Photo: The Housing Society has expanded the coverage of its policy for wealthy households since April this year to combat the abuse of public housing.

[Ta Kung Pao News]Reporter Liu Shuoyuan reported: The government is committed to combating the abuse of public housing, and the Housing Society has also stepped up its crackdown measures, including expanding the coverage of the policy for wealthy households from April this year, requiring about 2,000 households to submit applications, and about 99% of the application forms have been collected, showing initial results. Housing Society Director Pan Yuanfang said yesterday that 12 public rental housing units were involved and could be recovered. In the first five months of this year, the Housing Society received more than 150 reports, twice the total number of last year.

Starting from April 1 this year, the Housing Society has expanded the coverage of the “well-off tenant policy” to all tenants who have signed new leases. Tenants are required to declare more frequently whether they own properties and continue to live in the units, and authorize the Housing Society to verify their information with government departments and public/private organizations. Poon Yuanfang said in a radio program yesterday that among the households that have returned the declaration forms, 10 households have expressed their willingness to voluntarily return the units because they exceed the family income or asset limits, and another 2 households declared that they own local residential properties and have now moved out of the units.

The Housing Society also added an electronic form to its website in the fourth quarter of last year to report suspected abuse of public housing. Poon Yuen-fang said that more than 150 reports were received in the first five months of this year, twice the 85 reports in the whole of last year, and the growth rate was quite fast. Nearly 60% of the cases were reported online, and there are specific reporting forms on the Internet that list various reporting information, such as claiming to know that a certain unit has been vacated. He stressed that the Housing Society will investigate the reported cases and if it is confirmed that the lease has been violated, it will “not be lenient” in exercising its power, but it will not consider setting up a reward mechanism to encourage reporting at present.

Mr. Poon Yuen-fang said that of the Housing Society’s current 30,000 tenants, about 10% are subject to the policy for wealthy households. Although new residents who move into “dedicated resettlement estates” do not need to undergo a financial status review before moving in, they will also be subject to the policy for wealthy households after moving in. The Housing Society hopes to extend the scope of the policy for wealthy households to all public rental housing units under its jurisdiction through various measures in the long run. With the completion of new housing estates, coupled with relocation and reconstruction arrangements, it is expected that about 4,000 public housing residents will be subject to the policy for wealthy households next year.