Public housing in Hong Kong

The vast majority of public housing are provided in high-rise buildings, and recent blocks usually comprise 40 or more storeys.

[citation needed] This has led to many citizens who are unable to afford private housing to seek accommodation in subdivided flats and bedspace apartments.

[6] On 25 December 1953, a major fire in Shek Kip Mei destroyed the makeshift homes of refugees from Mainland China, leaving more than 50,000 people homeless.

After the fire, and facing a surge of immigrant population, then governor Alexander Grantham launched a public housing program to introduce the idea of "multi-storey building" for the immigrant population living there, thus commencing a programme of mass public housing, providing affordable homes for those on low incomes.

[7] Some scholars have argued that the government has been overstating the role of the fire in the history of public housing in Hong Kong.

[8] For example, Faure argues that Grantham was concerned with introducing subsidised housing as early as 1949, but encountered opposition from Chinese members of the Legislative Council.

[10] In those early days, housing units were little more than small cubicles, and the original plan was to allocate 24 square feet (2.2 m2) per adult and half that for each child under 12.

[12] Facilities and sanitation were rudimentary and communal, like the bath rooms and laundry areas, were located in the cross bar of the "H", linked the residential wings on two sides.

With the formation of this ad hoc resettlement scheme, it later evolved into a policy tool to support the burgeoning manufacturing industry.

It made recommendations to have annual evaluations of supply and demand of housing, as well as increasing the minimum standard floor area per person to 35 sq ft (3.3 m2).

The estate of 6,200 flats, constructed on a site of 21 acres (85,000 m2) and capable of housing 46,000 people, offered a self-contained environment complete with commercial amenities ranging from markets and barber shops to banks.

This represented an innovation in that the commercial premises would serve the local estate, while paying a rent determined by public tender.

"[23] Additionally, a member of the Democratic Party stated that without increasing land supply, the government would continue to fall short of its target.

[26] Public housing estates in Hong Kong may be rented or sold under various government subsidy programmes, and are generally subject to a range of restrictions and eligibility requirements.