Hong Kong to Lift Resale Limits on Replacement Flats for Tai Po Fire Survivors

The Hong Kong government will lift resale restrictions on replacement homes for flat owners displaced by the Tai Po fire and provide them with two-year vouchers to purchase second-hand subsidised housing, according to an official buy-back document seen by the South China Morning Post on Tuesday.

The document states that original owners who opt for the special sales scheme will have greater flexibility, as they will be allowed to sell their newly built subsidised flats on the secondary market at a freely negotiated price at any time, bypassing standard lock-up periods.

“All Wang Fuk Court owners purchasing brand new first-hand subsidised sale flats from the Housing Authority or the Housing Society through the special sales scheme will have all their resale restrictions related to the lock-up period lifted,” the document said.

The blaze that broke out at Wang Fuk Court on November 26 last year killed 168 people and displaced nearly 5,000 others. Authorities have set aside 3,900 subsidised flats from the Housing Authority and Housing Society to resettle the owners, who will be assigned priority to choose homes through a computer ballot in September.

The government has also provided flexible ownership transfer options, allowing original owners to transfer the new property entirely to up to two adult family members currently registered in the household, according to the document.