If in the past, many people considered apartments as residential properties, as assets of perilla that did not create cash flow and the longer they were used, the less value they had, then in recent years in Hanoi, this trend has reversed.
In 2015, thousands of apartments in the complex of 12 HH buildings, Linh Dam urban area were opened for sale at prices of 14 - 16 million VND/m2. After 10 years, although they have deteriorated and many apartments do not have red books, the selling price has now increased 3 times, ranging from 45 - 60 million VND/m2, depending on the area and interior. Some beautiful apartments have even reached over 60 million VND/m2.
For example, a 63m2 apartment in HH Linh Dam, designed with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and fully decorated with furniture is being offered for sale at 53.97 million VND/m2, equivalent to more than 3.4 billion VND.
At the Hanoi Center Point project, the handover price in 2017 was about 35 million VND/m2, now many apartments have increased to 85 - 110 million VND/m2, equivalent to 4.5 - 9 billion VND/apartment.
In Kim Van - Kim Lu urban area, CT11, CT12A, CT12B, CT12C buildings opened for sale in the period of 2014 - 2015 at prices of 11 - 14.5 million VND/m2, currently being offered for sale at 48.7 - 82.3 million VND/m2.
Mr. Nguyen Trung Kien (Phu Tho) shared that he intends to buy a transfer apartment to work and live in Hanoi. However, when he learned about the reality, he was surprised because many projects were old, degraded, elevators were often broken and damaged but were still being advertised for sale at over 60 million VND/m2.
"I really regret not paying 3 years ago, now the apartment price is far beyond my ability to pay" - Mr. Kien said.
According to data from the Vietnam Institute for Real Estate Market Research and Evaluation, in the period of 2014 - 2015, Hanoi apartment prices fluctuated around 18 - 25 million VND/m2. However, by the second quarter of this year, the average apartment price in Hanoi had reached 75.5 million VND/m2. Many high-end projects are even being offered for sale at 100-150 million VND/m2.
Mr. Le Dinh Chung - Member of the VARS Market Research Working Group, General Director of SGO Homes - commented that apartment prices are continuing to maintain their upward momentum, many projects around Ring Road 2 and Ring Road 3 are currently at 120 - 130 million VND/m2, while projects under 60 million VND/m2 are increasingly rare.
Housing prices are climbing mainly due to an imbalance in supply. For many years, the market has focused on the mid-range and high-end segments, while social housing and affordable housing are increasingly scarce. Limited land fund for the low-cost segment, increased input costs, and lack of incentive policies also cause market imbalance.
Dr. Tran Xuan Luong - Deputy Director of the Vietnam Institute for Real Estate Market Research and Evaluation - analyzed that land prices and especially apartment prices have increased a lot in recent times, especially in the inner city of Hanoi.
The main reason is that planning - infrastructure is still localized, high-quality essential infrastructure is still concentrated in the center, traffic is still inadequate; at the same time, consumer behavior has changed, the younger generation prefers multi-utility apartments instead of the old "buy land, build a house" model.
For consumers, he noted that they should not reason according to the old cycle that if they do not buy immediately, prices will continue to increase in the context of expanding supply. The State has introduced many measures to manage the market.
Home buyers should choose products that are affordable to avoid "income traps". The mentality of "easy to buy - buy quickly - wait for the price to increase to make up for the interest" is no longer appropriate. Accordingly, home buyers need to be more cautious, especially when the supply of social housing is expected to increase sharply in the coming time, limiting the psychology of buying by all means that are prone to risks.
