All articles related to government

In Hong Kong, living in public houses is a symbol of lower-income residents. But the case differs in Singapore, Taiwan and Korea. Public housing in these countries are tourists’ favorites and the living environments are good. Do you know what are the differences between government housing in these places? Hong Kong There are two types of public housing in Hong […]

When someone talks about ‘Rating and Valuation Department’ (RVD), what is the first thing that pops up to your mind? Rates, government rent or valuation of properties? In addition to calculating and collecting the rates and government rent of your property, RVD actually delivers a lot more services to the public. Here are 5 useful services that you might have never […]

On 28th February, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po announced the 2018-2019 budget. Mr. Chan stated that he was cautiously optimistic about Hong Kong’s economic prospects. Although he admitted that property prices had soared beyond the affordability of ordinary citizens over the past years, he believed that the key factors underpinning soaring property prices over the past few years were gradually undergoing […]

URA received 9 tenders for Peel Street commercial site The Urban Renewal Authority (URA) received 9 tenders for a 29,000-square-foot commercial development site on Peel Street and Graham Street in Central. The project to be built on the site will provide a gross floor area of not more than 434,000 sq ft for office, hotel and retail purposes, as well […]

HKMA Followed US Fed’s Rate Hike The Hong Kong Monetary Authority yesterday raised the base rate by 25 basis points to 1.5%, following the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate hike. Chief executive Norman Chan Tak-lam said the HKMA tends to follow the monetary policy set by the Fed since the Hong Kong dollar is pegged to the US greenback. He […]

US Fed Raised Interest Rates by 0.25% The Federal Reserve raised interest rates on Wednesday for the second time in three months, by a quarter percentage point to a target range of 1% to 1.25% as it proceeds with its first tightening cycle in more than a decade. The Fed’s policy-setting committee indicated the economy had been expanding moderately, the […]

Chevalier Won URA’s Tai Kok Tsui Project The Urban Renewal Authority announced yesterday that Chevalier Pacific Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Chevalier International Holdings Limited, has won the contract for the development of Fuk Chak Street-Li Tak Street demand-led redevelopment project in Tai Kok Tsui. The project site, which covers an area of 8,267 square feet, commenced in June […]

Chan Refused to Scale Back Property Cooling Measures Property cooling measures will not be scaled back, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po says, adding the move may be misinterpreted as a government effort to boost the overheated home market. Speaking at the Legislative Council, Chan also warned that there are risks for people who borrow titles of friends and relatives to […]

Stamp Duty Policy Tightened for Multiple Flats Loophole The government has further tightened its housing policy by announcing yesterday that if a buyer acquires more than one flat using just one document, the properties will be subject to a 15% stamp duty. The move, which came into effect from midnight, is aimed at plugging a loophole in which locals can […]

March Home Sales Rose 43.6% Sales of residential units in the secondary and primary markets in March rose 43.6%, to 5,856, according to the Land Registry, whose data showed total transaction value for residential units alone was HK$50.4 billion last month, 38.2% higher than February. The number of transactions in the secondary market jumped 71% to 4,085 deals in March […]