Budget Speech

Housing Supply

137. We have identified land for the provision of 316 000 public housing units in the coming ten years.  With the redevelopment of Hong Kong Housing Authority's factory estates, the number of public housing units may see further increase.  It is estimated that the total public housing production in the five-year period from 2020-21 is about 101 400 units, comprising over 70 000 public rental housing and Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme units and over 30 000 other subsidised sale units.  On private housing, it is estimated that the completion of private residential units will average over 18 000 units annually in the five years from 2021, representing an increase of about five per cent over the annual average of the past five years.

138. The Government has already identified land for the provision of about 14 000 transitional housing units by end-2023.  Intake of residents for over 1 100 units has taken place.  Projects involving about 9 800 units have been launched.  The $5 billion Funding Scheme to Support Transitional Housing Projects has approved projects involving over $2.6 billion, and the Government will inject another $3.3 billion this year.  The Government is also seeking funding from the Community Care Fund to subsidise NGOs, as a pilot scheme, to rent suitable rooms in hotels and guesthouses with relatively low occupancy rates for use as transitional housing.