Housing in Hong Kong varies by location and income. More than 7 million people live on about 1,108 km² (427 mi²) of land in the region.
Housing statistics
According to the 2011 census the breakdown by type of housing was as follows:
- Public rental housing: 29.3% (As of September 2014, the percentage is 28% from Housing Authority
- Housing Authority subsidized sale flats: 16.9%
- Private permanent housing: 50.3%
- Temporary housing: 0.7%
- Non-domestic housing: 0.2%
- Population in Non-domestic Households: 2.5%
In 2011 the total Hong Kong population was 7.1 million, and 52% of domestic households were living in private permanent housing and 30% were in public rental housing. Another 16% of domestic households were living in subsidized home ownership housing.
According to the 2014/2015 Household Expenditure Survey, housing accounted for an average of 36% of average monthly household expenditure, with utilities accounting for an additional 3%.
Public housing
Public housing is a major component of the housing in Hong Kong. About half of Hong Kong residents now live in public housing estates (Chinese: 公共屋邨) and other tower blocks with some form of subsidy. The history of public housing in Hong Kong can be traced back to 1953, when a fire in Shek Kip Mei destroyed the shanty homes of approximately 53,000 people. In response the Hong Kong Government commenced a programme of mass public housing, providing affordable homes for those on low incomes.
Several subsidized home ownership programs have been implemented, including: Home Ownership Scheme, Flat-for-Sale Scheme, Tenants Purchase Scheme, Sandwich Class Housing Scheme and Private Sector Participation Scheme.
Segmentation
In the high-end market, the Peak is ranked the 3rd most expensive city in the world in 2007 with a square foot per unit pricing of US $2,008 behind London and Monaco
Hong Kong's home prices also top the list of least affordable markets among major world cities according to American research institution Demographia's latest report in January 2015.The Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey 2015 includes 378 property markets around the globe, generating Median Multiples according to the proportion of average property price to median household income. Results are categorized into 4 levels: Affordable (Below 3 times), Moderately Unaffordable (3.1 to 4 times), Seriously Unaffordable (4.1 to 5 times) and Severely Unaffordable (5.1 times and over). Hong Kong falls into the grading of ‘Severely Unaffordable’, with the highest recorded index of 17.0 since the report commenced 11 years ago. Second on the list was Vancouver with an index of 10.6, still significantly lower than HK.
Housing estates
- Public housing estate
- Private housing estate
Traditional and historical housing
- Tong Lau
- Pang uk
- Walled villages of Hong Kong
See also
- Architecture of Hong Kong
- Bedspace apartment
- Subdivided flat
- Small House Policy
- Demographics of Hong Kong
- Economy of Hong Kong
- Asian property market
- Housing in Japan
- Housing in India
- Hong Kong portal
External links
- Hongkong Post Circular Service - Neighborhood Type
- On the margins of a booming city: housing for the poor in Hong Kong
- Housing in Figures by HKHA
