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Housing "schemes"

 

住屋商品化、租盤持續不足，想有瓦遮頭，似乎愈來愈難！

有人為求盡快入住公屋，奇招百出，且聽兩位主持道來。

 

《南華早報》有個標題這麼寫：
High rent, low salaries: how young Hongkongers are scheming to secure subsidised housing

 

scheme 搞陰謀/密謀

(verb 動詞)

 

► scheme to do sth

例子：The bride’s family were scheming to prevent a wedding

 

► scheme against sb

例子：They claimed that their opponents were scheming against them.

例子：You are a scheming devil!  

 

一位王先生為求盡快取得公屋，不惜轉做低收入工作，費剎苦心，但也許逼不得已：
Mr. Wong's drastic action makes sense in light of the dire housing opportunities for young people in Hong Kong.

 

dire 極端可怕的；嚴重的(情況)

(adjective 形容詞)

= extremely awful, serious, terrible + situation / consequences

 

例子：He was in dire trouble!   他麻煩大了。

例子：He made the situation dire.  

例子：dire warning/threat　大難臨頭的警告/威脅

 

► dire consequences 可怕的後果

例子：A government split would have dire consequences for domestic peace.

 

► in dire need/poverty 亟需

例子：The country was in dire need of financial aid.   這個國家亟需經濟援助。

 

► in dire straits 處於岌岌可危的境地

例子：In such dire straits, he needed to seek help from his friends.

 

公屋落成量自沙士爆發起，便一沉不振：

About 28,000 new public housing flats were completed annually between 1997 and 2002, but numbers plummeted when the SARS outbreak pushed the city into recession. The supply of public rental flats has only edged up slightly in recent years, rising from 11,186 new units built in 2011 to 14,057 units in 2013.

 

plummet 急墜

(verb 動詞)

= plunge = decrease quickly by a large amount (JOURNALISM)

 

例子：The President’s popularity has plummeted to an all-time low in recent weeks.

例子：The jet burst into flames and plummeted to the ground.

 

edge 慢慢接近

(verb 動詞)

 

例子：He edged closer to the kitchen, ready to grab the chicken leg.

 

► edge up 慢慢上升

= move up

 

打工仔為求上樓，扭盡六壬：

Working-class residents go to extraordinary lengths to try to secure public housing.

 

go to any / great / extraordinary lengths to do sth  千方百計/竭盡全力做某事

例子：He is prepared to go to any lengths to get his girlfriend back.  

 

網上論壇還有人謊稱有家庭糾紛甚至精神疾病來博取「同情分」：

Besides giving up a stable job, tips making the rounds on internet forums include faking family conflicts or mental illnesses to get a flat on compassionate grounds.

 

另外一招，就是經濟審查之前轉工：

Because means tests are administered between six months and two years before people are considered for allocation, another common tactic is switch to lower-paying jobs when the assessment is imminent.

 

means test 經濟狀況調查 (以確定某人是否很貧窮而需要救濟)

 

imminent 即將發生的

(adjective 形容詞)

 

例子：The company is now in imminent danger of collapse .   該公司現在瀕臨倒閉。

 

Kevin 教室

Grammar: who, whom, whose

試比較：

  • Mr Wong is one of many residents whose income is too high to qualify for subsidised housing, but too low to afford renting in the open market.

 

  • Mr Wong is one of many residents who have income which is too high to qualify for subsidised housing.

 

  • Many residents have income which is too high to qualify for subsidised housing, one of whom is Mr Wong. 

   
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