Home dreams will have to wait for many amid challenges

Competition for a subsidized flat sold under the Home Ownership Scheme this year will be less fierce, with only around 27 applicants fighting for one of the over 8,900 flats.

As the application closed last night the Housing Authority had received 242,000 applications for the scheme - meaning the batch was only 27 times oversubscribed.

This compared with the 230,000 applications for 7,047 flats last year - or 32 times oversubscribed.

Among the 8,926 units - the biggest sale exercise since the scheme restarted in 2011 - is the golden option Kei Wah Court in North Point, which offers seaview flats at a rare prime site next to the North Point Ferry Pier, close to the MTR station.

Other options include Kai Yan Court in Kai Tak, Kwun Shan Court in Ma Tau Kok, On Sau Court in Kwun Tong, Chiu Ming Court in Tseung Kwan O, Yu Tak Court in Sha Tin and Yu Nga Court in Tung Chung.

The apartments will be sold at 51 percent of the assessed market value, which is expected to be between HK$1.24 million to HK$5.31 million.

Housing Authority member Anthony Chiu Kwok-wai said under the influence of the pandemic "people are taking a more cautious attitude on purchasing a home, which might have affected their intention to submit an application for a subsidized flat under the scheme."

Apart from the two estates in North Point and Kai Tak that are closer to urban areas, Chiu said applicants can also keep an eye on Yu Nga Court in Tung Chung, which provides three-bedroom flats.

He reminded applicants there could be layout changes. For example, expected some flats at Kai Yan Court in Kai Tak to be merged, which would increase sizes.

Earlier yesterday only a handful of people headed to the Housing Authority's office in Lok Fu to submit application forms.

A Ms Cheung said she was thrilled and happy to meet the deadline as her family made up their minds close to the end of the application period. "The majority of flats up for grabs in this year's scheme are situated in urban areas and close to the public transport network, making it very attractive to me,"she said.

An applicant who submitted his application form earlier in the day said his plan of owning a home was not affected by the pandemic and family members would be subsidizing his down payment. He preferred Kai Yan Court in Kai Tak.

Another applicant said although prices of private homes on the property market seem to have dropped recently he still opted to purchase a flat under the scheme.

"Purchasing a flat under the scheme will save me from a stress test," he said. "I prefer Yu Nga Court in Tung Chung."

A woman living in Sha Tin also went to the authority's Lok Fu office to submit an application for her son, who had applied twice before but without success.

She hopes this time her son - who wants a flat in Yu Tak Court, Sha Tin - can get lucky.

It is expected the ballot-drawing exercise will be conducted in the second quarter of the year, with successful applicants able to choose a flat in the final quarter.

michael.shum@singtaonewscorp.com