Some Tai Po fire survivors doubtful over government’s ‘unfair’ rehousing plan

Some affected residents have continued to express reservations over a Hong Kong Government plan to resettle survivors of the Tai Po fire, saying they prefer in situ development as they fear an “unfair” flat selection process will leave their families with smaller homes.The residents urged the government to provide more clarity on how the new homes will be allocated, a day after they were offered an acquisition price of HK$8,000 or HK$10,500 per square foot, along with thousands of subsidised homes for sale or exchange, under its HK$6.8 billion (US$870 million) proposal.One resident surnamed Fong, 40, was concerned about the “blind commitment” that homeowners were being asked to make.Under the current timeline, homeowners must indicate their choice by August 31, with those signing provisional agreements by June 30 given priority for September’s flat selection.“How can we sign a provisional agreement before knowing what flats are on our plate? If we cannot get the flat we want, will the government offer alternatives from other housing estates until we are satisfied? The arrangement is unfair to us,” he said.He also feared that residents who opted for a cash buyout instead of the “flat-for-flat exchange” would be priced out of the secondary market as “demand could drive prices to a level where we must pay out of our own pocket”.