The Experts' Collective Housing Area consists of many high-rise buildings located on Hill 79 in Huu Nghi Ward, Hoa Binh City, which was once the residence of Soviet experts during the construction period of the Hoa Binh Hydropower Plant. After the project was completed, this area was handed over to Hoa Binh province for management, currently under the management of Hoa Binh Housing and Construction Development Investment Joint Stock Company.
Recorded by PV in the last days of February 2025, the eye can easily see the serious deterioration. bare walls, cracked stairs, broken corridors pose many potential risks to households living here.
Ms. Thanh Huong (42 years old, living on the first floor of the A35 block of houses) shared: "Families living here all have to renovate their houses to be able to live in them. Almost every year, it must be repaired to prevent leakage and block the wastewater flowing down from the upper floors".
According to Ms. Huong, people arbitrarily expanding the living space, building more laundry areas or using the balcony to wash dishes has made the old house area increasingly shabby and cramped.
"After many years, the house was encroached upon and expanded for amenities, causing the original architecture to deform. The power line system is tangled, rusted, and exposed outdoors for many years without being replaced, posing a very high risk of fire and explosion," Ms. Huong worried.
Despite being seriously degraded, many apartments in the Experts' area are still being offered for sale at prices ranging from a few tens of millions to 200-300 million VND/apartment, depending on location, area and floor. However, all apartments here do not have a land use right certificate, and the purchase and sale are mainly done through handwritten documents or a house rental contract transfer.
Mr. Hung (resident in the 34-35 staircase area) said that although there are many rumors about the relocation of the Specialist area, currently, more than 30 rows of houses are still full of people, mainly low-income households or young couples.
Talking to reporters, Mr. Dinh Anh Hoang - Chairman of Huu Nghi Ward People's Committee said: "Up to now, after decades of use, the residential areas have all seriously degraded. However, the Specialist housing area is not subject to emergency relocation".
Some images recorded by the reporter:
