Overview of Transitional Housing

The Government has been pressing ahead with Transitional Housing (TH) development. As at end February 2025, about 18 400 TH units¹ have been made available for application by those in need, and the remaining about 2 700 units will also be available in this year and next. Some units have been made available for intake of the second batch of residents, with the unit usage rate in some reaching 150%.

Depending on the actual circumstances of individual TH projects, the Housing Bureau has been providing the operating organisations with flexibility in adjusting the allocation ratio between Category A and B tenants. As at end February 2025, approval has already been given to 18 TH projects for adjusting their tenant ratio to 60:40, 50:50 or 20:80, in order to assist those who have waited for traditional Public Rental Housing for less than three years but with imminent housing needs, viz. “Category B tenants”, thereby utilising the TH resources more prudently and assisting more citizens to improve their living conditions.

Starting from 28 October 2024, the Housing Bureau allows individual TH projects to apply for adjusting the allocation ratio between Category A and B tenants to the following maximum ratio when necessary:
(i) for projects in the urban areas: adjusting the original allocation ratio between Category A and B tenants from 80:20 to 70:30, or further to 60:40 when necessary;
(ii) for projects in the extended urban areas: adjusting the original allocation ratio between Category A and B tenants from 80:20 to 70:30, or further to 50:50 when necessary; and
(iii) for projects in the New Territories: adjusting the previous maximum allocation ratio between Category A and B tenants from 50:50 to 20:80 at most.

Note 1: The 18 400 TH units include some completed TH projects which have ceased operation – (i) projects of “Community Housing Movement”; (ii) certain projects under the “Pilot Scheme: Use of Hotels and Guesthouses as Transitional Housing”; (iii) “Nam Cheong 220”; and (iv) “LST Housing” at Sung Wong Toi Road, To Kwa Wan”.

Task Force on Transitional Housing

As one of the six new housing initiatives announced by the Chief Executive on 29 June 2018, a task force on transitional housing (Task Force) has been established under the then Transport and Housing Bureau (THB)² to actively assist and facilitate various short-term initiatives proposed and implemented by the community with a view to increasing the supply of transitional housing.

The Task Force has assisted and facilitated a number of transitional housing projects proposed and operated by NGOs, including social housing in privately owned vacant residential buildings and vacant government premises, other initiatives by different NGOs including proposals of using “Modular Integrated Construction” method to construct transitional housing on vacant government lands and privately owned lands, or converting vacant non-residential buildings (such as privately owned vacant school premises or industrial buildings) to transitional housing.

Note 2: The Transport and Housing Bureau (THB) was split into two policy bureaux, namely the Transport and Logistics Bureau (TLB) and the Housing Bureau (HB) with effect from 1 July 2022.