The relationship between low-income home-ownership and subjective well-being : a case study of the Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme (GSH)

Abstract

Many people aspire to be homeowners in Hong Kong, no matter whether they are the rich or the poor. In 2016, the Hong Kong government newly implemented the Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme (GSH) which specifically assists the low-income households living in Public Rental Housing (PRH) to achieve home-ownership aspirations. Yet, as PRH renters are usually with low-income, becoming homeowners must increase their financial burden. Besides, some people criticised the government for implementing the GSH which may result in prolonged waiting time of the PRH. To investigate whether the GSH is beneficial to the low-income homeowners and an appropriate housing policy, this study examines the relationship between low-income home-ownership and subjective well-being. While some research conducted in places outside Hong Kong identified a positive relationship between home-ownership and subjective well-being, some research reported a contradictory negative or insignificant relationship. There is a need to conduct the research to study the situation in Hong Kong. In this research, questionnaire surveys were conducted with 100 participants, including a group of GSH homeowners and a group of PRH renters who applied for the GSH but in vain. The survey aims to reveal if there is a difference in the level of subjective well-being between the GSH homeowners and the PRH renters by measuring their cognitive well-being and affective well-being, which are the two components of subjective well-being, and gather data on their opinions about home-ownership. Analysis of the responses shows that the group of GSH homeowners attained a higher level of subjective well-being than the group of PRH renters. The results indicate that there is a positive association between low-income home-ownership and subject well-being, which is attributed to the advantages of becoming GSH homeowners, namely, improvement in living conditions, achieved home-ownership aspiration, wealth accumulation and higher social status. It is recommended that the government should continue to implement the GSH and more subsidised home-ownership schemes to assist Hong Kong people achieve home-ownership aspirations.