After the era when land in the center of Ta Xua cost billions of dong per meter, real estate prices there have started to cool down.

But currently, land prices in this area are "frozen" as homestays struggle to find guests.

In contrast to the vibrant scene of over a year ago, the tourism landscape of Ta Xua is somewhat bleak, with a sharp decline in the occupancy rate of homestays.

Pham Anh (a tourist from Hanoi ) who visited Ta Xua in early July recounted: “ The price of rooms for rent in Ta Xua is only half of what it was more than a year ago when I went. Before, to rent a nice room with a view of the mountains and clouds, the average price was from 1 million to 1.5 million VND. But now, the price is only about 400,000 to 500,000 VND per room. The number of tourists has also decreased significantly .”

Ta Xua was once described as a "cloud paradise," attracting many tourists.

According to Ms. Pham Anh, after inquiring with several homestay owners, Ta Xua is currently undergoing inspections of constructions on forest land. This is why many homestays are not allowed to operate and are subject to inspection.

" There are homestays that illegally accommodate guests, and when discovered, the authorities even dismantle some structures on the land. That's why some homestays are quite 'dilapidated' due to the impact of inspections ," said Ms. Pham Anh.

Just a few years ago, Ta Xua was a real estate hotspot, with land prices skyrocketing. Tourists flocked there to experience the area, enjoy the fresh air, and "chase the clouds."

In 2018-2019, land prices in Ta Xua were only a few hundred thousand dong per square meter, with some plots located on the main road in the center costing millions of dong per square meter. However, from the second half of 2019 to 2022, land prices in Ta Xua increased sharply.

For example, a plot of land on the main road in the town center near the cloud viewing area, with a frontage of about 10 meters, is being advertised for sale at over 10 billion VND, equivalent to over 1 billion VND per meter of road frontage (land in Ta Xua is usually advertised by the meter of frontage and extends inwards). Or a plot of land a few tens of meters away, located on the main road, is being advertised for sale at around 6 billion VND. Land in Ta Xua was once considered as expensive as land in central Hanoi.”

Ms. TT (a land investor in Ta Xua) revealed that most people buying land in Ta Xua for business purposes, opening homestays, or buying and reselling are mainly from Hanoi. Since 2019, the wave of people leaving the city for the countryside to build homestays has exploded, causing land prices in this area to increase two, three, or even tenfold in some places due to their prime locations.

Currently, land prices in Ta Xua have started to stagnate. Some landowners are beginning to sell at a loss due to prolonged business losses. This is caused by inspections of construction violations on protected forest land.

“ Previously, homestays sprung up like mushrooms. Mainly, investors bought protected forest land to build homestays. Many owners even cleared and leveled land to expand their homestays. But currently, illegal constructions are being inspected and even demolished. Some homestays have to be rented out illegally. This is a major reason why land prices in Ta Xua have decreased. However, buyers are also very cautious because currently, even though land prices in Ta Xua have decreased and it's possible to negotiate, many plots of land are still classified as protected forest land. Investing billions of dong in protected forest land is very risky if you plan to build a homestay for business ,” Ms. TT added.

To stimulate tourism and develop the economy , in 2018, Bac Yen district developed a detailed construction plan at a scale of 1/500 for the Ta Xua ecological tourist area, covering a total area of over 17 hectares. After a period of development, homestays in Ta Xua have sprung up like mushrooms.

According to Report No. 290/BC-UBND dated April 28, 2022, from the People's Committee of Bac Yen District regarding the results of inspection and verification of land use by homestay establishments in Ta Xua Commune: The inspection revealed 7 locations with encroachment on forest land. These locations were designated as forest land but lacked forest cover. Of these, 5 households had already built houses on the encroached areas, while 2 households had not yet constructed. The People's Committee of the commune inspected, documented, and issued suspension orders for these households, but some households continued construction secretly.

Alarmingly, deforestation has occurred in the windy peak area within the community forest of Chung Trinh village, Ta Xua commune (sub-area 394, plot 11, lot 9), on land designated as protective forest, status DT2, covering an area of 85m2. The District People's Committee has directed the Ta Xua Commune People's Committee to coordinate with the Forest Protection Department to inspect and verify the violators for appropriate legal action. To date, six households and individuals have been identified and two cases of violations have been processed.

Regarding this situation, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment has sent a document requesting the People's Committees of the districts to inspect, verify, and compile statistics and reports on the management and use of land plots currently used for the construction of homestays; clarifying the following issues: the conformity of the land plots with the planning (land use planning, general planning, etc.); the origin, time, and process of land use for the land plot; the time of creation of assets attached to the land; the registration and issuance of land use right certificates for the land plot; the fulfillment of financial obligations by land users; the issuance of licenses for accommodation business activities and construction permits for homestays; the detection, prevention, and handling of violations related to illegal construction on land...

(Source: Market Life)

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