Hong Kong Housing Authority
| 香港房屋委員會 | |
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| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | 1973 |
| Headquarters | 33 Fat Kwong Street, Ho Man Tin |
| Agency executive |
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| Website | www.housingauthority.gov.hk |
The Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA; Chinese: 香港房屋委員會) is the main provider of public housing in Hong Kong. It was established in 1973 under the Housing Ordinance and is an agency of the Government of Hong Kong. In the same year, the Resettlement Department and the Building Section of the Urban Services Department were merged to form the Housing Department, which acts as the Housing Authority's executive body.
The modern Housing Authority was founded in 1973.
In 2005, most Housing Authority-owned shopping centres and car parks were controversially divested to The Link REIT.
A citywide scandal erupted in 2015 after heavy metals were found in the water supply of some housing estates, schools, and private residential buildings. The contamination was first identified at Kai Ching Estate, opened in 2013. A task force found that the contamination was caused by solder joints with a high lead content.
Outside of public housing provision, the authority is also responsible for the management of public rental housing estates, interim housing estates, transit centres, demolished factories and ancillary commercial and non-domestic facilities such as shopping centres, market stalls and car parks. It also acts as the agent for the government when it comes to clearing land, and according to its own policy "preventing squatting and implementing improvements in squatter areas."
Though most commercial assets of the Housing Authority were divested to the Link REIT in 2005, the Housing Authority still manages some shopping centres as well as 21 markets. There have been calls for the government to buy back the properties sold to the Link as rent increases have placed a financial burden on public housing residents.
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