Why is the real estate market in Ho Chi Minh City recovering slowly?

VTV.vn - Despite its large contribution to the GRDP structure, Ho Chi Minh City's real estate industry only grew by 3.24% in the first 9 months of 2025, reflecting a slow recovery, despite high housing prices.

Low growth

Ho Chi Minh City real estate, an industry expected to become a pillar of the megacity, is currently witnessing a weak and unsatisfactory recovery. According to the report on the socio -economic situation in the first 9 months of 2025 by the Ho Chi Minh City Statistics Office, although the city's GRDP increased by 7.07% over the same period last year, contributed mainly by the service sector, the real estate industry only recorded a growth rate of 3.24%, contributing about 1.3% to the overall growth. This is a low figure, even weak compared to the strong growth of other service industries such as transportation, warehousing (14.3%), accommodation, food and beverage (11.73%), healthcare (25.7%) and education (15.9%).

Areas on the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City such as Dong Nai and Tay Ninh attract cash flow and buyer interest, causing Ho Chi Minh City to gradually lose its appeal.

Experts say the market is facing many unfavorable factors, from low supply, too high housing prices to the decline in purchasing power of the people. While other industries have strong recovery momentum, real estate is still stuck at a slow growth rate and lacks breakthrough.

According to Mr. Tran Khanh Quang, General Director of Viet An Hoa Company, a real estate expert, real estate prices are high, beyond the affordability of many people, especially in the low-cost housing segment. The supply of social housing and low-cost apartments is very limited, making it difficult for people to access housing. At the same time, real estate transactions are slow, with low liquidity due to high prices and reduced demand. Areas on the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City such as Dong Nai and Tay Ninh attract cash flow and interest from buyers, making Ho Chi Minh City gradually lose its attractiveness. Moreover, legal and administrative procedures in the real estate industry are still entangled, slowing down the progress of new projects.

However, real estate still plays an important role in the service structure of Ho Chi Minh City. Total revenue of the "other services" group in the past 9 months reached VND 475,712 billion, of which real estate accounted for VND 270,543 billion (56.9%), up 8.2% over the same period in 2024. This shows that, despite difficulties, real estate is still an industry that brings in large revenue, but is not strong enough to create growth momentum for the economy.

One of the main reasons for the slow recovery of real estate is the strong fluctuations in prices. A report by the Ministry of Construction shows that the average price of primary apartments in Ho Chi Minh City in the past 9 months reached 75 million VND/m², an increase of 36% compared to the same period in 2024. In the high-end segment, many projects have asking prices of 150 million VND/m² or more. This makes it inaccessible to many people who want to buy a house, reducing transactions and market liquidity.

What is the solution?

However, real estate is still an important sector with significant contributions to the development of Ho Chi Minh City. Despite the difficulties, experts believe that if the market adjusts properly and finds reasonable solutions, it can still create great opportunities for this industry.

To promote the sustainable development of the real estate market in Ho Chi Minh City, experts have proposed a number of important solutions. Mr. Le Hoang Chau, Chairman of HoREA, emphasized that legal clearance and speeding up the progress of backlogged projects, while removing legal obstacles will be key factors to increase supply and unblock capital flows for the economy. Along with that, HoREA also proposed mobilizing the real estate business community to actively participate in developing 100,000 social housing apartments in the period of 2021 - 2030, to meet the housing needs of low-income people. "We need to prioritize the development of low-cost housing projects, serving the needs of low-income people, instead of focusing only on high-end projects. Appropriate housing policies will be an important factor in stimulating market recovery," Mr. Chau analyzed.

Experts recommend reforming administrative procedures and increasing information transparency to facilitate market recovery.

According to a report by the European Business Council in Vietnam (CEEC), key projects such as Long Thanh International Airport and Ring Roads 3 and 4 not only help connect traffic but also play a role in reshaping the investment landscape in the Southern region. In addition, real estate businesses need to restructure, handle bad debts, mature bonds and redirect investment into affordable commercial housing projects.

Economist Dr. Nguyen Minh Phong also recommended reforming administrative procedures and enhancing information transparency to facilitate market recovery. These solutions, if implemented synchronously and effectively, will help the real estate market in Ho Chi Minh City develop sustainably, meeting the increasing housing needs of the people.

In addition, strict control in adjusting selling prices, combined with creating opportunities for home buyers to access credit, is also a necessary solution. Reducing home loan interest rates, combined with financial support packages from the Government, will contribute to restoring purchasing power and pulling back the transaction pace. Experts also believe that when macroeconomic conditions are stable and policy measures are implemented, the real estate market in Ho Chi Minh City will be able to recover strongly. However, to achieve this, a certain amount of time and close coordination between state agencies, real estate businesses and people is needed.

Source: https://vtv.vn/thi-truong-bat-dong-san-tp-ho-chi-minh-phuc-hoi-cham-vi-sao-100251007161512149.htm