A study of unaffordable housing and its social implications on young people in Hong Kong

Abstract

Housing is an indispensible part of Hong Kong people. Not to mention the 15% subsidized sale flat ownership, there is more than 50% private ownership in Hong Kong. The ownership housing has enormous impact on economic performance as well as people of the society. The non-stop soaring up of housing price after SARS in 2003 has bought wealth to part of people but also led to unaffordable housing price and social polarization in our society. The speculation and demand from mainland China, unrealistic and lagging land and housing policy, and increased economic strength of locals all fuelled the demand as well as the price of private housing. The situation of skyrocketing price and unaffordable housing is not the privilege happened solely in Hong Kong, it is an international problem spread over Asian, European, American and Oceania countries. Brief description on some represented countries concerning the problem of unaffordable housing will strengthen the understanding on this topic. Government of Hong Kong had adopted some measures but all were not effective to curb the rising price. The aftermath of Suen’s Nine Measures in 2002 implemented by the then Secretary of Housing, Planning and Land Bureau was thorough and long-lasting up to nowadays. The measures of halting land auction and suspending the home ownership scheme led to shortage of land supply and hegemony of land developers in this territory. The cooling measures since 2010 including introduction of additional stamp duties to increase the cost of speculation and enhancement of mortgage financing measures to tighten loan ratio and stress testing aimed at curbing investment demand. The results of the measures are disappointed and the housing index is going up to the record high. Facing the consistent strong housing demand to weak supply, housing becomes more unaffordable and the social implications to young people are intensified. Nearly 70% respondents in this study expressed they had to delay their marriage plan, stay longer in the parental house and cut the expenses in order to save money to buy their first homes. Housing price is too high to be reached and the previous way and timeframe to acquire private flat has been changed. Young people are seriously affected by the unaffordable housing. They find themselves either helplessness or ostracized by the path of private home ownership. This situation may affect the social harmony and commitment of young people to the society as they are less vested in the society. Recommendations to solve the problem of unaffordable housing are suggested in order to maintain the well-being of the society and its sustainable development.