Landlords of more than 5,500 subdivided homes in Hong Kong have applied for a three-year grace period to meet size, safety and hygiene requirements following a new law on basic housing standards taking effect six weeks ago.

Secretary for Housing Winnie Ho Wing-yin said on Saturday that the government had received applications for 5,557 subdivided units in 1,370 flats. That accounted for around 5 per cent of all subdivided units in Hong Kong, mostly located in Yau Tsim Mong district, followed by Sham Shui Po and Eastern.

Ho said 780 subdivided units had been granted a grace period, with their details uploaded onto the Housing Bureau’s website.

“When landlords divided their flats, they not only spent money to add washrooms and pipes but also incurred safety, health and fire risks. If something happens to your elderly tenant, your property value will be affected too,” she said.

“We hope to set standards and allow landlords to review if their subdivided flats meet the standards.”

Asked if the rules would affect the supply of homes on the market and push up rents, Ho disagreed.