Hong Kong’s second-biggest public housing provider will gradually expand the supply of its subsidised sale flats, aiming for them to account for 40 per cent of its home supply in future projects. Hong Kong Housing Society chairman Ling Kar-kan said on Saturday the move was to meet residents’ strong desire to own their homes. In…
Some passengers have been unable to use any mandatory e-payment options on Hong Kong taxis, as cabbies cited faulty machines or battery problems, reasons that customers have deemed as excuses as the “cash is king” mentality persisted. Experts said this week that many taxi drivers still held a deep-seated fear of having a traceable income…
Hong Kong’s housing authorities will expand the use of smart technologies, such as door sensors, in-home fall detectors and stair climbers, to enhance safety and convenience for elderly residents at public estates as the city’s population ages. Michael Hong Wing-kit, deputy director of housing overseeing estate management, said a pilot scheme to install sensors, which…
Donald Liao Poon-huai, one of Hong Kong’s most influential government architects and public housing visionaries who became the first Chinese official under British rule to serve as secretary for district administration, has died at the age of 96. His death was confirmed to the South China Morning Post by his family on Friday, with one…
Hong Kong hit a record low in births last year despite a range of government incentives, including a HK$20,000 (US$2,560) baby cash bonus for new parents launched in 2023. Just 31,714 babies were born last year. This might have come as a surprise for the authorities, which had projected a rise to 39,000 births. So…
Hong Kong’s average waiting time for a public rental flat rose to 5.6 years as of December, marking an increase for three consecutive quarters, as the Housing Bureau attributed the increase to high demand for flats in urban areas. According to figures announced on Thursday, the latest average waiting time for general applicants – family…
When Hong Kong’s Housing Authority launched the Tenants Purchase Scheme (TPS) in 1998, it embodied the city’s aspiration of home ownership for all. Then the chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa, envisioned public housing tenants buying their flats at a discount, transforming renters into homeowners. That year, the first batch of 25,000 flats was rolled out. In…
Hong Kong authorities have identified 1,600 at-risk elderly households in public housing, but analysts have said the figure fails to reflect the scale of this group of vulnerable residents and urged the government to speed up search efforts. Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han said on Saturday that authorities had identified high-risk cases…
Hong Kong’s young adults are being pushed off the housing ladder, with the proportion of subsidised homeowners aged 30 to 39 nearly halving to 16 per cent over the past two decades, and a mid-sized private flat now costing more than 18 years of an average household’s combined income, a study shows. The “Hong Kong…
Hong Kong internet couple “Mr and Mrs Ho” still have no legal representatives in a domestic violence dispute that escalated into a criminal case, which has drawn wide public attention and filled the courtroom. The District Court heard on Tuesday that Ho Huen, 77, widely known as Mr Ho, and his 44-year-old wife, Ye Xiuding,…