ENG-1992 — Page 212

HOUSING

As part of the continuing implementation of the Long Term Housing Strategy, the production of ownership flats will increase from 14 000 flats a year to around 17 000 flats a year from 1991 to 1996. Of these, about 33 per cent of annual production will be upgraded flats in blocks originally intended for rental housing estates, thus providing a wider choice of flat sizes, standards, locations and prices.

During 1992, a total of 19 782 flats were sold, starting in January with 6 452 flats in Phase 13C. Applications were invited for a further 6 474 flats in Phase 14A in April, and nearly 60 000 applications were received.

In August another 6 856 flats were put up for sale, and in December 7 469 more flats were offered.

The prices of flats sold ranged from $294,200 for a flat of 40.9 square metres (saleable floor area) at Tin Yau Court, Tin Shui Wai, to $1,333,700 for a large flat of 58.1 square metres at Po Hei Court, Sham Shui Po.

Home Purchase Loans

Under the Home Purchase Loan Scheme, which is an integral part of the housing programme, lower-middle-income families are given assistance in buying flats of their own in the private sector.

Eligible applicants are offered an interest-free loan of $150,000, repayable in 20 years to help towards the purchase at downpayment or completion stage.

The authority has introduced a new option whereby eligible applicants can opt for a monthly mortgage contribution of $2,000 for 36 months, which is not repayable.

Since the implementation of the loan scheme in 1988, 7 645 loans and 122 subsidies have been granted. As a result, 4 352 public housing units have been recovered for allocation to other families.

Allocation

During the year, 23 000 new flats and 14 000 vacated flats were let to the various categories of eligible applicants. The biggest share went to waiting list applicants (38 per cent), followed by tenants affected by the redevelopment of the older blocks and in the compre- hensive redevelopment programme (28 per cent), and families affected by development clearance (11 per cent).

The remainder of the flats went to junior civil servants, victims of fires and natural disasters, occupants of huts and other structures in dangerous locations, compassionate cases recommended by the Social Welfare Department, families affected by the Kowloon Walled City clearance and applicants from temporary housing areas.

In all, the Housing Authority owns and manages some 645 000 rental flats of different sizes, amenities and rent levels in 146 estates.

The public housing waiting list and allocation of rental flats have been computerised, and information on nearly three million applicants and tenants has been stored. This enables housing allocation and duplication checks to be carried out effectively and also produces useful statistical information.

Some 8 000 flats, mainly in Tin Shui Wai and Tuen Mun, were allocated to successful waiting list applicants. The waiting time for these districts is the shortest and has been reduced to about one year.

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