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Written by: Zhang Jiamin
2020-08-14 16:16
Last update date: 2020-08-14 16:16The third wave of the new crown pneumonia epidemic has affected the income of many people. The Monitoring Public Housing Estate Welfare Planning Alliance conducted an earlier survey on the status of public housing tenants applying for rent assistance, and found that nearly 80% of the interviewees met the income requirements for assistance, but at the same time, more than 60% of the interviewed tenants did not know that there was a rent assistance plan. , And some people refused to apply because they had not lived for two years.
The Alliance recommends that the Housing Department should step up publicity and relax the eligibility criteria in response to the epidemic, including exempting public housing tenants from applying for rental assistance in the short term, so that tenants can apply for assistance without having to live for two years.
The Supervision Public Housing Estate Welfare Planning Alliance conducted a survey from late July to August, and received 1122 valid responses in the form of a questionnaire sample. The respondents were from 38 public housing estates. (Profile picture)
The Supervision Public Housing Estate Welfare Planning Alliance conducted a survey from late July to August, and received 1122 valid responses in the form of a questionnaire sample. The respondents were from 38 public housing estates.
The application is rejected if the household has not lived for two years
The survey found that compared with last December, more than 85% of the respondents indicated that their income was reduced, and the income of the most people fell by 21% to 40%. On the whole, more than 78% of the respondents had lower income than public housing. 70% of the limit is eligible to apply for public housing rental assistance. However, more than 65% of the interviewed tenants are not aware of the rent assistance program; among the interviewees who know of the relevant plan, only about one adult has applied for rent assistance in the past six months. The investigation also found that among the 16 people who were not accepted, 6 people were rejected because of changes in the number of households. Some people were rejected because they had not lived for two years.
Mr. Wu, who has newly moved into Shek Kip Mei Village, said that due to the impact of the epidemic, unpaid leave was required and his income was affected. Although he knew that there was rent assistance, he was rejected because he had not lived for two years. He believed that the practice was unfair. The affordability of each applicant should be considered and should not be limited by the length of stay.
The survey found that 65% of public housing tenants are not aware of the rental assistance program. (Profile picture)
The Alliance recommends that the Housing Department should strengthen the promotion of the rent assistance program, such as posting relevant posters in the lobby or lifts of each building, and strengthening staff training to make the application process smoother. In addition, the alliance believes that the time limit for applying for rental assistance should be relaxed. During the epidemic, tenants who have not lived for two years are allowed to apply for rental assistance in the short term, and residents who are required to relocate due to the Housing Authority's relocation policy are exempted from applying for assistance in the long term.
In addition, some residents were refused to apply for rental assistance due to "changes in the number of households," because their number of households has changed, or the size of their living units exceeded the maximum allocation standard for household size, resulting in too large units to apply for. They suggested that the Housing Department should waive the restriction on the area of flats applied for rental assistance in the short term.
▼In the third wave, the government has extended the restrictions on gatherings and banned food in the evening market.▼
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