Resale restrictions to be imposed

Allowing 5,000 applicants yearly is faulty.

According to a release, Secretary for Transport & Housing Prof Anthony Cheung says the Government will introduce resale restrictions for White Form buyers under the Secondary Market Scheme.

Prof Cheung told lawmakers today the restriction addresses community concern that the Government allowing 5,000 White Form applicants a year to purchase Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) flats with premium not yet paid, could lead to speculative activities, and affect the price of flats with premium not yet paid.

He said they cannot sell their flats on the HOS Secondary Market in the first two years after the transaction, adding: "From the third year onwards, they can sell their HOS flats with premium not yet paid to eligible persons as certified by the Housing Authority. After White Form buyers purchase their flats, if they want to sell their flats on the open market, they need to pay the premium first."

The restrictions are made with reference to the resale rules currently applicable to HOS flats. The arrangement has been widely known to the public, easy to understand and is acceptable, he said. The Government has also put in place other measures like the Special Stamp Duty to curb speculation.

Prof Cheung said the Government has started preparatory work for the first batch of new HOS projects.

"The administration has set a planning objective to provide 17,000 new HOS flats over the four years from 2016-17 onwards. We expect the pre-sale of the first batch of new HOS flats, which will be completed in 2016-17, can be launched in 2014-15."

He said the Housing Authority will release all of the remaining 832 surplus HOS flats for sale early next year. Pre-sale of the 1,000 flats in the Housing Society's Tsing Luk Street project, will start by year's-end.

"The Government will assess demand for HOS in future, and set the supply target under the Long Term Housing Strategy review."