Page 5 - LanHse_full_report_eng

In our proposal, the Government would sell new public housing units
to eligible Hong Kong citizens at a discount against market price. If the
household wishes to sell its unit at the free market at a later date, it would
still have to settle the unpaid land premium with interest to the Govern-
ment. But the amount to be settled would no longer be linked to the mar-
ket price after the household has purchased the unit, which is different
from the existing arrangements. The exact mechanism to determine the
unpaid land premium to be settled is subject to further discussion of the
community.

As an example, Section 4.6, Part I of this research proposes four possi-
ble options of settling unpaid land premium. In operation, the policy could
be one of the many combinations of the various policy parameters. For
instance, OHKF is more inclined to propose Option B, i.e. the Government
to recover, at a discount, the land premium at the date of purchase, while
the interest rate applied to the unpaid land premium could also be at a
discount against prevailing market level.

It is worth pointing out that the above are all possible details of the
policy. In actual operation, the Scheme could be one of the many possi-
ble combinations of the abovementioned policy parameters, which OHKF
has an open attitude and encourages the society to continue objective
and rational discussion.

Admittedly this Scheme has its difficulties, and there are differences
in opinions and divergences in interests. Overcoming these hindrances
requires a joint effort by the whole community. We trust that in the long
run, the scheme will create a society where all the people enjoy property
ownership and share the wealth of society. Ultimately, when the people
live in harmony and solidarity, the entire community of Hong Kong will be
better off.
The issue of housing, after all, is inseparable from land supply, and at
present, the society is not adequately aware of the severity and urgency
of land shortage, and the fact that land development transcends sheer
housing development.