US EditionHong Kong plans to buy homes devastated in deadly high-rise fire
Hong Kong will spend HK$6.8 billion to buy back rights from 1,700 Wang Fuk Court units, offering cash or apartment exchange to aid more than 4,600 displaced residents.
- The Hong Kong government unveiled resettlement plans to buy back homeownership rights from fire victims, allowing owners to sell for cash or buy under a designated policy after a resident survey.
- On November 26, 2025, a blaze killed 168 people in Tai Po, authorities blamed substandard scaffold netting and foam boards, and an independent investigation committee is still probing.
- Almost three months after the blaze, many former occupants live in temporary homes with rental grants, and the government plans to contact homeowners in March to pay in the third quarter of 2026.
- Michael Wong, Deputy Financial Secretary, said the administration will dismantle the seven buildings and transform the site into a park or community facilities, warning homeowners their investments could be lost.
- The plan covers roughly 1700 units and the government estimated buying back rights would cost about $HK6.8 billion, with about four billion Hong Kong dollars from public funds and the rest from a relief fund.
44 Articles
44 Articles
‘Gov’t should bear greatest responsibility’: Tai Po fire survivors recall futile whistle-blowing attempts
Wang Fuk Court residents told HKFP that, about a year before the deadly blaze, they filed reports with various authorities about suspected fire hazards - from scaffolding nets and foam boards to construction workers smoking on site - but their efforts went nowhere.
In order for the government's plans to work, it must spend around 6.8 billion Hong Kong dollars – almost 740 million euros – on the slightly more than 1700 housing units.
Jyllands-Posten
Authorities in Hong Kong are offering to buy residents' destroyed homes after a deadly fire in a large apartment complex, AFP news agency reported on Saturday. Residents of the Wang Fuk Court complex, which has ...
Khaleej Times
The Peninsula QatarHong Kong to offer buy-outs for flats damaged in deadly fire
Seven of the estate's eight towers suffered 'irreversible' internal damage in the Hong Kong blaze, while one building was left largely unscathed.
Hong Kong offers buyouts for homes damaged in deadly fire
HONG KONG - Authorities in Hong Kong on Saturday announced a buyout offer for owners who lost their homes in a deadly high-rise housing complex fire, rather than rebuilding the charred apartment blocks as some residents had hoped for.
Malay Mail
AlKhaleej TodayHong Kong unveils RM3.3b buy‑out plan for homes ruined in city’s deadliest blaze
HONG KONG, Feb 21 — Hong Kong authorities announced today a buy-out offer for owners who lost their homes in last year’s deadly housing complex fire, rather than rebuilding the charred apartment blocks as some residents had hoped for.The blaze, the world’s deadliest residential building fire since 1980, killed 168 people and left thousands homeless in November at Wang Fuk Court, a high-rise apartment complex in northern Hong Kong.Displaced resid…
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