Dear Allan,
 
You said you can’t wait to marry your fiancée. You asked if the Chief Executive’s latest proposal can dampen surging home prices. I took a good look at this initiative. On the whole, it marks a great beginning. Now, can it actually cool down the market? Let’s keep our fingers crossed.
 
In the first-hand market, the Chief Executive has revised the pre-sale consents for residential development. It means that developers could no longer manipulate prices by regulating the number of pre-sale units. At the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, we have raised this issue back in 2013. We have requested the establishment of a property vacancy tax to crack down on developers’ hoarding. My expectation is that with the implementation of these new measures, the supply of the first-hand flats will stabilize gradually. Hopefully, we don’t need to use “toothpaste” to satirize developers for manipulating pre-sale like squeezing toothpaste out of the tube anymore.
 
As for the price decoupling between Home Ownership Scheme and the market, I appreciate it as the proposal finally materialized after three generations of Chief Executives. Since 2011, the FTU never stopped urging for this constructive measure. I am very pleased that the Chief Executive has finally hammered it down. I call on the Government to take a bold step by selling Green Form Subsidised Home Ownership Scheme at cost. This will definitely help public housing tenants to settle down.
 
For transitional housing, this time Mrs. Carrie Lam is minded to launch short-term measures in terms of land and resources support. This is quite remarkable. However, the government should adopt the FTU’s proposal of the “three-pronged approach” as next step. This approach embraces firstly, the giving of the rental subsidies for low-income families, secondly, re-implementing tenancy control, and finally extending the vacancy tax to the secondary market. With this strategy, I am sure we can help grass-roots families solve the housing difficulties.
 
Finally, the CE’s decision to convert the Urban Renewal Authority project into subsidized housing deserves recognition. This means we will have more subsidized housing in urban areas. Indeed, I have been relentlessly lobbying for this back in 2015. Since the URA will continue to run different types of redevelopment moving forward, the Government should seriously consider revamping the URA model. The change will enable the URA to play a more significant role in the public housing. What’s more? Even my proposal to tap the 70 billion-housing reserved funds for URA’s subsidized housing was also adopted. What a pleasant surprise!
 
The CE reacted positively to my aspiration to make housing accessible to everyone in need. As a result, some of the land used for private buildings will be allocated for public housing. Thanks to this measure, some 10,000 public housing units are expected to come in the pipeline. I call on the Government to normalize this policy, so we can increase the ratio of public and private housing from 60:40 to 70:30.
 
All in all, although the Government’s new housing policy may not immediately clampdown property prices, the measures to show the Chief Executive’s and the Government’s determination to apply effective cure. This sends an important message to the community and the market. The direction is also just right. I hope the Government and different stakeholders will work together to accelerate progress.
 
Dear Allan, I dearly hope your wish will come true. Soon you will enjoy your own property and build a happy family.

Alice