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This dissertation, Urban Planning for the Housing Needs of the Singletons by Mohammad, Faruk, was obtained from The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong) and is being sold pursuant to Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 Hong Kong License. The content of this dissertation has not been altered in any way. We have altered the formatting in order to facilitate the ease of printing and reading of the dissertation. All rights not granted by the above license are retained by the author. Abstract: ABSTRACT During the 1990s, a trend of living as singletons among the young, educated and well-off people was identified in the United States of America, United Kingdom and France. Researchers found that the numbers of these young, well-off singletons are increasing day by day. The increasing number of young, well-off singleton households reflects wider change in society: their growth is both a reflection of demographic changes and closely related to other geographical issues, particularly changing urban economies and societies. To accommodate the specific nature of consumption of the singletons, especially their housing choice, World class cities' such as London, Paris and New York have undergone rapid evolution in social and physical infrastructure to accommodate different needs by the singletons. Living as singletons among the'young and well-off people is a result of many factors. Age, education, profession, personal income, personal choice is believed to be the factors behind singleton way of living among the young and affluent. Studies in the UK and France show that this category of singletons has a distinctive taste for their housing. They prefer to own small homes closer to the Central Business District, transport interchange and entertainment district. Due to their sheer number, the housing aspiration by these singletons caused major changes in urban planning of specific places. For example, London docklands has experienced a rapid change after the young, affluent singletons started to move in there. The broad goal of this study is to examine the presence of such young, well-off singleton households in Hong Kong. It also tries to define young, financially independent, professional singletons in Hong Kong and evaluate their housing iii aspirations. This study also tries to consider the implications of the specific nature of housing demanded by the financially independent singletons on the urban planning of Hong Kong. After a through literature review a research methodology was developed for this study. Within the scope of this study, a survey was carried on the singletons in Hong Kong. The survey reveals that, there are young (25-40 years), highly educated, well-off singleton households in Hong Kong at present. They have a similar nature of housing aspiration as the young affluent singletons in the UK or in France. Such as, prefer to own and stay in small apartments near the Central Business District (Central and Wan Chai), closer to the transport interchange and closer to the entertainment district, rather than staying in a rented accommodation. The specific nature of the housing aspiration of the singletons, guided by size and locational choice will have an affect on the housing market. To meet the housing demand of the singletons, more number of small apartments will have to be built in the districts where the singletons prefer to live. Their living style and choices will also affect the housing, in terms of design and facilities provided in the housing estates built for them. Consequently, as the number of young affluent singletons grows in Hong Kong, their sheer number and housing provision will greatly affect the urban planning policies, land use zoning and above all the planning standards and guidelines in Hong Kong. IV DOI: 10.5353/th_b3040906 Subjects: Single people - Housing - China - Hong KongCity planning - China - Hong Kong

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