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LAND AND HOUSING
needed by the villagers, and the Government will shortly dispose of them by public auction.
HOUSING
There was severe overcrowding in tenement buildings even before 1941, as the rate of construction failed to match the sudden increase in population in the years immediately preceding the Pacific War. The war and the period of Japanese occupation resulted in much damage to residential property, and although this was quickly repaired, with the rapid return of the population overcrowding was soon apparent again. It intensified greatly during 1949 and 1950 with a fresh influx of refugees from China. Despite the intense building activity which has taken place, particularly during the past six years, new housing has been unable to over- take the tremendous increase in population, estimated at well over 1 million since 1948.
A summary of all new housing during the year 1960, is in Appendix VIII. Apart from the resettlement of squatters, new private building has housed approximately 432,000 people in the past five years. At the end of 1960 it is estimated that rated domestic accommodation in the urban areas consisted of 782 houses, 8,267 large flats, 19,298 small flats, 105,909 tenement floors and 11,443 low cost housing units. Almost 60% of this is of post-war construction. The building boom still continues but much new accommodation is possible only by demolition of the old, and much of the work of private enterprise has been to redevelop such sites with large buildings of many storeys.
J
Voluntary Housing Organizations. During the past ten years a number of voluntary organizations have concerned themselves with public housing directed towards the lower and middle income groups. The main contribution has been from the Hong Kong Housing Society, which was formed in 1948 as an off shoot of the Hong Kong Council for Social Service. It now has over 4,500 tenants on its eight estates at Ma Tau Chung, Sheung Li Uk, Hung Hom, Healthy Village, Tsuen Wan, Kwun Tong, Wong Tai Sin and Tanner Hill, which house over 28,000 persons. Some of these estates have welfare facilities such as boys' and girls' clubs, day nurseries, clinics and vocational classes.