The high housing prices in recent years have made it impossible for many people to own a house in big cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Therefore, to have a cheap place to live, many people are willing to pay money to buy houses right next to cemeteries.
Mr. Tran Van Manh, a long-time real estate broker in Hanoi, shared that in the past, houses next to cemeteries or between graves often had no buyers, and even some houses were advertised for sale for several years without being sold.
But in the past 2 years, when house prices have skyrocketed, in some places increasing by 30-40% in a short period of time, houses next to cemeteries with cheap prices and almost no increase have attracted attention.
Mr. Manh said that last month he had just closed a deal with a customer for a house next to a cemetery on Nam Du Street (Hanoi). This house is located about 100 meters from the cemetery gate, so even though it is located on a fairly wide alley, the price is still very cheap.
Houses and land near the cemetery are much cheaper than other houses in the same area. (Illustration: Cong Hieu).
While 30m2 houses in the same area, with a 2m wide alley, are priced at around 3 billion VND, this house was advertised for sale at only 2.5 billion VND and the customer agreed for 2.3 billion VND, 20% cheaper than houses in the same location.
" Low-income people who only need to live will still accept buying houses next to cemeteries because they fit their financial capacity ," said Mr. Manh.
According to Mr. Manh, even investors are now willing to pay money to buy houses next to the cemetery that is about to be planned.
Mr. Manh said that 3 months ago, there was a customer who was willing to pay to buy a 98m2 plot of land right next to the cemetery gate in Hoang Mai district (Hanoi). There are currently 5 rental rooms on this plot of land, the owner is selling it for only 5 billion VND, equivalent to about 51 million VND/m2.
Meanwhile, other plots of land in the area with 3 meter wide alleys are priced at 70 - 80 million VND/m2.
“ When the cemetery is relocated, the prices of these houses will certainly increase by 30-40%, which is a good profit for real estate investors. In the meantime, the landowner has decided to rent out 5 rooms at 1.5 million VND/room, so there is still a steady monthly cash flow ,” said Mr. Manh.
According to Mr. Pham Duc Toan, General Director of EZ Real Estate Investment and Development Joint Stock Company (EZ Property), in Hanoi and other large cities, land is scarce and population is high, land for housing construction is increasingly scarce, so it is not uncommon for some projects or houses to be planned near cemeteries.
The prices of houses or apartments with cemetery views are usually 10-15% lower than other properties. For example, a high-rise building on Le Van Luong Street with a direct view of the cemetery has a starting price of VND24-27 million/m2 while another building about 200 m2 away sells for VND35-40 million/m2 (current price in 2018).
“ In the context of rising housing prices and scarce supply, average financial customers do not have many options when buying a house. Finding a house that is affordable and meets certain criteria also requires accepting some limitations, including unfavorable views or locations, ” said Mr. Toan.
The vast majority of projects near cemeteries are in the mid-range or average segment in terms of price and quality due to disadvantages. Buying a house near a cemetery according to Vietnamese spirituality and culture is not good, but because of low prices or no other options, many people still accept to buy. In addition, these types of houses are also picky when reselling. However, the high price of houses in the recent period has made this choice of customers more reasonable.
Chau Anh
Source
Comment (0)