Secretary for Transport & Housing Prof Anthony Cheung announced that the government's 10-year housing supply target will be lowered from 480,000 to 460,000 units.
     Public rental housing will be cut from 290,000 to 280,000 units and private housing flats reduced from 190,000 to 180,000 due to a smaller-than-projected increase in the number of households in Hong Kong. The target of 90,000 subsidised-sale flats was also reduced to 80,000.
     He added that the government has secured the necessary land sites for building up to 255,000 public housing units. In the coming three to four years, it expects a market supply of about 86,000 first-hand private housing units.
     The government has reaffirmed its commitment to the 10-year public housing supply target by injecting $45 billion into the Housing Reserve. Established last year, the Housing Reserve allows the government to start saving for housing while it can afford to.
     For the five-year period ending 2018-19, construction expenditure for the Long Term Housing Strategy's production targets would be about $20 billion per annum and the authority's reserve position would deplete at around $10 billion per annum. The initial $27.5 billion earmarked for this purpose last year now measures $29 billion given the accrued interest, the bureau added.
     The Financial Secretary has instructed the Monetary Authority to set aside about $45 billion in investment returns on the government's fiscal reserves this year for further injection. The authority is also responsible for the Housing Reserve's investment.

 

 
 

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