Luxury car in public housing car park raises eyebrows

A luxury car - said to be worth HK$3 million - parked in a public housing car park has raised eyebrows among netizens, with some calling for government departments to investigate a possible abuse of public housing resources.

Hong Kong has been cracking down on richer tenants living in highly sought-after subsidized public housing, as the city faces increased pressure to widen access to affordable homes in one of the world’s most expensive property markets.

Authorities are targeting households whose assets exceed government limits. The income ceiling for a four-person family is HK$30,950, and they should have net assets no greater than HK$590,000. Average rent for social housing is around HK$2,297.

The netizen who captured the image of the luxury car recently posted on the LIHKG forum, with the photo showing a luxurious Mercedes-Maybach parked in a public housing car park.

The post, titled “I thought they are kicking out wealthy public housing tenants”, quickly went viral online after it was published.

Online information indicates that Maybach cars come with a hefty price tag. In 2022, the Mercedes-Maybach S580 4Matic sedan started at HK$2.98 million, and the top-tier S680 4Matic version was priced at a starting rate of HK$4.098 million, setting a new record for S-Class prices.

Some netizens estimated the value of the vehicle to be around HK$3 million, with one commenting, "For someone who buys a HK$3 million car, it's unlikely they are an ordinary person with just a few million in assets."

This led to questions about whether the individual had exceeded the asset limit for public housing residents.

Some, however, speculated that the car could be a company vehicle, suggesting the driver could be driving his work car home.

Meanwhile, others suggested that the car might be a modified Mercedes-Benz V250d. According to online information, the Mercedes-Benz V250d Avantgarde Long has a second-hand selling price ranging from HK$230,000 to HK$330,000.

Nevertheless, a majority of netizens noted that regardless of the circumstances, the incident should be reported to the Housing Department and let officials carry out the investigation.