ISSUE 02: RETHINKING THE INEQUALITY OF THE SMALL HOUSE POLICY

The Small House Policy was established in 1972, permitting male indigenous villagers to build three storey buildings for self-use, in order to improve the housing conditions in New Territories during the colonial period. However, the policy has caused urban sprawl due to population growth and speculation, and has highlighted spatial inequalities between urban and rural populations. The low density land development of Small House areas limits possibilities for constructing much needed housing for the general public.

The original intention of the Small House Policy was to provide basic shelter for all New Teritories citizens in light of the urgent need to mitigate the sanitation problem in slums and quarter areas. As there were large numbers of Chinese migrants entering Hong Kong, temporal structures and quarters were produced at a vast scale. The nature of the policy is based on principles of humanitarian assistance, and to reduce environmental problems (research by Leung Kit Ying)

The Small House Policy has been the subject of speculation regarding illegal transfer of small houses in New Territories for profit. Researchers have in 2017 identified 9878 possible cases of illegal transfer of small houses in Hong Kong, which accounts for 23% of the successful applications since 1972. Data indicates that in the past 15 years, an average of 46.4% of Small Houses annually are being alienated by premium payable, indicating they are not constructed for self-use (research by Leung Kit Ying).

An individual block of an exempted house under Small House Policy occupies 2100 sqm, which equals to 195 m2. The total area in small house is categorized as Class E, which shares the highest floor areas among private domestic uses. A commom three bedroom private domestic unit in Hong Kong occupies around 70 sqm, which is regarded as spacious in Hong Kong’s compact urban areas (research by Leung Kit Ying)

As the projected number of new applications under the Small House rights will consume large parts of the undeveloped areas surrounding existing villages, more and more government land is being privatised. Speculative construction and other illegal structures such as railings and fences are reducing the amount and quality of village public spaces (research by Zhang Zhixing and Zuo Xuan)