FRIDAY, MAY 4, 1984
ANOTHER PROPOSAL IS TO RAISE THE MINIMUM PERCENTAGE COMPONENT OF THE RENT CONTROL MECHANISM FROM 30 PER CENT TO 45 PER CENT OF PREVAILING MARKET RENTS AND THIS WILL MEAN THAT ABOUT 22 000 TENANCIES (16 PER CENT OF CONTROLLED TENANCIES) WITH LOW CONTROLLED RENTS WILL HAVE INCREASES, MANY ONLY MARGINALLY, EXCEEDING 30 PER CENT OF THEIR CURRENT RENTS. HOWEVER, SUCH INCREASES BEING BASED ON VERY LOW CONTROLLED RENTS, WOULD NOT BE EXCESSIVE COMPARED WITH THE GENERAL LEVEL OF INCREASES PERMITTED UNDER THIS LEGISLATION.
MEASURES IN REGARD TO PRE-WAR PREMISES ENACTED IN 1979 HAVE ALSO BEEN RE-EXAMINED IN THE LIGHT OF CHANGED CIRCUMSTANCES.
PRE-WAR BUSINESS PREMISES ARE ALREADY SCHEDULED FOR EXCLUSION FROM CONTROL FROM JULY 1, 1984 AND WILL BECOME SUBJECT TO PART V WHICH REQUIRES, GENERALLY, SIX MONTHS NOTICE TO TERMINATE A TENANCY. LANDLORDS AND TENANTS OF THESE PREMISES - WHICH NUMBER ONLY ABOUT 1 700 - WOULD BE IN THE SAME POSITION AS THEIR COUNTERPARTS IN POST-WAR BUSINESS PREMISES AND FREE TO NEGOTIATE RENTS ACCORDING TO PREVAILING MARKET CONDITIONS. THE BILL PROPOSES TO EXTEND THIS EXCLUSION TO BUSINESS SUB-TENANCIES IN ALL PRE-WAR DOMESTIC PREMISES. ONLY A VERY SMALL NUMBER OF SUB-TENANTS WILL BE AFFECTED BY THIS PROPOSAL.
FOLLOWING THE POLICY ESTABLISHED IN 1978 OF ALLOWING ANNUAL INCREASES TO THE PERMITTED RENT OF PRE-WAR DOMESTIC PREMISES, THE FACTOR TO BE APPLIED TO THE STANDARD RENT (RENT AS AT DECEMBER 25, 1941) TO ARRIVE AT THE PERMITTED RENT WILL BE RAISED FROM 16 TO 21.
+FOR AN AVERAGE UPPER FLOOR TENEMENT, THE PROPOSED CHANGE WILL RESULT IN AN INCREASE OF ABOUT 31 PER CENT OR $200 PER MONTH ON ITS CURRENT RENT AND WILL BRING UP ITS LEVEL TO ABOUT 45 PER CENT OF THE PREVAILING MARKET RENT. ONLY ABOUT 2 700 UNITS WHICH ARE EFFECTIVELY UNDER CONTROL WILL BE AFFECTED, MR LIAO SAID.
IT IS ALSO PROPOSED TO MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO TRANSFER TENANCIES FROM PART II TO PART IV UNDER THE FOLLOWING CIRCUMSTANCES:
(A) UPON THE JOINT APPLICATION OF A LANDLORD AND A
TENANT,
(B)
UPON THE APPLICATION OF A LANDLORD OR A TENANT WHOSE RENT HAS REACHED AT LEAST 77 PER CENT OF THE PREVAILING MARKET RENT (AT WHICH LEVEL A 30 PER CENT INCREASE WOULD BRING THE RENT UP TO THE PREVAIL ING MARKET RENT).
BY CHANGING THE STATUS OF THE TENANCY TO PART IV. TENANTS CAN BE ASSURED THAT THEY NEED IN FUTURE PAY NO MORE THAN THE PREVAIL ING MARKET RENT IN RETURN FOR SECURITY OF TENURE; THUS, THESE. PROPOSALS SHOULD BE WELCOMED BY THOSE TENANTS CURRENTLY PAYING RENT ABOVE THE PREVAILING MARKET LEVEL WHERE, FOR EXAMPLE, THE TENANCY AGREEMENT WAS SETTLED BEFORE MARKET RENTS DECLINED. LANDLORDS TOO MAY WELCOME THE OPPORTUNITY OF ENTERING INTO A NEW FIXED TERM LEASE UNDER PART IV RATHER THAN RELYING ON A MONTHLY TENANCY STATUTOR ILY CONTINUED UNDER PART II.
/THE EXISTING