full market value of the land,” Wu said. He added that the arrangement was different to the one with the HA, which only covers the cost of getting the site ready for construction.