Is Hong Kong’s drive to eliminate substandard housing doing more harm than good?
Advocacy group warns that some subdivided flat tenants are struggling to resettle and are becoming worse off under the new housing regime
Housewife May and her three children were overjoyed last September when they moved into a 200 sq ft subdivided flat in Kwai Tsing, a Hong Kong district with one of the city’s lowest average monthly household incomes.
For years, the 50-year-old single parent had lived in a squatter hut with her son and two daughters, where they had to climb hundreds of stairs daily. They later moved into a 100 sq ft subdivided flat before securing their current place.
Located on the 15th floor of a lift-equipped building, their home has windows, two partitioned bedrooms, a dining room, a toilet and a kitchen. The subdivided flat also has room for a small sofa and a dining table, giving the school-aged children a proper space to do their homework instead of on their beds.
Relying on a monthly government subsidy of around HK$17,000 (US$2,170), the family could only afford to pay HK$8,300 for rent.
