Integrated Building Maintenance Assistance Scheme with one-stop service launched
An Integrated Building Maintenance Assistance Scheme (IBMAS) to
encourage domestic property owners and owners of composite
buildings to rehabilitate their buildings will take effect from 1
April 2011.
Under the integrated scheme, the five financial assistance schemes
currently operated by the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) and the
Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) will be consolidated into one
integrated assistance scheme as from tomorrow.
Director, Works and Contracts of the URA, Mr Stephen Lam Wai-nang,
and General Manager (Property Management) of the HKHS, Mr Sanford
Poon, unveiled details of the integrated scheme at a media briefing
today (Thursday).
Under IBMAS, owners will be able to enjoy the same assistance
irrespective of whether the property is located in a URA or HKHS
Scheme Area and the assistance provided under the integrated scheme
will not be less than that under the existing schemes. One
set of application forms will cover all schemes. It is also
applicable to the two schemes funded by the Government, namely, the
Building Maintenance Grant Scheme for Elderly Owners and the
Building Safety Loan Scheme.
With one-stop service, owners and Owner Corporations (OCs) will be
able to obtain the following assistance:
- Cash subsidy for formation of OCs;
- Cash subsidy for rehabilitation work to common areas of
buildings;
- Interest-free loan to individual owners for rehabilitation work
to common areas; and
- Interest-free loans to individual owners for safety-and hygiene-related repair works to their units.
As early as in 2003, the URA and the HKHS have been providing
various assistance schemes to owners in their respective scheme
areas. While there are reasons and purposes to offer the
schemes in operation, it is considered necessary to consolidate and
align all the schemes to better utilize resources and to provide
one-stop, more user-friendly service to owners in need of financial
assistance.
In a nutshell, merits of the IBMAS are as follows:
- Clearer definition of targets and beneficiaries : OCs/owners' organisations, individual owners and needy/under-privileged owners
- Distinct delineation of Scheme Areas between URA and HKHS
- Identical assistance offered to owners meeting same eligibility criteria
- Buildings with and without OCs eligible
- Alignment and relaxation of eligibility criteria
- Improved loan and repayment terms
- ONE set of application forms
(ENDS)