Do not legalize mini apartments, fire prevention and fighting should be done early and far away.

After the mini apartment fire in Thanh Xuan district ( Hanoi ), many readers are wondering how current laws regulate the concept of mini apartments. Does this type of apartment come with specific criteria on the minimum area of each apartment, the number of exits, and fire protection equipment?

According to Dr. Dang Van Cuong, Head of Chinh Phap Law Office, there are currently many types of housing, including apartment buildings and individual houses. The construction and management of these types of housing are carried out according to a number of legal documents, including the Housing Law, Investment Law, Real Estate Business Law, etc.

Tay Ho Mini Apartment.jpeg — Many mini apartments in Hanoi have been sold to residents but their legal status is unclear. Photo: Quang Phong

Currently, the law does not have a specific concept of mini apartments, meaning the legal framework for mini apartments is not complete.

Meanwhile, in practice, the electricity sector has just had statistics in Hanoi that there are about 2,000 mini apartment buildings. It can be seen that the law has not yet specifically regulated but the type of mini apartment building already exists, with a scale and room area smaller than apartment buildings.

From this reality, since 2014, the Hanoi People's Committee has decided to grant certificates of apartment ownership for mini-apartments. Thus, the concept of mini-apartments has been mentioned in sub-law documents.

This document also stipulates that individual houses built on many floors, with each room designed separately and closed, with a minimum area of 30 square meters, ensuring the standard conditions of apartment buildings, including the standard conditions on fire safety, can be granted a certificate of ownership for each apartment.

“This is a relatively open concept, creating favorable conditions for investors to build buildings that are similar to apartment buildings but smaller in scale in terms of number of floors and room area,” Mr. Cuong shared.

Hanoi police director talks about handling personal responsibility for mini apartment fire case 1312.jpeg — The mini apartment building that caught fire in Thanh Xuan district has been sold to dozens of households.

In fact, the current mini apartment buildings are mainly rented out, or bought and sold in handwritten or notarized form, without any clear legal documents, including the rights of people to buy and live in these mini apartment buildings.

According to Architect Tran Ngoc Chinh, Chairman of the Vietnam Urban Planning and Development Association, in Vietnam's legal documents, there is no concept of mini apartments. If there is a concept of mini apartments, there must be a definition, concept and appropriate management. Because any housing must ensure life, security and safety for people.

In Hanoi, mini apartments are often located in crowded areas. There are very few mini apartments that fire trucks can access. Therefore, if a mini apartment building catches fire, it will be very difficult to rescue.

However, near industrial parks in Ho Chi Minh City, people in wide alleys will build 5 floors, they only live on 1 floor and rent out 4 floors. Also mini apartments but they are divided into lots, so it is easy to move around and easy to handle when there is an incident.

Previously, speaking at the National Assembly Standing Committee on the draft Law on the Capital (amended), the National Assembly Chairman requested the Law Committee to review the draft Law on Housing (amended) on this issue.

National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue proposed to definitely not legalize mini apartments in the Housing Law.

Secretary General of the National Assembly Bui Van Cuong said that the existence of more than 2,000 mini apartments in Hanoi shows that the direction of construction and development of the capital Hanoi is somewhat difficult to control, even when the Capital Law was issued in 2012.

"That is the consequence of overpopulation in the inner city area, along with the management work," the Secretary General of the National Assembly emphasized.

Mini apartment fire kills 56 people in Khuong Ha due to motorbike electrical short circuit

According to the initial assessment, the cause of the fire was an electrical short circuit in the electrical line in the battery area of the front of the scooter placed against the wall of the first floor of the mini apartment building, causing the fire.

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