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Vivian Au

The estimated number of returned Hong Kong public flats available for rent has increased by more than 20 per cent year-on-year after authorities launched a fresh crackdown on people who abuse the system, the Post has learned.
A source said the estimated number of returned public rental flats available for allocation for this financial year increased by 22 per cent, up 3,500 from 15,600 in 2023-24 to 19,100.
Another 6,600 new public rental flats in areas like Tsing Yi and Tuen Mun will also be completed and ready for allocation by the end of the year.
“The increase in the estimated number of returned public rental flats is mainly because the government has stepped up enforcement against well-off public housing tenants since last year,” the source said.
Housing authorities in April sent out asset declaration forms to about 250,000 public housing tenants who had lived in their flats for a decade.
About 88 per cent of forms were returned by the May 31 deadline, which meant 28,000 households had not replied.

Rosanna Law Shuk-pui, the director of housing, earlier said the department would write to tenants who had failed to return the forms to ask for written reasons for the delay, backed with supporting documents.
She added, if that failed to generate a response, it would be assumed the tenants did not want to continue to rent, so their tenancies would be ended and the flats repossessed.
Law said that more than 1,200 tenants had been forced to give up their flats since the assets check started.
The government last October beefed up enforcement action against well-off public housing tenants who tried to cheat the system.
The clampdown came after Kwong Kau, 66, the former father-in-law of murdered model Abby Choi Tin-fung, was found to own a luxury home while buying a subsidised flat.


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Hong Kong

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Source says crackdown on well-off public housing tenants increases pool of homes available by 3,500, up from 15,600 to 19,100


Source says crackdown on well-off public housing tenants increases pool of homes available by 3,500, up from 15,600 to 19,100.


Hong Kong property

Hong Kong politics

Regulation