On September 22, a forum of estate agents was held in Hanoi, where issues of sustainable market development were discussed. According to Nguyen Van Dinh, president of the Vietnam Association of Realtors, a recent survey conducted by his organisation showed that more than 70% of businesses consider policies to mitigate financial difficulties to be ineffective. This refers to a government project designed to boost the social housing market. It was announced back in April, but the loan package, allowing buyers and developers to access below-market interest rates, is still yet to be implemented.
Nguyen Quoc Hiep, president of the Vietnam Association of Construction Contractors, told the forum that 70% of the problems are related to legal issues. A particularly serious problem is overlapping laws that make it difficult to acquire development sites.
At the end of last year, apartment prices increased by 5–7% compared to 2020, while country houses rose in price by 15–20%, and land by 30%. This situation reduces demand from local buyers, but opens up great opportunities for foreign investors. According to economist Le Xuan Nghia, the property market may struggle until Q3 of next year. This is due to the shortage of affordable housing.
Nghia added that the real estate crisis 10 years ago was caused by an oversupply, but this time it was the shortage that caused it. Low construction activity is largely due to the imperfection of the local regulatory framework. Experts have called for an increase in the supply of affordable housing to help the market recover.