Fewer Hongkongers Apply For Subsidised Housing In 2023

The Housing Authority received 163,000 applications for the latest batch of around 9,100 flats under the Home Ownership Scheme, significantly lower than last year’s figures. However, the first batch of 626 private flats at The Coast Line II in Yau Tong were sold out on Day 1.

By Anjali Muthanna2023-08-152 Mins Read

Hong Kong’s Housing Authority revealed that it received about 163,000 applications for 9,154 flats under the 2023 Home Ownership Scheme. The figure is lower than last year, according to media reports, when 242,000 would-be homeowners vied for over 8,900 flats.

This year’s Home Ownership Scheme covered six development projects in the New Territories: Kai Yuet Court, On Ying, On Lai, and On Wah courts in Kwun Tong, Siu Tsui Court in Tuen Mun, and Long Tin Court in Yuen Long.

Successful applicants will get their units at a 38% discount on assessed market values, with prices ranging from HK$4.94 million at Kai Yuet to HK$1.49 million at Long Tin. The average saleable area in these flats varies from 282.5 sq. ft to 486 sq. ft.

A collage showing two images. The first is of a model of the Kai Yuet housing estate in Hong Kong. The second shows the layout of one of the flats in the housing estate. — A model of the Kai Yuet Court housing project, and the layout of one of the units in the development (© GovHK)

However, on Saturday, there was marked enthusiasm for private property, when the first batch of 626 flats put on sale at CK Assets’ The Coast Line II at Yau Tong sold out on the first day.

The project comprises a total of 58 studio, 230 one-bedroom, 228 two-bedroom, and 110 three-bedroom units — ranging from 210 sq. ft to 723 sq. ft. The flats were sold at discounted prices ranging from HK$2.9 million to HK$11.346 million, according to local media reports, and are viewed as more affordable than public housing.

According to the 2023 Asia Pacific Home Attainability Index, Hong Kong’s housing market returned to 2017 levels, with the median home price in the SAR standing at HK$9 million.

The study attributed the drop in Hong Kong prices to “a significant increase in mortgage interest rates in line with the US interest rate increase, a net outflow of population, and a less optimistic view on the local property market.”