I. Who undertakes redevelopment projects?
In Hong Kong, many buildings lack proper repairs and maintenance, and therefore have become old and dilapidated.
To tackle the problem of urban decay and better utilize our limited land resources, both the Government and property developers implement redevelopment schemes.
In a large-scale property redevelopment, the following entities are usually the only parties that acquire land for redevelopment:
- the Urban Renewal Authority (URA), or
- property developers.
Redevelopment is usually carried out by the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) and property developers in the following three ways:
- If the URA or property developers want to redevelop an area, they first consider acquiring the land by private agreement with the existing owners. If they cannot acquire the entire interest in the land, they may acquire the rest through land resumption or compulsory sale.
- The URA undertakes land resumption under the Urban Renewal Authority Ordinance ( Cap. 563 of the Laws of Hong Kong) and the Lands Resumption Ordinance ( Cap. 124 of the Laws of Hong Kong).
- Property developers can apply for a compulsory sale order for all interest in the land under the Land (Compulsory Sale for Redevelopment) Ordinance ( Cap. 545 of the Laws of Hong Kong) for the purpose of redevelopment.