• 11/25/2024

Residents of Hong Kong’s subdivided flats seek gov’t support amid rising summer heat and high utility bills

Hong Kong Free Press

resident heat

Residents of Hong Kong’s notorious subdivided flats have filed complaints at the legislature about their physical and financial suffering in sweltering summer temperatures, calling for further government support.

Along with social workers of the Society for Community Organisation (SoCO), 13 residents of subdivided units visited the Legislative Council on Thursday morning and met five legislators to share their problems.

A bedbug victims in his small cubicle in a subdivided unit in Mong Kok.
A bedbug victims in his small cubicle in a subdivided unit in Mong Kok in late November 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/ HKFP.

According to a government report, as of 2020 there were around 110,008 subdivided units in Hong Kong, including subdivided flats, cubicles, bedspaces, space capsules, loft spaces and rooftop dwellings. They house more than 220,000 people, according to estimates.

Residents have been suffering through Hong Kong’s hot and humid summer as many subdivided units have limited living space and no windows, SoCO said in a statement. Those living in rooftop slums, wooden cabins and shanty villages suffered the most.

13 residents of subdivided units and social workers of SoCO meet legislators on September 5, 2024. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
13 residents of subdivided units and social workers of SoCO meet legislators on September 5, 2024. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

According to SoCO’s survey of 308 residents in early July, the indoor temperature of rooftop cabins and shanty villages reached a peak of 41 degrees, seven degrees higher than the temperature recorded by the Observatory that day.

The following month brought no relief. The Hong Kong Observatory said the city had experienced “an exceptionally hot August,” with  18 hot nights – the highest on record for the month. 

Eddie is a construction worker who has been primarily involved in renovating swimming pools lately. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.
People walk in the street under the burning sun in July 2024. File photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

Ninety per cent of the residents surveyed reported physical discomfort including insomnia, emotional instability, skin problems and dizziness.

47 per cent of monthly income

For those turning to air conditioning, high utility bills became another burden. According to SoCO’s survey, the average monthly electricity bill was HK$500 and the water bill was HK$120.

The average rent for such premises was HK$4,500. This meant that rent and utilities took up almost 47 per cent of the average monthly income of HK$11,000.

Compared to last year, residents’ median income had dropped by nearly 11 per cent while spending on utilities had increased by 29 per cent.

Sham Shui Po Shabby homes subdivided cage homes
Old residential buildings in Sham Shui Po. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

SoCO urged the government to provide low-income families with an allowance to help pay for utilities and to speed up development of transitional housing units and “light public housing.”

To eradicate ‘low-quality’ subdivided homes 

Hong Kong’s government has been mulling new measures to eradicate low-quality sub-divided flats since leader John Lee set the goal in his 2023 policy address.

In late August, the Task Force on Tackling the Issue of Sub-divided Units submitted a report on new measures to Lee, including how to define “low-quality sub-divided flats. ”

subdivided flats
A subdivided unit in Hong Kong. File photo: Ko Chun-ming,

Lee is expected to introduce minimum requirements for subdivided dwellings in his 2024 Policy Address.

The pro-Beijing DAB party has proposed they should measure no less than seven square metres, with a ceiling no lower than 1.8 metres and with the kitchen and toilet separated.

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https://hongkongfp.com/2024/09/06/residents-of-hong-kongs-subdivided-flats-seek-govt-support-amid-rising-summer-heat-and-high-utility-bills/