HONG KONG: The government is taking measures to increase housing supply in the city as concerns about potential bubbles in the local property market rise.

The land inventory in the government's application list will be augmented, Secretary for Development Carrie Lam told a radio program yesterday.

The list currently contains 42 residential sites that are available for bidding by developers.

"We are studying the idea of converting some GCI land into residential sites and then including them in the list," she said.

GCI land refers to sites designated for or used by the government, communities and civic institutions.

The city's top planner for land use also said the government would look for appropriate sites, particularly in the northwest district of the New Territory, for possible residential development.

In another move to soothe worries about potential housing shortages in the near future, the government will prod subway operator MTR Corporation Ltd to speed up the bidding process for development projects above its stations.

"We will consult with MTR Corp about speeding up the tender process for project sites above its West Line stations, particularly those at the Nam Cheong and Yuen Long stations, hoping to auction off the sites shortly," Lam said.

MTR Corp, the only subway operator in the city, has the privilege of developing sites above its stations and usually develops those projects with other developers jointly.

Analysts believe that speeding up the bidding process for projects above MTR stations will be the most effective way of preventing any housing shortage in the future.

"The MTR Corp owns many readily available sites which can be developed into residential projects that provide tens of thousands of new flats," said Buggle Lau, Chief Analyst of Midland Realty.

Development projects above the Nam Cheong and Yuen Long stations alone will provide 6,000 to 7,000 residential units, said Wong Leung-sing, Associate Director (Research Department) of Centaline Property Agency Ltd.

Both analysts expect that the bidding process for project sites above MTR stations will be launched "very soon", with Wong forecasting a date as early as the fourth quarter this year.

However, they strongly believe the government will push ahead with all the land-supply measures "very cautiously".

"The government just wants to send out a message that there will be continuity in land supply, and to ensure sufficient housing supply in the future," said Midland Realty's Lau, emphasizing his view that there is no housing shortage or bubble in the property market right now.

"The government basically has no intention to dampen the market sentiment, but the measures may help moderate the rise in property prices," said Centaline Property's Wong.

Chief Executive Donald Tsang said last week in his policy address that the relatively-small number of residential units completed and the record prices attained in some transactions recently have caused concern about the supply of flats, difficulty in purchasing a home and the possibility of a property bubble.

(HK Edition 10/20/2009 page4)