Media

The Ronald Coase Centre for Property Rights Research at the University of Hong Kong and the Concerning Grassroots’ Housing Rights Alliance jointly conducted a study on building safety of sub-divided units (SDUs) from November 2017 to May 2018, covering 324 residential buildings aged 25 years or above in Yau Tsim Mong, Sham Shui Po and Kowloon City districts.

The aims of the study are to examine 1) the physical conditions of SDUs in the Kowloon West region; 2) the subdivision ratios in buildings with SDUs; 3) the discrepancies between actual and original numbers of units stated on the building plans; 4) the extent to which the occupant capacity exceeds the current legal limits; 5) the security and fire safety conditions of buildings with SDUs; and 6) the degrees of non-compliance with the Buildings Ordinance of the SDUs.

The results show that there are SDUs in 88.0% of the residential buildings under study. Among the buildings with SDUs, the average subdivision ratio is 34.2%, which means about 1 out of 3 units have been subdivided. The highest subdivision ratio goes to the Sham Shui Po District, which is about 40.3%. The study also finds that on average the actual number of units is 85.3% more than that stated on the original building plans. With reference to the Code of Practice for Fire Safety in Buildings 2011, the estimated population in the SDU buildings exceeds the occupant capacity by a margin of 39.3% on average.

Media enquiry:
Miss Leung Ka-man, Mandy, PhD candidate, Ronald Coase Centre for Property Rights Research
(Tel: 6353 3107; Email: leungkaman@connect.hku.hk)