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Subdivided flats (also called subdivided units) are a ubiquitous kind of rental housing present in Hong Kong. They are flats which shown on the original approved plan of a building being subdivided into two or more individual rooms. Generally, the original non-structural partition walls are removed while the new ones are erected, new toilets and kitchens are installed, and internal drains are added or altered. These works can cause adverse impacts on the safety and hygiene condition of the building if not handled properly. Most subdivided flats are located in old residential buildings. It is estimated that 280,000 people live in subdivided flats or other similarly undesirable conditions. With reference to the study by the Society for Community Organisation, people living in subdivided flats are mainly unemployed citizens, low income family, new immigrants, etc. The average size of a subdivided flat is found to be 30 square feet per person.
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Shortage of public housing
The insufficient supply of public housing is one of the important driving forces leading to the appearance of subdivided units. In accordance with the grassroots housing rental price research report 2011 released by the Society for Communication Organization, the government lacks future evaluation of the housing demand in Hong Kong, therefore there is a serious problem of shortage of housing. On the one hand, the government started to decrease the amount of public housing supply from three million units to a half million units per year, which resulted in a significant drop of fifty percent. On the other hand, the demands for housing have increased sharply since 2006. The report mentioned that cases waiting for public housing raised from 129,000 to 152,000 dramatically in 2010 (a 17.8% rise in those waiting for public housing within one year). For people struggling in poverty, due to the long waiting time for public estates, they turn to live in subdivided flats, where rental prices are much cheaper than that of private housing options available.
Wealth disparity
The second factor leading to the phenomenon comes from the widening wealth gap between the rich and poor. The Gini Coefficient of Hong Kong increased to 0.537, which manifests the serious economic inequality problem. In the subdivided units study report 2009 produced by the Society of Communication Organization, the median monthly personal income of the residents in subdivided units was $3200, which was below the median monthly personal income of the whole population in Hong Kong at that time.
In the mean time, the soaring rental price of private estates persuades people to live in subdivided units or flats. The data in "Private Domestic - Average Rents by Class" provided by the Rating and Valuation Department shows that the increase in rental prices was 15.1% from 2008 to 2011, which was a sharp rise. As a result, when the rich could enjoy the well-designed and expensive private flats, the poor people could only afford to pay for the rents of public housing and subdivided units. Because of the shortage of public estates, living in the subdivided flats is the only way out for many people with lower income.
Physical health
First, subdivided flats are like "human-flesh steamers". The temperature inside is far hotter than outdoors because of the poor ventilation. Data from Society for Community Organisation found that the temperature in one flat in Sham Shui Po had reached 38.5 degrees Celsius, six degrees above the roadside figure. People are unable to afford expensive electricity bills and they struggle to survive in unventilated and windowless rooms. Second, in each cubicle, new toilets or kitchens need to be installed. If the works of alteration or addition of internal drainage system are not properly carried out, it will lead to water seepage, undermining the hygiene.
Social relationships
Firstly, residents in subdivided flats tend to have smaller social circles, and living in such poor conditions may lower their self-esteem, thus residents tend to become less sociable and introverted. Secondly, because of the overcrowded living environment, family members who compete for space are more likely to develop impatience and anger over trivial matters, triggering family conflicts.
Safety
The building works of subdividing a flat such as change of non-structural partition walls and addition of openings on structural walls can overload buildings and adversely affect their structure, inducing the risk of collapse. Since buildings with subdivided flats are densely populated and with narrow corridors, fires easily break out and residents will have difficulty in escaping from them.
Case study
A No. 3 alarm fire occurred in a tenement building in June 2011 at 111 Ma Tau Wai Road in To Kwa Wan, causing the death of 4 people and an unborn child and the injury of 19. Some tenants could not find a way out and survivors complained of locked emergency exits. Another accident is the fire in Fa Yuen Street in December 2011. Both tragedies have revealed that the lack of safety and plight of those who dwell in subdivided units.
Government's solutions
The government has launched investigations since April 2011. The Buildings Department has made a large scale operation to inspect 150 target buildings every year for rectifying the building works' illegality associated with sub-divided flats. The Buildings Department has deployed over 480 professionals and staffs to investigate the sub-divided flats. The report showed the success of the investigations. For instance, 170 removal orders have been issued in January 2012.
Under the Community Care Fund Relocation Allowance, the government has launched an assistance programme for occupants to move away from the partitioned flats in industrial buildings because of the Buildings Department's enforcement action. One tenant can get $2,100 allowance; 4 tenants or above can receive $6,100 allowance. It indicated that the government has cared about the tenants.
Apart from launching the investigations and providing Community Care Fund Relocation Allowance to the tenants, to ensure the safety of the partitioned flats, the government allows both owners and tenants to consult building professionals to rectify the irregularities and report the situation to the Buildings Department so that the safety problem can be tackled.