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Hong Kong housing
Hong KongSociety

How Hong Kong’s public housing system works: costs, waiting times and sales

  • With lack of land, sky-high property prices and long waiting periods for rental homes for those with low income, relief not likely to be soon
  • About 3.3 million people – 44.7 per cent of the population – live in public housing

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Waiting times for public housing in Hong Kong are at their longest in nearly two decades. Photo: David Wong
David Vetter
Hong Kong’s dubious honour of having the world’s highest priced property puts private home ownership beyond the reach of many. Instead, heavily subsidised public housing is the main choice for young low-income couples, the elderly, and singles hoping to rent a flat, but there is a severe shortage of such homes.
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Public rental housing estates found across Hong Kong usually comprise several high-rise blocks, with flats of different sizes. They currently house about 3.3 million people – 44.7 per cent of Hong Kong’s population.

About 3.3 million people, nearly 45 per cent of the city’s population, live in public housing. Photo: AFP
About 3.3 million people, nearly 45 per cent of the city’s population, live in public housing. Photo: AFP

Those who want a subsidised flat turn to the Public Rental Housing (PRH) scheme. But with about 268,500 applicants on the waiting list, it can take more than five years to get a rental flat.

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In 2014 the government set a target of building 280,000 public flats by 2027, but it has since admitted it would fall short by around 43,000 homes. Meanwhile, many more are joining the queue each year. It is a situation observers refer to freely as a crisis.

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