The Secretary for Housing, Freddie Ho Wing-yin, revealed at the Legislative Council on the 5th that since the government implemented the so-called “subdivided units” tenancy control in January 2022, the Rating and Valuation Department (RVD) has successfully prosecuted 269 cases of subdivided units violating tenancy control, involving 231 property owners, with a total fine of nearly 500,000 Hong Kong dollars in the past two years.
There have been occasional reports in the past indicating that subdivided unit tenants were significantly subjected to rent hikes, with rental prices even surpassing those of luxury homes. Meanwhile, property owners also unfairly charged electricity and water fees, demanding tenants to pay conversion fees higher than the actual readings displayed on the electricity and water meters.
Speaking in response to LegCo member Hung Man’s query about the tenancy control of “subdivided units,” Freddie Ho Wing-yin disclosed that as of the end of April 2024, the RVD has identified 3,226 cases of suspected violations of the tenancy control ordinance by subdivided unit property owners. The latest prosecution figures as of the end of May 2024 indicate that the RVD has successfully prosecuted 269 cases involving 231 property owners, with a total fine of 492,010 Hong Kong dollars.
In order to further combat non-compliant behaviors, Ho Wing-yin mentioned that in addition to the ongoing enforcement and prosecution work handling approximately 1,400 suspected violation cases annually, the RVD will step up efforts by setting additional performance indicators with the goal of proactively inspecting no less than 1,000 subdivided unit property owners in the 2024/25 fiscal year to see if they have committed tenancy control offenses.
The RVD has begun sending letters to targeted subdivided unit property owners, requesting them to provide their lease information for inspection. Additionally, in the 2023 Policy Address, it was announced that a cross-departmental “Task Force on Resolving Subdivided Unit Issues” led by the Deputy Financial Secretary was established to conduct in-depth research to comprehensively address the “subdivided units” issue and will submit specific recommendations to the Chief Executive in August this year.
Ho Wing-yin stated that since the establishment of the Task Force in October last year, relevant policy bureaus and departments have held multiple internal discussions on setting the minimum standards for subdivided unit living environments, cracking down on non-compliant subdivided units, and other related issues. The government has also commissioned a consultancy firm to gather data by visiting various types of subdivided unit households across Hong Kong to assist the Task Force in understanding the latest situation regarding existing subdivided units and occupants.
However, Ho Wing-yin emphasized that cracking down on substandard “subdivided units” cannot be done overnight due to the complexity of the issues involved. When formulating relevant policies, the Task Force will, on the one hand, stipulate that all operated or rented subdivided units should provide a reasonable and safe living environment, while on the other hand, it should not let subdivided unit tenants become homeless due to the crackdown, and at the same time, carefully balance the impact of related policies on the subdivided unit rental market (including rents) and tenants.