168
HOUSING
Pok Hong, Sun Chui, Chun Shek and Hin Keng. Piling work has already started at Hang On, Ma On Shan, to prepare for future housing estates.
In Tuen Mun, 4 600 flats for rental and sale were completed at Siu Shan Court, Wu King Estate and Sui Hong Court. Construction work at Shan King Estate (6 100 flats) is progressing smoothly. Piling work is underway at Leung Tin for the production of 4 500 flats for rental and for sale.
In Tai Po, 1 500 flats were completed under Kwong Fuk Phase II. The Kwong Fuk Phase III, using semi-mechanised construction methods, will provide an additional 2 400 flats. Another 5 500 flats at Fu Shin are under construction.
In Shek Wu Hui, 1 600 HOS flats were completed and construction of the remaining 500 flats is progressing satisfactorily. In Fanling, the completion of Cheung Wah Estate added 4 500 flats to the housing stock, while at Tin Ping 5 200 flats are under construction.
In Yuen Long, construction work at Long Ping is progressing satisfactorily and on completion will produce 8 500 flats. Elsewhere, a rural housing estate of 500 flats was completed on Cheung Chau, and piling work for rental and HOS sites is underway in Junk Bay. These sites will yield 6 000 flats.
Allocations
The Housing Authority possesses one of the world's largest public housing stocks, comprising 520 000 rental flats in 117 housing estates. These flats are of varying sizes, amenities and rent levels to meet the wide-ranging requirements of families in need of public housing.
During the year, 25 800 new flats and 3 700 vacated units were let to the various categories of eligible applicants. The biggest shares went to waiting list applicants (40 per cent), families affected by development clearances (25 per cent) and tenants involved in the redevelopment of Mark I and II blocks (15 per cent). Victims of fires and natural disasters, occupants of huts and other structures in dangerous locations, and compassionate cases recommended by the Social Welfare Department took up the rest of the flats.
The waiting list and the allocation of accommodation have been computerised. Informa- tion regarding nearly three million applicants and tenants is stored in the Housing Applications and Tenancies Management Information System (HATMIS). The computer- isation enables housing allocations and duplication checks to be carried out effectively and produces useful statistical information for management.
The 12 200 flats allocated to waiting list applicants during the year were located mostly in Tai Po, Tsuen Wan, Sha Tin and Shek Wu Hui. Waiting time varied from seven years for estates in Sha Tin to four years for those in the other areas.
Applications from families of at least three persons are considered in the order of registration and in accordance with the choice of districts indicated by the applicants. Accommodation is offered to those who, on investigation, are found eligible in respect of their existing living space and family income. The income limits are fixed having regard to the average household expenditure, plus the rent for a self-contained flat in the private sector. Currently, the income limits range from $4,500 for a family of three to $7,000 for a family of 10 or more. The number of live applications at the end of the year stood at 169 000. In the past, about 55 per cent of applications were found to be eligible on investigation.
As a means of helping the elderly, the Housing Authority provides a priority scheme whereby elderly couples or single elderly persons applying in groups of three or more will be allocated public housing within two years. So far, 2 400 flats have been allocated to this