The Reasons of the Difficulties Faced by Post 80'S in Hong Kong When

Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Liberal Studies Independent Enquiry Study Report

Standard Covering Page (for written reports and short written texts of non-written reports)

Enquiry Question: The reasons of the difficulties faced by post 80’s in Hong Kong

when purchasing flat and should the government set up policy

for helping them to purchase flat?

Year of Examination:

Name of Student:

Class/ Group:

Class Number:

Number of words in the report: 3569 Notes: 1. Written reports should not exceed 4500 words. The reading time for non-written reports should not exceed 22 minutes and the short written texts accompanying non-written reports should not exceed 1100 words. The word count for written reports and the short written texts does not include the covering page, the table of contents, titles, graphs, tables, captions and headings of photos, punctuation marks, footnotes, endnotes, references, bibliography and appendices. 2. Candidates are responsible for counting the number of words in their reports and the short written texts and indicating it accurately on this covering page. 3. If the Independent Enquiry Study Report of a student is selected for review by the School-Based Assessment System, the school should ensure that the student’s name, class/ group and class number have been deleted from the report before submitting it to the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority. Schools should also ensure that the identities of both the schools and students are not disclosed in the reports. For non-written reports, the identities of the students and schools, including the appearance of the students, should be deleted.

Sample

Table of Contents

A. Problem Definition P.3-4

B. Relevant Concepts and Knowledge/Facts/Data P.5-8

C. In-depth Explanation of the Issue P.9-11

D. Judgment and Justification P.12-18

Bibliography / Reference P.19-21

2 A. Problem Definition

Theme of Study The general impressive of housing problems in Hong Kong are such as soaring property prices, insufficient regulation of the property market and land supply shortages. Recently, the difficulties faced by post 80’s when purchasing flat have aroused discussion in the society and affected social harmony due to their dissatisfaction. The Policy Address in 2013 also claimed that as high housing prices and rents affecting young couples’ plans to marry and start a family. This undermines family harmony and can cause potential safety and health hazards.1 Why are they complaining towards the high property prices? What are their problems faced in Hong Kong nowadays? Why the government cannot help them to overcome this issue? These raise my interest in investigating on this title.

Objective of Study The objectives of the study are to find out  What are the causes of the difficulties faced by post 80’s in Hong Kong when purchasing flat?  Should the government set up policy for helping the post 80’s to purchase flat in Hong Kong?

Scope of Study The scope of study is focus on post-80s situation in buying flat in Hong Kong. The post-80s generation refers those who were born in or after 19802, this means they are roughly aged around 30.

Background Information After the hit by Asian financial crisis in 1998 and outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2003, the economy of Hong Kong recovered and grew rapidly since 2004. In addition to the speculation by both Hong Kong people and Mainlanders recent year, the property prices rocketed to a history high level broke the record in 1997, and the prices were expected to rise further according to data in April 20123.

Facing the sky-high property prices, although the post-80s with better educational

1 Policy Address 2013. http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201301/16/P201301160282.htm 2 HKUST. Hong Kong ‘s Post-80s Generation : Profiles and Predicaments. May 2010. Retrieved from http://www.cpu.gov.hk/doc/en/research_reports/HK's%20Post%2080s%20Generation%20-%20Profiles %20and%20Predicaments.pdf 3 Wenweipo,香港樓價創 1997 年後新高, 6/4/2012 . Retrieved from http://news.wenweipo.com/2012/04/06/IN1204060053.htm

3 opportunities and jobs and they plan to get marry, they are the one who suffered most as they have immediate need to own a flat and form their own families. Their voices are expressed through different channels like TV, radios and sit-in etc. which successfully aroused public attention towards their situation.

Although lots of measures are introduced by the Hong Kong government, aiming to help middle-class to purchase their own flats, these measures including HOS, HALS, SCHS and MHPP etc., by May 2012, there were still nearly 70% of young people feel pressure on their ability on purchasing flats4. This indicated that the measures adopted by the government may not be effective enough in helping post-80s to purchase flat.

4 HKET, 7 成青年憂財政多涉置業難, 14/5/2012. Retrieved from http://hk.news.yahoo.com/7%E6%88%90%E9%9D%92%E5%B9%B4%E6%86%82%E8%B2%A1% E6%94%BF-%E5%A4%9A%E6%B6%89%E7%BD%AE%E6%A5%AD%E9%9B%A3-224848702.h tml

4 B. Relevant Concepts and Knowledge/Facts/Data

Post 80s situation in Hong Kong The term generally refers to the generation were born between 1980 and 19895. They have the features that enjoyed more educational opportunities since the expansion of higher education in 1990s. But the higher education does not imply more employment opportunities. The unemployment rates have been increasing in the past decade for the post 80s. Besides, they seldom have chances obtaining the managerial or professional level of job than before. Instead, they mainly serve as associate professional and clerical jobs, sales and service jobs. Their earnings have been declining over time as compare with the general working population.6Therefore, due to higher unemployment rates, lower starting salaries and insecure jobs lead to many young people in disadvantaged position and more dissatisfaction in the society.

Housing supply in Hong Kong7 At the end of 2012, there were about 2,613,500 flats in Hong Kong, comprising about 766,300 public rental housing (PRH) flats, 1, 390,600 subsidised sale flats and 1,456,600 private sector flats. About 30 % of Hong Kong’s population live in public rental housing flats, and another 17 % live in subsidised sale flats. In other words, nearly half of the population requires the housing supply in HK provided by the government. And the government still takes an important role to plan and provide housing supply. The whole year in 2011-12, there were about 21,300 residential units completed, of which about 10,100 were private housing flats (excluding village houses) and around 11,200 public housing flats of the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA). For the waiting time of public rental housing, the average waiting time was about 2.7 years for general applicants. But the general public still think that the demand is highly excess than the supply in the property market.

Government’s policy objectives The government hopes to maintain the healthy and stable development of the private property market in Hong Kong.8 At the same time, the government also have the aims9 in:  assist grassroots families to secure public rental housing to meet their basic housing needs;

5 Data from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-80s 6 HKUST. Hong Kong ‘s Post-80s Generation : Profiles and Predicaments. May 2010. Retrieved from http://www.cpu.gov.hk/doc/en/research_reports/HK's%20Post%2080s%20Generation%20-%20Profiles %20and%20Predicaments.pdf 7 Policy Address 2012. http://www.yearbook.gov.hk/2012/en/pdf/E11.pdf 8 Hong Kong Yearbook 2012. http://www.yearbook.gov.hk/2012/en/pdf/E11.pdf 9 Transport and Housing Bureau homepage http://www.thb.gov.hk/eng/policy/housing/policy/private/index.htm

5  assist the public to choose accommodation according to their affordability and personal circumstances, and encourage those who can afford it to buy their own homes;  provide subsidized home ownership flats on top of public rental housing so as to build a progressive housing ladder; and  maintain the healthy and steady development of the private property market, with priority to be given to meet Hong Kong permanent residents’ needs amidst a tight supply situation.

Relevant schemes provided by the Government response to housing supply for the middle class thought out the decades: (see table 1) Table 1 Scheme Explanation Home Ownership Scheme  Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) is designed to assist (HOS) residents to buy their own home. 10  The scheme is response to the aspirations of low- and middle-income families to buy their own homes.  The scheme has been suspended in 2003 due to falling real estate values.11 But the Chief Executive announced in the 2011/12 Policy Address the resumption of the HOS.

The Tenants Purchase  Tenants Purchase Scheme is a scheme that allows Scheme (TPS) tenants to buy their flats in public housing estates under Hong Kong Housing Authority. 12

 TPS was introduced since 1997 which aimed to enable at least 250 000 families living in rental housing to buy their flats at affordable prices over the next ten years. 13

 The price is set to be much lower than the market values of private flats and Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) owing to the age of flats and restriction on

10 Housing Department homepage http://www.housingauthority.gov.hk/en/home-ownership/ 11 Wikipedia: Home Ownership Scheme. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Ownership_Scheme

12 Wikipedia: Tenants Purchase Scheme . http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenants_Purchase_Scheme 13 Data from http://www.housingauthority.gov.hk/arpt9900/eng/realize/realize_tps.html

6 selling.

The Home Assistance Loan  The Home Assistance Loan Scheme (HALS) was Scheme (HALS) introduced in January 2003, aiming to help eligible applicants to buy flat by offering them financial assistance.

 The approved families14 may opt to have an interest-free loan of $530,000 (to be repaid over 13 years) or $390,000 (to be repaid over 20 years), or a monthly mortgage subsidy of $3,800 (payable for 48 months). The loan and subsidy amount for single person is half of the above rates.

 However, after conducting an overall review on the scheme, the Housing Authority terminated the HALS in 2004.

Sandwich Class Housing  The Sandwich Class Housing Scheme (SCHS) 15aims Scheme (SCHS) at providing housing to those who are unable to afford flats in the private sector but exceeded the income limits for HOS.

 In view of the change of market needs after 200016, the government decided to suspend the sale of this scheme since 2001. And there are three of the Sandwich Class Housing developments were converted into private properties for sale at full market values.

My Home Purchase Plan  The 2011/12 Policy Address 17 announced various (MHPP) enhancement measures to the MHPP.  Under the enhancement measures, apart from the proposed “rent-and-buy” mode, a “buy-or-rent” option which allows the applicants to buy their

14 Data from http://www.housingauthority.gov.hk/en/home-ownership/loan-schemes/index.html 15 Legco Paper : http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr98-99/english/panels/hg/papers/hg05074b.htm 16 LCQ15: Subsidised housing for sandwich class. Retrieved from http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201212/12/P201212120307.htm 17 Legco Paper: http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr11-12/english/panels/hg/papers/hg0104cb1-699-3-e.pdf

7 MHPP flats direct at market price. (without going through a rental period)  This aim to help households which have the long-term ability to purchase a flat but do not have enough the down payment to rent a MHPP flat first, and save up money for the future home purchase plan.

 The first 5000 flats under the plan is expected to be ready for sell in 2014.

From the above analysis, we can see the features of the post-80s, the general situation of housing supply and related policies provided by the government, which are some of the factors for the difficulties for the post-80s to purchase flats. In the following, I will further explain different views towards the difficulties of the post-80s and discuss whether the government should provide assistance to them.

8 C. In-depth Explanation of the Issue In recent years, the post-80s complained not well tackled by the government in many aspects such as their occupational opportunities, their relatively drop of income as compared with previous generation and therefore it led to the difficulties in purchasing their own flats. At the same time, they asked for the government to carry out policy help them to buy their own flats.

The key stakeholders with various view involved in the issue such as the Hong Kong government, the politician (legislative councilors and party members), the scholars, the post-80s and the general public.

The viewpoints to support the government need to address the home-purchasing issue for post-80s: The DAB18 expected the government can support the youngsters in academic, jobs finding and flat purchasing as the youngsters nowadays facing strong difficulties and lack of upward mobility. As the price of property market is keep on rising, the youngsters may face frustration and low the sense of belonging to the society of Hong Kong.

The scholar, Professor Victor Wong of HKBU’s Department of Social Work,19 agreed that it was too difficult for the young people to buy flat. As according to the Census and Statistics Department, when the Hong Kong median pay rose 10% from 2001 to 2010, the median income for people aged 15 to 24 remained unchanged at HK$8000. Even they have tertiary education, close to 98% of this group live with their families. The government needed to review the existing housing supply policy to tackle with the post-80s’s plight.

The post-80s expect the government can help them to purchase the flat in Hong Kong. They think the government cannot follow the `small government’ and `big market’ policy as the high price of property market. 20 As a university graduate, their salary is over the requirement for PRH, but private housing is too expensive for them to buy. Many of them cannot manage to buy homes for their marriage needs. Therefore, the government should pay heed to this need.

18 Legco record. Retrieved from http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr13-14/chinese/counmtg/floor/cm0109-confirm-ec.pdf 19 HKBU: Horizon. Tipping point: Hong Kong’s alarming income inequality. Retrieved from http://cpro.hkbu.edu.hk/online_pub/nh_1213_2/nh1213_2_p12-17.pdf 20置業零資助八十後被逼蝸居 http://newhongkonger.blogspot.hk/2010/06/blog-post_14.html

9 The viewpoints do not support the government need to address the home-purchasing issue for post-80s: The property analysts21 point out the focus of this issue is not on the help from the government, rather, the attitude of the youngsters is more important. The pattern of property market likes a cycle with up and down. If the youngsters aim at purchasing flat, they can wait for a suitable time when the property market is going down. As they are young, they have lots of time for saving money and waiting for a suitable time.

The legislative councilor, Wong Kong Hing,22 agreed that it is a serious problem for the post-80s generation in purchasing flats. It is hard for youngsters to afford private housing because they cannot afford the first instalment from their low incomes. Government seems failed to address this issue effectively. But the post-80s should not rely on the government. They should upgrade themselves to enhance their ability rather rely on the help from the government.

The public who have the property23 do not support the government to subsidise the youngsters. Buying flat was not an easy task even in the past few decades; it is not the special problem for post-80s nowadays. As many banks allow 5% of the down payment for youngsters, it was not an impossible task if they really want to purchase flat. Even, they could buy home in remote areas which the prices of flat would be more reasonable.

Government’s view on housing problem24 It is inadequate land supply in Hong Kong. And it has a drop in land sales over the past few years, combined with a decrease in private housing supply, property prices therefore raise up further. In addition, strong demand from Mainland and overseas investors for high-priced residential properties, developers have shifted to provide high-end units in recent years. All these reasons have caused anxiety and pressure for potential buyers who find prices beyond their reach.

Therefore, the government organized the Long Term Housing Strategy Steering Committee25 to study the long term housing strategy and accepted the suggestion to increase housing supply. The result of the study recommended that the future housing supply be predominated by public housing with a 6:4 public-to-private housing ratio. Public housing includes public rental housing (PRH) and subsidized HOS housing and the

21 Data from Http://www.mortgagepro.hk/ch/news/June-25 22 CUHK: Varsity May 2010. http://www.com.cuhk.edu.hk/varsity/1003/housing.pdf 23置業零資助八十後被逼蝸居.http://newhongkonger.blogspot.hk/2010/06/blog-post_14.html, 24 Policy Address 2012. http://www.policyaddress.gov.hk/11-12/eng/p18.html 25 Policy Address 2014. http://www.policyaddress.gov.hk/2014/eng/p141.html

10 allocation of these housing flats will be based on the "putting Hong Kong people first" principle.

11 D. Judgment and Justification What are the causes of the difficulties faced by post 80’s in Hong Kong when purchasing flat?

Causes of difficulties After the above discussion, the factors causing the difficulties faced by post 80’s can be divided into two types – internal and external. The internal one is more likely related to the post-80s whereas the external one refers to the situations in Hong Kong.

Internal High education, low salaries and unemployment

Table 1: Percentage of Population with Tertiary Education in Hong Kong by Birth Cohort, 1981-2006

Source: 2010, `HK’s Post-80s Generation: profiles and predicaments’

Table 1 shows the percentage of people born between 1959 and 1988 who have received tertiary education as of 2006.26 It shows there was only 7.56% of young people from 1959-1963 (in age of 18-22) group had tertiary education in 1981, while increase to 39.75% of young people from 1984-1988 (in age of 18-22) group had tertiary education in 2006. Table 2: The Ratio of Median Earnings (subgroup vs. General Working Population in Hong Kong by Birth Cohort, 1981-2006

Source: 2010, `HK’s Post-80s Generation: profiles and predicaments’

26 HKUST. Hong Kong ‘s Post-80s Generation : Profiles and Predicaments. May 2010. Downloaded from http://www.cpu.gov.hk/doc/en/research_reports/HK's%20Post%2080s%20Generation%20-%20Profiles %20and%20Predicaments.pdf

12 Table 2 shows the ratio of the monthly median income for different birth cohorts to the general population from 1981 to 2006. The youngsters of age 18-22 earned 80% of the Hong Kong’s median salary in 1981 and dropped to only 56% in 2006.

The post-80s are now faring worse than their predecessors in their economic fortunes. Another data27 also illustrated 53.9% of those born in 1976-80 earned salary under HK$10,000 in their early career phase (e.g. aged 21-25) in 2010.

In addition, the percentage of unemployed youths increased from 3.87 of youth aged between 18 and 22 (those who born in 1959-1963) in 1981 to 11.84 in 2006 (for those born in 1983-1988). 28 It showed improved education of the young people did not necessarily lead to more employment opportunities.

Figure 1

Source: 八十後置業的幸與不幸, 2010-01-25 Hong Kong Economic Journal

Figure 1 shows the percentage of young people buying flat has dropped from around 40% in 2002 to around 26% in 2010. The data29 from the By-Census in 2009 also indicated that

27 China Daily, `Post-80s need HOS housing’ , Mar 1 2011. Retrieved from http://www.cdeclips.com/en/hongkong/Post-80s_need_HOS_housing/fullstory_61373.html

28 HKUST. Hong Kong ‘s Post-80s Generation : Profiles and Predicaments. May 2010. Retrieved from http://www.cpu.gov.hk/doc/en/research_reports/HK's%20Post%2080s%20Generation%20-%20Profiles %20and%20Predicaments.pdf 29Hong Kong Economic Journal. 八十後置業的幸與不幸, 2010-01-25.

13 there were about 980 thousand people ranged age 20 to 29; it shared 14% of total population. It implies lots of people affected and they are the young generation in Hong Kong.

From the above tables and figures, it clearly shows that the post-80s suffered from the features of higher unemployment rates, lower starting salaries and low earning that affect the dropping in the transaction in property market. As buying flat involves a huge amount of money as down payment and the long installment in the following ten or twenty years, if the young people lack of money and job security, they are not capable to buy flat.

High expectation The post-80s were born in the period when Hong Kong economy rapidly growth. They enjoy a better living condition since their childhood. Some of them may even be the only child at home, who enjoys the best materialistic lifestyle. Many fresh graduates changes jobs every year or every two years. Their motivation aims at better title and better money.30 This phenomenon also contributed to the high expectations towards flats of post 80’s as they want to have a similar living condition, regardless of their ability and current economy. The pursuit of higher quality of life leads to more difficulties while post 80’s purchases their flat.

Besides, post 80’s are considered as self-centre by their employers31. Post 80’s were born in an affluent society which is different from previous generations. Therefore, they may give an image to their employers that they are spoiled, not hard-working enough, lack of patience and modest mind to learn from others. Due to their negative images, managers or employers refuse to promote post-80’s, as a result, they have less chance to be promoted in managerial and professional level with more satisfactory wages.

Dependent Personality Instead of seeking a way out, some post-80s tend to wait for others’ helping hand32. They refuse to admit that they also have responsibility in purchasing their own flats, but believe this is the false of the government, property developers or speculators. Some of them may spoil by their families and get used to rely on their parents, rather than paying effort by themselves.

30 SCMP, Why and wherefores of Generation Y, 22 June 2013. 31 Sing Tao, 27/2/2010 僱主調查：「80 後」講潮語致誤解. Retrieved from http://www2.news.sina.com.hk/cgi-bin/nw/show.cgi/2/1/1/1439968/1.html. 32林匡正, <<八十後運動>>, 次文化堂.

14 External Limited land supply Land supply in Hong Kong is limited. Around 23% of land has been developed33 and about 40% are covered by country parks. And less than 7% of Hong Kong’s total land is currently allocated for residential purposes. 34 For increasing land supply, the issues such as reclamation and developed in country parks faced strong opposition in the society.

Less transactions but high prices There is a huge gap between the ideal and the reality in the property market.35 From the period of 2010 to 2013, the number of property transactions dropped seriously from 15 000 to 50 000. And the property prices during these few years increased by 30%. More worse, another data showed the completion of 9000 private residential units per year on average in recent years. In that case, it is difficult for Hong Kong people find enough residential units to purchase.

Some people comment this problem as the result of the policy of high land prices.36 The Government put up dozens of lands for sale in every land sale exercise, but the transaction prices invariably hit a record high every time due to limited supply from the government.

Low priority in Government The public were generally accepted that the others have more pressing needs and should take priority for PRH, such as the elderly, the poor, and low-income single earners aged over 3537. In the government’s Consultation Document 38notes that` it would be difficult to accord top priority to the housing needs of youngsters for the time being..’ but “the younger generation is the future [and] the government must demonstrate its commitment to resolve the housing problem, and establish an effective housing ladder which promotes mobility.”

If youngsters with less income, they plan to apply PRH. But the frustration also appeared as there is a long waiting list and with low priority to them. A data39 shows that of 228,400 applicants on the waiting list at the end of March last 2013, 60,400 were aged below 30.

33 SCMP, Country park carve-up the worst of all land options, 17 September, 2013 34 Data from http://www.educationpost.com.hk/resources/youth/140117-housing-dilemmas-give-the-young-a-future

35 Lego paper: http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr13-14/english/counmtg/hansard/cm0116-translate-test-e.pdf 36 Legco paper: http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr13-14/english/counmtg/hansard/cm0116-translate-test-e.pdf 37 SCMP, More young people drawn to public rental housing, 2 Jan 2014 38 Long Term Housing Strategy: Building Consensus, Building Homes , Sept 2013, http://www.thb.gov.hk/eng/policy/housing/policy/lths/lthb_consultation_doc_201309.pdf 39 SCMP, More young people drawn to public rental housing, 2 Jan 2014

15 The number had grown from 16,500 in 2009 to 45,700 in 2012. Among the young applicants, just over half were students and more than two-thirds were educated to post-secondary level or above, while the rest had attained secondary level. It showed that the demand of young people with their own flat was really needed. However, the government stated the priority goes to the elderly and lower income family, and there is no estimation of the waiting time of non-elderly one-person applicants.40

Limitations of Current Policies In the light of difficulties mentioned, Hong Kong government has adopted various measures including Home Ownership Scheme (HOS), Home Assistance Loan Scheme (HALS) and My Home Purchase Plan (MHPP). However, the schemes have their limitations. Such as the HOS which targeted to family, the need of single post’s 80 is not taken into account. As the HOS has been stopped for a few years, the young couples were also suffered. The schemes such as HALS and SCHS were suspended nowadays; more middle class young couples were lack of other channels for help. For the MHPP, the quota was set to 5000 at first, which was not enough for such a large number of post-80s.

Therefore, from the above analysis, for the young people who have need in home purchasing due to personal needs for single living or form a family, they are still suffering from both internal factors with lots of personal constraint and external factors in the society that no suitable policy specifically tailored for them.

Should the government set up policy for helping the post 80’s to purchase flat in Hong Kong? I do not agree the government to set up policy for helping the post 80’s to purchase flat in Hong Kong. There are three reasons are: first, it is not a unique issue in Hong Kong; second, it is the duty of the post-80s, and third, the government uphold the fair principle that need to allocate the resources to most needed person.

Not a unique issue in Hong Kong The problems that the post-80s generation faces are not unique to Hong Kong, but common in other countries. For example in Canada41, some young generation cannot purchase affordable homes or securing reasonable rentals by moving into non-traditional alternatives

40 LCQ15: Waiting time for Public Rental Housing applications http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201105/25/P201105250111.htm

41 Date from http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/gen-y-struggles-in-expensive-housing-rental-market-1.2102109

16 like cars, boats and collective houses. As the average cost of a Canadian home has more than doubled since 2000.

It is common in both Taiwan and China too. There was a popular television drama called ‘Woju’,42 translated as snail home, sparked a nationwide discussion about skyrocketing house prices and their impact on social stability, especially regarding the younger generations. The Chief Economist of the National Bureau of Statistics of China says: `The collective effort of four families is required to support a young family’s decision to buy a house. Three generations of savings are thus exhausted in buying a single house.’43 Therefore, it is not a common practice that governments provide assistance to a specific age group for the purchase of homes.

The responsibility of the post-80s As an adult in the society, the post-80s have the rights to choose their own lifestyle and responsible to achieve it by their own effort. If they want to set up a family and acquire flat, they need a long term plan and serious consideration. They need to sacrifice some enjoyment and save money for a long time for down payment and long term installment. They also equip themselves with the knowledge of buying flat with a suitable financial arrangement with banks or applying different schemes from the government.

Uphold fairness from the government In Hong Kong, the problems of cage homes, cubicle apartments and sub-divided units (SDU) also aroused the concern from the public. According to the Government,44 poorly-housed households refer to those living in private temporary huts, rooftop structures, unsheltered accommodation and rooms/cubicles, bedspaces or cocklofts in private permanent housing. For the SDU, it was estimated that there were 66 900 subdivided units in Hong Kong involving 171 300 residents, accounting for 2.4% of the total population in Hong Kong in 2013.45 49.6% of households living in SDU had applied for public housing. It is obvious that the government should allocate the resource to them first as their situation deserve more consideration.

Suggestions for Government However, to a certain extent, I think the government can provide indirect help, such as

42 Data from eastasia forum website, China’s housing crisis, 18 January 2010, http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2010/01/18/chinas-housing-crisis-2/ 43 Data from eastasia forum website, China’s housing crisis, 18 January 2010, http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2010/01/18/chinas-housing-crisis-2/ 44 Legco paper: http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr12-13/english/sec/library/1213in22-e.pdf 45 Report on Survey on Subdivided Units in Hong Kong http://www.thb.gov.hk/eng/policy/housing/policy/lths/sdurpt2013.pdf

17 stabilizing the property market, for young people in buying flats in the long run to achieve social harmony and improve their quality of life.

Professor Victor Wong of HKBU’s Department of Social Work suggests that the government needs to review the existing housing supply policy.46 Increasing the supply of Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) flats is one of the ways to address the aspirations of young people. This is because 70%-80% of actual first-time home buyers are aged 39 or below.47

Besides, suitable property cooling measures to suppress speculation are needed. The government can slightly intervene in the private property market, in order to restrict speculation. The consideration of reintroducing rent control policy, enhancement of the existing Special Stamp Duty and the introduction f the Buyer’s Stamp Duty in October, 201248 could be regarded as indirect measures to stabilize the property market on the one hand, and address the issue of post 80s buying flats in the long run. It is because that these measures would prevent rapid rise in property market. It is hope that the government can be more sensitive to the market and adjust the suitable measures when needed.

Suggestions for Post 80’s Apart from the help from government, the post-80s have the responsibility in enhancing their ability in purchasing flats; they should prepare a budget49, planning for the expenditure and low risk investment50, in order to save for capital in a quicker manner, while reducing the effect of inflation occurred. For improving the negative image which leads to the lack of promote opportunities, post 80’s should avoid bad personality such as self-centre and changing job frequently. In contrary, post 80’s should learn from the older generation, enhancing their working ability, and prove to the employers that they are capable for a higher position and value a higher wages.

Conclusion In my study, I have pointed put the difficulties faced by post 80’s when purchasing owner-occupied flats and the causes behind. After summarizing, the difficulties can be classified as internal and external factors that affect the post-80s in buying flats. I agree that the post-80s have problems in buying flats but I do not agree the government need to be

46 Mentioned on P.9 47 Data from http://www.educationpost.com.hk/resources/youth/140117-housing-dilemmas-give-the-young-a-future 48 Hong Kong Yearbook 2012. 49陳振康, <<上流力>>,天窗出版社 50 <<80 後置業錦囊>> , 紅石研究部, 青森文化

18 responsible and need to tackle them merely. I hope the government need to allocate the resources to those more in needed rather than the post-80s. To improve the situation, suggestions to government on policies adoption and suggestions to post-80s are discussed.

19 Bibliography / Reference

Book 1. <<八十後運動>>, 林匡正, 次文化堂 2. <<上流力>>, 陳振康, 天窗出版社 3. <<80 後置業錦囊>> , 紅石研究部, 青森文化 4. Land and the Ruling Class in Hong Kong (Alice Poon, Enrich Culture Group Limited)

News articles 1. China Daily, `Post-80s need HOS housing’ , Mar 1 2011. Retrieved from http://www.cdeclips.com/en/hongkong/Post-80s_need_HOS_housing/fullstory_61 373.html 2. China Daily, My Home Purchase Plan vs traditional HOS housing. 19/10/2010.

3. HKET, 7 成青年憂財政多涉置業難, 14/5/2012. 4. Hong Kong Economic Journal, 八十後置業的幸與不幸, 2010-01-25. Retrieved from http://hk.news.yahoo.com/7%E6%88%90%E9%9D%92%E5%B9%B4%E6%86 %82%E8%B2%A1%E6%94%BF-%E5%A4%9A%E6%B6%89%E7%BD%AE %E6%A5%AD%E9%9B%A3-224848702.html http://www2.news.sina.com.hk/cgi-bin/nw/show.cgi/2/1/1/1439968/1.html. 5. SCMP, Country park carve-up the worst of all land options, 17 September, 2013.

6. SCMP, More young people drawn to public rental housing, 2 Jan 2014.

7. SCMP, Why and wherefores of Generation Y, 22 June 2013.

8. Singtao, 僱主調查：「80 後」講潮語致誤解, 27/2/2010.

9. Singtao,「八十後」置業難宜研究針對性「補底」, 10/1/2010.

10. Wenweipo, 香港樓價創 1997 年後新高, 6/4/2012 . Retrieved from http://news.wenweipo.com/2012/04/06/IN1204060053.htm

Videos 1. http://mytv.tvb.com/news/newsat630/118901/726#page-1 (27 May 2011)

2. http://programme.rthk.org.hk/rthk/tv/programme.php?name=tv/roomstolet2010&d =2011-02-01&p=4917&e=129804&m=episode (1 Feb 2011)

3. http://programme.rthk.org.hk/rthk/tv/programme.php?name=tv/newsreview&d=20 10-11-27&p=1987&e=123172&m=episode (27 Oct 2010)

4. http://programme.rthk.org.hk/rthk/tv/programme.php?name=tv/hkcc&d=2011-05- 23&p=858&e=141097&m=episode (23 May 2011)

Websites

1. CUHK: Varsity May 2010. http://www.com.cuhk.edu.hk/varsity/1003/housing.pdf

2. HKBU: Horizon. Tipping point: Hong Kong’s alarming income inequality. Retrieved from http://cpro.hkbu.edu.hk/online_pub/nh_1213_2/nh1213_2_p12-17.pdf

3. HKUST. Hong Kong ‘s Post-80s Generation : Profiles and Predicaments. May 2010. Downloaded from http://www.cpu.gov.hk/doc/en/research_reports/HK's%20Post%2080s%20Gen eration%20-%20Profiles%20and%20Predicaments.pdf

4. Hong Kong Yearbook 2012. http://www.yearbook.gov.hk/2012/en/pdf/E11.pdf

5. Housing Department homepage http://www.housingauthority.gov.hk/en/home-ownership/ 6. http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201105/25/P201105250111.htm 7. LCQ15: Subsidised housing for sandwich class. Retrieved from http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201212/12/P201212120307.htm

8. LCQ15: Waiting time for Public Rental Housing applications 9. Legco Paper : http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr98-99/english/panels/hg/papers/hg05074b.htm 10. Legco Paper: http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr11-12/english/panels/hg/papers/hg0104cb1-699-3-e .pdf

11. Legco paper: http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr12-13/english/sec/library/1213in22-e.pdf

12. Legco record: Retrieved from http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr13-14/chinese/counmtg/floor/cm0109-confirm-ec.p df

13. Lego paper: http://www.legco.gov.hk/yr13-14/english/counmtg/hansard/cm0116-translate-t est-e.pdf

14. Long Term Housing Strategy: Building Consensus, Building Homes , Sept 2013, http://www.thb.gov.hk/eng/policy/housing/policy/lths/lthb_consultation_doc_2 01309.pdf 15. Policy Address 2012. http://www.yearbook.gov.hk/2012/en/pdf/E11.pdf

16. Policy Address 2013. http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201301/16/P201301160282.htm

17. Policy Address 2014. http://www.policyaddress.gov.hk/2014/eng/p141.html 18. Report on Survey on Subdivided Units in Hong Kong http://www.thb.gov.hk/eng/policy/housing/policy/lths/sdurpt2013.pdf

19. Retrieved from http://www.housingauthority.gov.hk/arpt9900/eng/realize/realize_tps.html

20. Retrieved from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-80s

21. Retrieved from eastasia forum website, China’s housing crisis, 18 January 2010, http://www.eastasiaforum.org/2010/01/18/chinas-housing-crisis-2/

22. Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/gen-y-struggles-in-expensive-housing-rental- market-1.2102109 23. Retrieved from http://www.educationpost.com.hk/resources/youth/140117-housing-dilemmas- give-the-young-a-future

24. Retrieved from Http://www.mortgagepro.hk/ch/news/June-25

25. Transport and Housing Bureau homepage http://www.thb.gov.hk/eng/policy/housing/policy/private/index.htm

26. Website of Hong Kong Housing Authority http://www.housingauthority.gov.hk/arpt9900/eng/realize/ealize_hos.html

27. Website of Housing Department: http://www.housingauthority.gov.hk/en/home-ownership/surplus-hos-flats/inde x.html 28. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Ownership_Scheme

29. Wikipedia: Tenants Purchase Scheme . http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenants_Purchase_Scheme

30. 置業零資助八十後被逼蝸居 http://newhongkonger.blogspot.hk/2010/06/blog-post_14.html

Marks

Exemplar Problem Definition No. Explanation and Presentation and and Identification of Justification Organisation Concepts/ knowledge

2 8-9 8-9 8-9