Public housing rents in Hong Kong will go up by 10 percent from Oct 1 this year - the maximum rate allowed under the special administrative region government’s housing mechanism.
Except those who are considered well-off, all other public housing tenants will be given a three-month grace period, allowing them to continue paying the current rents until January next year.
The Housing Authority said on Monday the increases would range between HK$49 ($6) and HK$572. More than 60 percent of the tenants will see increases of below HK$250, while the average increment is expected to be about HK$230.
According to a document submitted by the Housing Bureau to the Legislative Council, the income index, compiled by the Census and Statistics Department for this year, showed that the average monthly household income of public housing households in Hong Kong had gone up by 10.73 percent in 2021 and 2023
As of March this year, there were some 807,800 public housing tenants in the SAR. Rentals range from HK$490 to HK$5,723, with an average monthly rent of HK$2,297.
According to a document submitted by the Housing Bureau to the Legislative Council, the income index, compiled by the Census and Statistics Department for this year, showed that the average monthly household income of public housing households in Hong Kong had gone up by 10.73 percent in 2021 and 2023. The rise triggered the existing rent adjustment cap mechanism, resulting in a 10-percent rent hike under this year’s review.
Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho Wing-yin emphasized the significant number of tenants and the extensive work involved in the daily maintenance, cleaning and security of public housing in the city. To ensure that residents can enjoy a good living environment, she said it’s essential to have sufficient financial resources, adding that residents can afford the average increase of HK$230.
Ho said the government has helped those in need, including more than 100,000 Comprehensive Social Security Assistance recipients, who have their rental payments covered by the government. In addition, about 22,000 public housing households have benefited from the Rent Assistance Scheme, which allows them to receive partial rent exemptions.
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Legislator and Housing Authority member, Bill Tang Ka-piu, said many public services are also experiencing price increases, adding to the financial burdens of the poor. Public housing estates are home to a significant number of elderly and financially disadvantaged residents, he said. Even a rent hike of between HK$100 and HK$200 would be difficult for low-income tenants to absorb as they lack alternative income sources to offset it.
Kwok Wai-keung, a spokesperson for housing affairs of the Federation of Trade Unions, noted that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, increases in public housing rents were relatively mild two years ago. Besides, transportation and electricity fees have also gone up, so the latest rent hikes have greatly intensified the psychological pressure on public housing residents.
The Housing Authority reviews public housing rents every two years, and strictly adjusts them, based on changes in residents’ income and capped at 10 percent.
Lawmaker Leung Man-kwong, who’s also a member of the Housing Authority, said he believes there’s room for improvement in the public housing rent review mechanism. In his view, the current mechanism is lagging behind and fails to take Hong Kong’s current economic environment into consideration. As a result, rent adjustments can only be offset with rent waiver measures.
He proposed conducting policy research on the relationship between minimum wages and public housing rents in order to ensure that future rent reviews are better aligned with the actual circumstances of grassroots residents.
The SAR government had raised public housing rents by 10 percent in 2014, 2016 and 2018, without exemptions.
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During the pandemic in 2020 and 2022, public housing saw rent increases of 9.66 percent and 1.17 percent, respectively, and the authorities provided varying degrees of exemption for residents.
