Calls grow to tap MPF for housing as young Hongkongers’ desire to buy homes wanes

Calls have been renewed to allow Hong Kong’s young families to use part of their mandatory pension savings to buy homes, with a recent survey finding that high flat prices and large down payments have dampened their desire to own property. The study released on Sunday also called for the government to offer housing loans to first-time buyers and to halve the down payment required for middle-income home hunters to buy subsidised sale flats. Two policy think tanks, New Youth Forum and the Federation of Public Housing Estates, interviewed 1,073 people over the phone between March 27 and April 17 to gauge their views on home ownership. Among them, 321 were aged between 18 and 40. The findings showed that younger people had a weaker desire for home ownership than older residents, with an average score of 5.06 for those aged from 18 to 40, on a scale of one to 10, with 10 being the highest. By comparison, those aged over 40 scored an average of 5.8. For those not eager to buy homes, 46.4 per cent cited “flat prices beyond reach” as the main reason, while another 21.3 per cent did not want to face the long-term financial burden of mortgage payments. Of the young people polled, 25.9 per cent did not think they could ever save enough money for a down payment, while another 26.5 per cent expected it to take them at least 10 years to save the money needed. “The large down payment is a main issue for many young families,” said federation executive director Anthony Chiu Kwok-wai. “If we can allow them to use part of their Mandatory Provident Fund [MPF] savings to buy flats, this will be of great help to them. “It is most helpful to those aged between 30 and 40 who have worked for some time or newlyweds who are the most eager to buy flats for their new family.” But the government has previously expressed caution about similar proposals to tap the MPF, saying that reducing accrued benefits may undermine the scheme’s effectiveness as retirement protection. Concerns were also raised that the proposal could fuel property demand and push up prices. But Chiu argued: “The property market has become more stable now. We believe it is a suitable time for the government to think of more ways to help people own their own homes.” He also called for easing the down payment needed to buy Home Ownership Scheme (HOS) flats to 5 per cent of the purchase prices from the current 10 per cent. Hong Kong leader John Lee Ka-chiu has vowed to boost home ownership by expanding the “housing ladder”. Under present government policies, young family applicants and single applicants under the age of 40 will be offered an extra quota spot to buy HOS flats. And a special quota of 2,000 has also been set aside for under-40 applicants for the “white form secondary market scheme”.