URA and HKHS: New arrangement for building rehabilitation service
 
The Urban Renewal Authority (URA) and the Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) (Monday) announced a new arrangement for the Integrated Building Maintenance Assistance Scheme (IBMAS). Beginning from 1 July 2015, the URA will be responsible for receiving and processing all new IBMAS applications in all areas in Hong Kong while the HKHS will continue to follow through the applications already received prior to that day.
 
The IBMAS is a one-stop building rehabilitation service jointly managed by the URA and HKHS since 1 April 2011, providing technical and financial assistance to eligible property owners of private residential/composite buildings.
 
The new arrangement came in response to the 2011 Urban Renewal Strategy which stated that rehabilitation is one of the URA’s two core businesses and so the URA would gradually extend its rehabilitation service boundary to cover the whole of Hong Kong. The URA has already taken up the role to handle all new IBMAS applications in Kowloon, Kwai Tsing and Tsuen Wan since 1 April 2013.
 
Under the new arrangement, all new IBMAS applications handled by HKHS including those in Hong Kong Island, New Territories and Outlying Islands would be received and processed by the URA. In other words, HKHS will stop accepting new IBMAS applications altogether with effect from 1 July 2015. However, the Mandatory Building Inspection Subsidy Scheme and Building Maintenance Grant Scheme for Elderly Owners, which are both under HKHS’s existing responsibilities, will not be affected by the new arrangement.
Property owners who would want to apply for the Building Safety Loan Scheme managed by the Buildings Department (BD) and the Building Maintenance Grant Scheme for Elderly Owners provided by the HKHS can continue to fill in the same set of application form for IBMAS. The URA will refer the application to BD or HKHS for processing.
Members of the public who wish to know more about the URA’s rehabilitation service can visit the Building Rehab Info Net at http://www.buildingrehab.org.hk and the URA website at http://www.ura.org.hk, or contact the Building Maintenance Assistance Scheme Hotline at 3188 1188.