Hong Kong authorities are expected to release a resettlement plan for residents displaced by the city’s deadliest fire in decades on Saturday, with a government buyout “highly likely,” local media have reported.

“Having collected and analysed survey results, the government will release the [resettlement] plan on Saturday, including terms on a higher price to acquire property rights,” NowTV reported on Friday.

Meanwhile, newspapers Sing Tao Daily and the Hong Kong Economic Journal (HKEJ) reported on Friday, citing unnamed sources, that results from a government questionnaire distributed to residents of the fire-hit Wang Fuk Court indicated that only a small proportion would accept on-site redevelopment of the housing estate.

According to Sing Tao’s political column, only a “very small proportion” of residents opted solely for on-site redevelopment, “reflecting residents’ desire for a practical approach to swiftly resolve their housing needs.”

A buyout would be the “greatest common denominator,” one of the sources said.

The HKEJ separately reported, “A considerably low proportion of owners insist on reconstruction at the original site as the sole option, with many demanding swift rehousing and the early provision of long-term accommodation.”

Sing Tao also cited earlier remarks from the government suggesting that Wang Fuk Court residents, especially the elderly, might not be able to endure the decade-long process of redeveloping the estate at the original Tai Po site.

It also said specific proposals for long-term resettlement would be announced “in a matter of days.”

Higher acquisition price

Local media also reported on Friday that the buyout price could surpass a surveying organisation’s estimates last month.

According to estimates by the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors (HKIS) previously cited by the government, flats with unpaid land premiums are valued at around HK$6,000 per square foot, while units with paid premiums are valued at around HK$8,000.

Some owners told local media that the buyout would undervalue their flats.

However, NowTV said on Friday that the buyout price would be higher than the HKIS had initially estimated, up to HK$8,000 per square foot for flats with unpaid premiums, and more than HK$10,000 for those with paid premiums.

The HKEJ also reported that the acquisition price would exceed the HKIS estimates.

Chief Executive John Lee said earlier this month that the questionnaire indicated that a “significant proportion” of Wang Fuk Court homeowners were willing to consider a government buyout, without giving any figures.

A massive fire engulfed Wang Fuk Court, a government-subsidised housing estate in Tai Po, in late November, killing 168 people and displacing nearly 5,000 residents.

In mid-January, more than 1,100 survivors petitioned China’s Liaison Office and the city’s Legislative Council (LegCo) to rebuild the housing estate on the same site in Tai Po.