Hong Kong receives 73,800 applications for subdivided-flat compliance grace period

About 73,800 subdivided flats in Hong Kong have applied for a three-year grace period to meet government standards under the Basic Housing Unit Ordinance, Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho Wing-yin said on Saturday. The applications were submitted during an early-bird registration phase that ended on August 31. Ho said the figure covered nearly 70 per cent of the city’s estimated 110,000 subdivided flats.

So far, 42 units had been certified as compliant. Ho described the response as better than expected and said certification numbers should rise as landlords became familiar with the process and found renovation companies and professionals. She urged remaining landlords to register before the grace period begins next March.

Under the rules, only subdivided flats meeting minimum requirements and certified as basic housing units may legally be leased from March next year, except for properties covered by the grace period. That period will run from March 2027 to February 2030. The government’s five-year plan aims to eliminate substandard subdivided flats in residential buildings by 2030 while increasing housing supply and reducing public-housing waiting times.

Landlords must pay renovation and certification costs and a HK$3,000 recognition fee for each unit. A second six-month registration round is under way, with smaller fee discounts. Landlords who applied between March and August qualified for a waiver of the HK$3,000 fee until February 2029.

Ho also said 90.6 per cent of Wang Fuk Court owners had returned signed letters accepting the government’s buy-back offer. The scheme follows last November’s fire at the subsidised housing estate and forms part of a HK$7.8 billion buy-back plan. Owners who have not signed sale and purchase agreements have been asked to complete the process by October 15.

Ho said the government could consider legislation for cases that ultimately refuse to sell.