政壇：睇社論學英文：白表入場降門檻 最怕刺激樓價升
港府明年推出五千個名額，供白表申請人免補地價購買二手居屋，房委會擬大幅降低入場門檻，建議放寬申請人的家庭月入至四萬元，資產上限八十三萬元，較兩年前推出貨尾居屋單位的申請資格調高近五成，估計有逾十萬個家庭符合要求。
近兩年樓價不斷飆升，以新界一個面積四百平方呎、樓齡十年的私樓單位來說，樓價動輒三百多萬元，一般中等收入家庭就算月入四萬元，要「上車」也不容易。港府今次向中等收入家庭大開方便之門，協助更多家庭得圓置業夢的意圖彰彰明甚，問題是入場門檻愈寬鬆，申請者愈多，而名額只有五千個，難免讓大量申請人失望而回。
令人擔心的是，當局此舉變相提高了更多中等收入家庭的置業期望，到時社會要求港府增加名額、增建居屋數量的聲音將會更加響亮，在二○一六年新居屋計劃單位落成之前，港府除了增加抽籤名額，並無其他措施滿足訴求。居屋需求增加，但供應量不變，將會刺激樓價上升，產生連鎖效應，最終推動私人樓價上揚，打亂港府穩定樓市的部署。
It is feared that the lowering of threshold for white form applicants will boost property price
In the coming year, the Hong Kong Government will allot a quota of 5,000 places to white form holders so that they can apply to purchase flats in the Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) secondary market without paying the premium. The Housing Authority intends to significantly lower the application threshold and proposes relaxations of the applicant's monthly household income to $40,000 and the asset ceiling to $830,000. When compared with the eligibility criteria set for applying for the remaining HOS flats two years ago, both levels are now adjusted upwards by almost 50%. It is estimated that over 100,000 families will be eligible this time.
Property price has been skyrocketing in the past two years. The price of a 400-square-foot flat in a 10-year-old private building in the New Territories, for example, is very likely to exceed $3 million. Even if a middle-income family has a monthly earning of $40,000, it is still not easy for it to jump onto the housing wagon. Now that the Government is relaxing the policy for middle-income families, its intention of helping more families to fulfill the dreams of buying their own homes is very clear. The problem is, the lower the threshold, the more applicants. But when there are only 5,000 places, it is hard to avoid disappointing many of them.
What is worrying is that the Government has inadvertently raised the middle-income families’ expectation. They will be clamouring for more HOS places and the production of more HOS flats. Before the flats under the new HOS are completed in 2016, the Government has no other measures to satisfy these people's needs except upping the sale-by-ballot quota. While the demand for HOS increases, the supply remains the same. As a result, property price will be stimulated to soar and chain reactions will follow. Eventually the price hike of private properties will disrupt the Government's plan to stabilise the real estate market.
In the coming year, the Hong Kong Government will allot a quota of 5,000 places to white form holders so that they can apply to purchase flats in the Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) secondary market without paying the premium. The Housing Authority intends to significantly lower the application threshold and proposes relaxations of the applicant's monthly household income to $40,000 and the asset ceiling to $830,000. When compared with the eligibility criteria set for applying for the remaining HOS flats two years ago, both levels are now adjusted upwards by almost 50%. It is estimated that over 100,000 families will be eligible this time.
Property price has been skyrocketing in the past two years. The price of a 400-square-foot flat in a 10-year-old private building in the New Territories, for example, is very likely to exceed $3 million. Even if a middle-income family has a monthly earning of $40,000, it is still not easy for it to jump onto the housing wagon. Now that the Government is relaxing the policy for middle-income families, its intention of helping more families to fulfill the dreams of buying their own homes is very clear. The problem is, the lower the threshold, the more applicants. But when there are only 5,000 places, it is hard to avoid disappointing many of them.
What is worrying is that the Government has inadvertently raised the middle-income families’ expectation. They will be clamouring for more HOS places and the production of more HOS flats. Before the flats under the new HOS are completed in 2016, the Government has no other measures to satisfy these people's needs except upping the sale-by-ballot quota. While the demand for HOS increases, the supply remains the same. As a result, property price will be stimulated to soar and chain reactions will follow. Eventually the price hike of private properties will disrupt the Government's plan to stabilise the real estate market.
重要生字
pay the premium 補地價
jump onto the housing wagon「上車」
sale-by-ballot quota 抽籤名額