Throughout Da Nang, countless abandoned shophouses are scattered across prime real estate.

A series of shophouses on prime land lie abandoned.

The market for commercial townhouses (shophouses) in Da Nang , once booming and attracting investors pouring tens, even hundreds of billions of dong in the hope of "making a fortune," has now plummeted dramatically. Throughout Da Nang, thousands of shophouses have sprung up in prime locations, but they remain abandoned for long periods, becoming "ghost houses" and desolate.

According to VTC News reporters on December 10th, hundreds of shophouses located on the east bank of the Han River in Son Tra district are left vacant. Many rows of shophouses, boasting 2-3 street frontages, are unoccupied and have been abandoned for a long time, overgrown with weeds and reeds, looking dilapidated.

These are shophouses belonging to the Marina Complex Project, invested by Da Nang Marina Joint Stock Company, and built since 2016. The entire project consists of 6 blocks with 100 units, offered for sale in 2019 at prices ranging from 10 to 12 billion VND.

The abandoned shophouses, left unattended for a long time, have suffered significant damage, with doors and windows shattered by storms. Due to the lack of security and management, many valuables have been stolen. Furthermore, these abandoned shophouses are also a source of environmental pollution, forcing local authorities to hire personnel and equipment for cleanup to maintain urban aesthetics.

Similarly, on major routes such as Nguyen Sinh Sac, Hoang Thi Loan, Me Linh, and the extended Nguyen Tat Thanh road (Lien Chieu district), Minh Mang road, and urban areas in Ngu Hanh Son district, hundreds of commercial townhouses share the same dilapidated state despite being completed many years ago.

Responding to VTC News about this situation, Mr. Vo Nhan, head of communications for a real estate company in Da Nang, said that the current dire state of the shophouse real estate market in Da Nang is due to many factors, but the most important factor is the low population density and lack of vibrancy in the area. Developers paint a rosy picture of commercial housing, leading investors to buy units with the intention of renting or reselling for profit. In reality, these projects currently have no residents, no other amenities, and are simply rows of townhouses along the road.

“ Many investors spent tens or hundreds of billions of dong buying 5-10 apartments with the intention of reselling for profit or renting them out, but this plan failed because the purchase price at that time was very high, 10-12 billion dong per apartment. Now, they are cutting losses, selling at only 2/3 or even 1/2 of that price, but there are no buyers. With no buyers or renters, the investors are forced to abandon the properties, watching their money bury as the apartments deteriorate and fall into disrepair over time ,” Mr. Nhan said.

Sharing the same view, Mr. Dinh Van Hoang (H&H Land Real Estate Company Limited) believes that many real estate investors in the commercial townhouse segment fail because of the "buying without understanding" mentality, meaning they don't thoroughly research projects before investing and instead chase after speculative bubbles. " Now they want to sell at a loss, but there are no buyers, so they have to leave the houses abandoned. With a large initial investment and no return on investment, where will they get the funds for renovations and interior finishing? The houses are uninhabited and deteriorating, but they have no choice, " Mr. Hoang said.

Although there are no specific statistics, there are currently about 1,000 shophouses in Da Nang belonging to various projects built on abandoned "prime land" locations, some of which have become dumping grounds for waste, causing environmental pollution and affecting urban aesthetics.

Source: https://vtc.vn/khap-da-nang-nhan-nhan-shophouse-bo-hoang-tren-dat-vang-ar839772.html