Policy Address Preview Northern Metropolis Key to Breaking Housing Bottleneck and Realizing "Living Bigger" Vision

As the Policy Address is delivered tomorrow (Sept 16), the government’s goal of "bidding farewell to subdivided units" is half-done with new housing regulations underway and 30,000 Light Public Housing units finishing this year. Yet beyond basic shelter, the public longs to "live bigger." Homes in Hong Kong have steadily shrunk—a trend with massive social costs. Whether the Northern Metropolis can increase per capita space and build a liveable community is this year's key focus.

Shrinking Flats and Flawed Metrics

Housing data paints a stark reality of shrinking living spaces. Over 30 years, average public housing sizes dropped by a third to 26.7 sqm, while 80% of Home Ownership Scheme flats built in 2024 fell below 40 sqm. The private market shows the same "nano-fication" trend, with half of recent new units under 40 sqm and average sizes nearly halving over the past decade. Current planning metrics make matters worse by treating a 60 sqm family flat and a 20 sqm micro-flat identically, creating a misleading "quantity illusion."

Why People "Lie Flat"

Buying a home no longer guarantees a better life. Today’s higher housing rungs offer less space than past lower ones, so when climbing the ladder yields a property title but smaller space, choosing to "lie flat" in public housing becomes understandable. Cramped living also harms mental health and depresses birth rates—a crucial factor as annual births drop below 30,000. In contrast, Singapore’s public flats average 80 sqm, with per capita living space nearly double Hong Kong's median.

Northern Metropolis as the Turning Point

The Northern Metropolis could break this deadlock. Expected to yield over 500,000 homes, its planning blueprint assumes larger average unit sizes and aims to raise public housing per capita space to over 10 sqm. However, experts stress that success requires more than larger flats—it demands holistic community placemaking and a healthy job-housing balance across diverse industries.