Looking to buy a 2 billion VND apartment in Ho Chi Minh City

Ms. Nguyen Chau, 35 years old, living in Thu Duc City, had saved for many years to be able to buy an apartment in Ho Chi Minh City. However, recently, house prices have increased too rapidly, making it extremely difficult for her to find an affordable apartment.

For example, an apartment project in Long Thanh My ward, Thu Duc City, with an area of ​​approximately 54m2, is being advertised at 3.1 billion VND (equivalent to 57 million VND/m2). Meanwhile, her family's stable income is around 30 million VND. If she buys it, she would have to borrow more than 1 billion VND.

"Finally, I decided to rent for a while longer. The economic situation is difficult, so I don't dare take the risk. About four years ago, my friend spent only 1.8 billion VND but managed to buy an apartment near Nguyen Xi Street, Binh Thanh District. Now, that same apartment is worth nearly 3 billion VND. If I had enough money back then, I would have bought it too," she said regretfully.

An apartment project in Ho Chi Minh City

Mr. Ngoc Thai, 28 years old, living in Binh Thanh District, is also struggling to find an affordable apartment near the city center of Ho Chi Minh City. Apartments priced under 2 billion VND are often in older projects or lack proper ownership documents. For example, an apartment on Go Dau Street, Tan Phu District, is being advertised for 1.95 billion VND with an area of ​​58m2, equivalent to 35 million VND/m2, but it is nearly 20 years old.

After contacting several real estate agents, he was introduced to an apartment in Go Vap priced at around 2.2 billion VND, with an area of ​​70 m2 (approximately 34 million VND/m2), but it was also an old building.

According to reports, new apartment projects in the central area of ​​Ho Chi Minh City priced at 2 billion VND or less have virtually disappeared. Currently, the price of new apartment projects in Thu Duc City ranges from approximately 35-45 million VND/m2, and in Binh Thanh District from 60-75 million VND/m2.

Ms. Le, a real estate agent in Ho Chi Minh City, said that to find a new apartment priced around 2 billion VND, buyers have to go to suburban areas, quite far from Ho Chi Minh City. Previously, buyers would often go to places like Binh Chanh district or District 12 to look for apartments, but now even those are very difficult to find.

According to Mr. Nguyen Tat Thinh, founder of Housezy JSC, apartments priced at 2 billion VND near the center of Ho Chi Minh City still exist, but they will be very old; new projects are almost non-existent. Buyers need to make trade-offs and accept living further from the city center.

"Buyers might be interested in projects like Ehome S (Phu Huu Ward, Thu Duc City) or 8X Plus (Tan Thoi Nhat Ward, District 12)... priced at around 2 billion VND," Mr. Thinh suggested.

According to a report by the Vietnam Association of Real Estate Brokers (VARs), in the third quarter of 2023, the whole country recorded more than 250 housing projects on sale, mostly subsequent sales phases of projects, supplying approximately 20,000 units to the market.

New supply is concentrated mainly in the Southern region (accounting for 40% of the country). The mid-range (25-50 million VND/m2) and high-end (50-80 million VND/m2) apartment segments continue to lead the new apartment supply in the quarter, accounting for 58% and 26% respectively of the total supply of apartments on sale.

The affordable apartment segment (under 25 million VND/m2) continues to be scarce, with only a small number appearing in some second and third-tier provinces and cities. The total supply of affordable apartments decreased by 98% compared to 2019.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/kinh-te/do-mat-tim-mua-can-ho-2-ti-dong-o-tp-hcm-20231103133449888.htm