ENG-1983 — Page 172

HOUSING

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further 800 flats nearing completion. In Yuen Long, piling work has started at Long Ping, a new estate of about 8 500 flats. A rural public housing estate containing 500 flats is going up on Cheung Chau with anticipated completion towards the end of 1984. Sites for HOS and rental schemes in the new town at Junk Bay have been identified and piling work has begun, paving the way for 1 600 flats.

Allocations

The Housing Authority possesses one of the world's largest public housing stocks, comprising 488 000 rental flats in 113 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, 27 400 new flats and 4 000 vacated units were let to the various categories of eligible applicants. The biggest shares went to waiting list applicants (41 per cent), families affected by development clearances (31 per cent), and tenants involved in the redevelopment of Mark I and II blocks (14 per cent). Other categories included victims of fire and natural disasters, occupants of huts and other structures in dangerous locations, and compassionate cases recommended by the Social Welfare Department.

The waiting list and the allocation of accommodation have been computerised. Nearly three million identities relating to applicants and tenants are stored in the Housing Applications and Tenancies Management Information System. The computerisation enables housing allocations and duplication checks to be carried out effectively and produces useful statistical information for management.

The 13 000 flats allocated to waiting list applicants during the year were located mostly at Sha Tin, Tuen Mun and Shek Wu Hui New Towns. Waiting times varied from seven years for estates in Sha Tin to four years for those in outlying new towns.

Applications from families of at least three persons are considered in the order of registration and in accordance with districts of choice, but accommodation is only offered to those found eligible, on investigation, in respect of their existing living space and whose family income is within a scale related to family size. The income limits are fixed having regard to the average household expenditure on food and other necessities plus the rent for a flat in the private sector, and range from a monthly income of $3,100 for a family of three to $5,600 for a family of 10 or more. The number of live applications at the end of the year stood at 167 000.

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As a means of helping the elderly, the Housing Authority provides a priority scheme whereby elderly couples or single elderly persons in groups of three or more can register on the waiting list. This scheme enables such elderly persons to be allocated housing within two years. So far, 1 600 flats have been allocated to this category and, in order to maintain the waiting time at not more than two years, the annual quota was increased to 800 flats in 1983. Similarly, in July 1982, the authority approved an incentive scheme under which families with elderly members were allocated housing one year ahead of their normal waiting time. It is expected that each year about 2 000 families will benefit from this scheme.

Rent Policy for Public Housing

Domestic rents on public housing estates have been maintained at low levels despite increasing management and maintenance costs. On average, rents charged at present represent less than seven per cent of the household income of tenants - an extremely low figure when compared with the maximum of 20 per cent used as an international guideline. In money terms, the all-inclusive rents would only cover the rates, management and