Urban Renewal Authority

What Urban Renewal Authority does

Urban Renewal Authority (URA, 市區重建局) is a Hong Kong statutory body established in 2001 under the Urban Renewal Authority Ordinance (Chapter 563), wholly owned by the Hong Kong SAR Government. URA serves as Hong Kong's primary urban renewal authority, undertaking redevelopment, building rehabilitation, and heritage preservation across the territory. Its core service lines include urban redevelopment (acquisition, clearance, rehousing, and rebuilding of aged districts), the Building Rehabilitation Platform supporting property owners with maintenance schemes and cost references, and heritage preservation initiatives such as the Staunton Street/Shing Wong Street Revitalisation and Central Market Revitalisation. URA also self-develops residential projects including eResidence and the Kai Tak Development (H Kai Tak), offering Flat-for-Flat, Subsidised Sale Flat, and market sale units.

URA's operations are underpinned by a proprietary technology stack including Digital Twins for facility management at Central Market, 618 Shanghai Street, and eResidence, a BIM Facility Management Platform, the Urban Renewal Information System (URIS), and GIS for spatial planning. Consumer-facing digital channels include the H18 mobile application (community engagement for the Peel Street/Graham Street scheme) and the TW Smart Parking application (real-time car park vacancy data in Tsuen Wan, developed with ASTRI and Google Maps). The authority engages affected property owners and tenants directly through district offices in Central, Mong Kok, and Cheung Sha Wan, alongside District Advisory Committees and the Urban Renewal Social Service Team.

URA's revenue model blends property development and sales (e.g., Tsuen Wan Town Centre/Vision City, 1,466 residential units), commercial rental income from completed developments, capital raised via bond issuance (HK$12 billion triple-tranche notes issued August 2024, oversubscribed 2x), government funding and capital injections, and facilitating service fees from assisting NGOs and property owners in collective sale transactions. As a statutory body with compulsory acquisition powers, URA operates without traditional commercial pricing and is not subject to market-driven customer churn.

Name

Urban Renewal Authority

Legal name

Urban Renewal Authority

Website

https://ura.org.hk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Urban Renewal Authority is Hong Kong's statutory body responsible for urban redevelopment, building rehabilitation, and heritage preservation. It serves affected property owners, tenants, and the broader community through district-level renewal projects, supported by digital platforms and government-backed bond financing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Redevelopment Services

NAICS

Land Subdivision (23721), New Multifamily Housing Construction (except For-Sale Builders) (236116), Commercial and Institutional Building Construction (236220), Services to Buildings and Dwellings (5617)

SIC

Land Subdividers & Developers (No Cemeteries) (6552), Operators Of Nonresidential Buildings (6512)

akta.pro primary industry

Urban Renewal, Brownfield Redevelopment & Land Reuse (BPAIANAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Residential Affordable Housing Development & Construction (IMAFABAI), Housing & Neighborhood Services (Local Housing Programs) (BPAIACAJ)

Keywords

• Urban redevelopment
• Building rehabilitation
• Heritage preservation
• Property development
• Urban revitalization

Headquarters

HQ city

Central

HQ country

Hong Kong SAR China

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Property Development and Sales: URA generates revenue through the sale of residential and commercial units developed from its redevelopment projects. Completed developments such as the Tsuen Wan Town Centre (Citywalk) and various residential projects generate sales revenue.
2. Commercial Rental Income: URA derives rental income from commercial properties within its redevelopment areas, including retail spaces in completed developments.
3. Bond Issuance: URA raises capital through bond issuance. The authority's HK$12 billion triple-tranche fixed rate notes have been oversubscribed two times, demonstrating strong investor confidence.
4. Government Funding: URA receives government allocations and capital injection to support urban renewal operations and project development.
5. 中介服務 (Facilitating Services): URA provides development facilitation services to assist NGOs and property owners in collective sale transactions, generating service fees.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

Urban Renewal Authority is Hong Kong's statutory body that undertakes urban redevelopment, building rehabilitation, and heritage preservation projects. It acquires and clears aged buildings, rehoused displaced residents, and tenders redevelopment sites to private developers for joint development. URA also delivers self-developed residential projects (Kai Tak Development, eResidence), commercial leasing, and operates digital platforms including the Building Rehabilitation Platform and mobile apps H18 and TW Smart Parking.

Product overview

Urban Renewal Authority (市區重建局) is Hong Kong's statutory body responsible for urban renewal. The organisation operates a multi-service portfolio centered on urban redevelopment, building rehabilitation, and heritage preservation. Its product ecosystem includes core service lines (redevelopment, rehabilitation, heritage revitalisation), self-developed residential projects (Kai Tak Development/eResidence, eResidence Tower Three), digital platforms (Building Rehabilitation Platform, BIM/FM Platform, Digital Twins), and mobile applications (H18 App, TW Smart Parking). The portfolio spans from government-led redevelopment projects to community-focused digital services supporting smart city initiatives in Hong Kong.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• H18: Mobile application developed in collaboration with tenants of Peel Street/Graham Street Development Scheme (H18), connecting Graham Market and H18 CONET tenants through features like market ordering, historical stories, recipes, and e-ticket services.
• TW Smart Parking
• H18 CONET
• Citywalk
• 煥然壹居 (Kai Tak Development)
• 煥然懿居 (eResidence)

Products and services

• Urban Redevelopment Services End-to-end redevelopment of aged buildings in Hong Kong including property acquisition, clearance, rehousing of displaced residents, and joint development with private developers through competitive tenders.
• Building Rehabilitation Services Building maintenance and rehabilitation support services including rehabilitation schemes, the Building Rehabilitation Platform, technical assistance, and maintenance cost reimbursement for property owners undertaking repair works.
• Heritage Preservation and Revitalisation

Quantifiable outcome

• 96 buildings with 7,119 population affected in single Tsuen Wan Town Centre Project
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and minor.

• Sino LandcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 July 2002Sino Land is a joint development partner with URA for the Tsuen Wan Town Centre Project (Vision City/Citywalk). This flagship redevelopment project demonstrates URA's collaborative approach with private developers to deliver integrated shopping mall and residential developments in Tsuen Wan. Citywalk, opened in 2008, is a major green shopping mall recognized for its innovative architectural concepts and environmental design.
• Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research InstitutesupportingTechnology or IntegrationASTRI provided technical support and assistance for the development of the TW Smart Parking mobile application, which utilizes real-time car park data from URA's Tsuen Wan developments and other car parks in the district.
• Google MapssupportingTechnology or IntegrationGoogle Maps provides GPS and navigation technology powering the TW Smart Parking application's one-touch navigation to car parks.
• Quality Building Award OrganizersminorOthersURA's Staunton Street/Shing Wong Street Revitalisation Project received the Quality Building Award 2024, recognizing excellence in renovation and revitalization in Hong Kong's building industry.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Lendlease: Global developer and urban regeneration specialist with operations across Asia including urban renewal projects. Comparable in urban renewal expertise and mixed-use regeneration capability, though operating in different geographies and primarily private-sector model.
• MTR Corporation: Hong Kong rail operator that develops residential and commercial properties above and around stations (Rail plus Property model). Comparable in executing integrated transit-oriented redevelopment, though focused on station sites rather than distressed urban areas.

Broad incumbents

• Sun Hung Kai Properties: Hong Kong's largest property developer by market cap, active across residential, commercial, and mixed-use developments. Comparable in scale and breadth of Hong Kong development activity, providing a benchmark for private-sector redevelopment economics.
• New World Development: Diversified Hong Kong conglomerate with substantial property development operations including urban renewal-style projects. Comparable as a major private-sector participant in Hong Kong redevelopment, often working adjacent to or in partnership with URA.
• Henderson Land Development: Major Hong Kong developer with significant residential and commercial portfolio, including land bank suitable for redevelopment. Comparable as a large incumbent developer whose activities intersect with URA's acquisition and redevelopment zones.
• Sino Land: Hong Kong-focused developer and URA's joint venture partner on the Tsuen Wan Town Centre Project. Closely comparable given the direct partnership on a flagship URA redevelopment, with overlapping residential and commercial development activity.
• Hong Kong Land: Major Hong Kong-based commercial landlord and developer with deep portfolio in Central. Comparable as a large incumbent in Hong Kong real estate development and asset management, although focused on investment-grade commercial rather than urban renewal mandate.
• China Resources Land: Mainland Chinese state-backed developer with Hong Kong operations. Comparable as a large incumbent developer with government backing and substantial Hong Kong residential and commercial exposure that overlaps with URA-adjacent markets.

Direct peers

• Hong Kong Housing Authority: Hong Kong's primary public-sector housing provider, also a statutory body delivering public and subsidised housing. Closely comparable in Hong Kong context given overlapping mandates in affordable housing provision and government backing.
• Urban Redevelopment Authority (Singapore): Singapore's statutory planning and urban redevelopment authority with comparable powers over land use, master planning, and redevelopment. Most direct international peer to URA in mandate, statutory structure, and urban renewal function.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/theURAhk
• Facebookfacebook.com/URAmity
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/urban-renewal-authority-市区重建局/?viewAsMember=true
• Instagraminstagram.com/uramity

Compliance9 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Urban Renewal Authority