Nearly all Wang Fuk Court owners accept buy-out, leaving 17 holdouts as offer ends
More than 99 per cent of homeowners at fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court have accepted a government buyout of their flats, leaving just 17 households facing potential compulsory acquisition after the scheme closed on Monday. By the cut‑off time at 5pm on Monday, 1,967 or 99.1 per cent of the estate’s 1,984 flat owners had returned acceptance letters. The remaining 17 may face compulsory acquisition at…
Nearly all the residents of Wang Fuk Court, a fire-ravaged property in Hong Kong, have agreed to a government buyout, leaving only 17 households to potentially face compulsory acquisition after the scheme closed on Monday. Of the 1,984 flat owners, 1,967 or 99.1% returned acceptance letters by the deadline at 5pm. Among those who accepted, 1,559 or 78.6% signed formal sale and purchase agreements with the government.
The government plans to pursue the remaining ownership acquisition procedures at full speed. The HK$6.8 billion buyout scheme was introduced in February following a devastating fire that killed 168 people and displaced 5,000 residents in November. The offer, which is 30% above pre-fire valuations, cannot be negotiated and provides compensation for owners to purchase private flat on the market or join a special sales exercise to buy new subsidized housing.
Despite some residents feeling the compensation is insufficient, the government has ruled out on-site redevelopment.
Written by urgent.news from South China Morning Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
