(Policy Address 2024) Govt to support young people to purchase subsidized sale flats by allocating extra ballot

The Hong Kong leader said on Wednesday the government will support the young people in purchasing the subsidized sales flats as well as expedite youth hostel projects.

Lee said that the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) will allocate an extra ballot number to young family applicants and one-person applicants aged below 40 with White Form status for the purchase of Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) flats from the next HOS sale exercise onwards.

Starting from the next White Form Secondary Market Scheme (WSM) exercise, the WSM quota will increase by 1,500, all of which will be allocated to young family applicants and one-person applicants aged below 40.

In response to the young people's aspirations to have their own living space, the government launched the Youth Hostel Scheme and expanded it two years ago by subsidizing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to rent suitable hotels and guesthouses for use as youth hostels.

He stated that they have also set up a task force to offer targeted support and technical advice, including providing relevant NGOs with assistance in negotiating with hotel owners to expedite agreements. The number of hostel places has now increased to about 3000.