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Ontology, Policy and the Market: Trends to Home-ownership in Hong Kong

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  • Adrienne La Grange

    (Department of Public and Social Administration, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong, saalag@cityu.eduhk)

  • Frederik Pretorius

    (Department of Real Estate and Construction, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, fredpre@hkucc.hku.hk)

Abstract

An important trend in housing delivery internationally has been rising rates of home-ownership. In Hong Kong, owner-occupation has expanded rapidly over the past two decades, and this is expected to continue. This paper seeks to account for trends to home-ownership in Hong Kong. It is proposed that two principal factors account for rates of home-ownership internationally: the interaction and combined outcome of housing affordability and household preferences—the 'market explanation' for tenure choice; and the 'ontological explanation' of home-ownership as a preferred household tenure choice, which assumes that ownership is the innately preferred tenure form. On face value, Hong Kong presents a relatively persuasive case for the ontological explanation for trends to home-ownership. Yet the findings of this paper suggest that the decision to buy appears to be systematically explicable by market factors: in the private sector, primarily by investment considerations, namely high returns to residential property investment and favourable user cost of housing capital; and, in the public sector, by a very fine-grained approach to household affordability with publicly assisted home-ownership initiatives. Hong Kong demonstrates again how carefully families weigh the bundle of services associated with their tenure options. The government plans to expand home-ownership further, yet there are major systemic implications for such an expansion.

Suggested Citation

  • Adrienne La Grange & Frederik Pretorius, 2000. "Ontology, Policy and the Market: Trends to Home-ownership in Hong Kong," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 37(9), pages 1561-1582, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:37:y:2000:i:9:p:1561-1582
    DOI: 10.1080/00420980020080261
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Stephen Malpezzi & Stephen K. Mayo, 1997. "Housing and Urban Development Indicators: A Good Idea Whose Time Has Returned," Real Estate Economics, American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association, vol. 25(1), pages 1-12, March.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ali Osman Solak & Burhan Kabadayi, 2016. "Bounds Testing Approaches to Housing Demand in Turkey: Is There a Real Estate Bubble?," International Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, Econjournals, vol. 6(3), pages 1132-1135.
    2. Hu, Mingzhi & Su, Yinxin & Ye, Wenping, 2019. "Promoting or inhibiting: The role of housing price in entrepreneurship," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).

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