A case reflects that the Management Board at an apartment building in Lang Son has self-adjusted and increased the management and operation service fee, but residents were not consulted, and no apartment building conferences were organized to vote according to regulations. According to the reflection, the new fee level was announced unilaterally, while residents have not reached consensus.
People believe that according to regulations on management and use of apartment buildings, the adjustment of management and operation service fees must be approved by the Apartment Building Conference or with the consensus of residents. However, at the time of reflection, the fee increase was still implemented without the consensus of households.
Answering this content, the Department of Construction of Lang Son province said that this is an issue arising in the process of managing and operating apartment buildings, related to determining and adjusting management and operation service prices, publicizing operating costs and organizing apartment building conferences.
According to the Lang Son Provincial Department of Construction, the 2023 Housing Law stipulates that the management and operation of apartment buildings is directly the responsibility of the investor, the management and operation unit, and the apartment building management board if it has been established. In case this is social housing, the management and operation must still be carried out according to the mechanism of management and operation of apartment buildings specified in Article 90 of this law.
This agency also cited Article 145 of the 2023 Housing Law, which defines the Apartment Building Conference as the agency that decides important issues related to the management and use of apartment buildings.
Along with that, Article 148 stipulates that when an apartment building has multiple owners, the price of management and operation services is agreed upon and unanimously decided by the Apartment Building Conference and the management and operation unit; if no agreement is reached, it shall be implemented according to the price frame issued by the Provincial People's Committee.
For Lang Son province, the Department of Construction of Lang Son province said that the Provincial People's Committee has issued a framework price for apartment building management and operation services in Decision No. 04/2025/QD-UBND dated January 10, 2025.
According to this decision, the price frame is the basis for the parties to refer to when agreeing; if no agreement can be reached, the level within the price frame is applied. The price frame for apartment buildings without elevators is from 3,000 VND to 5,400 VND/m2 clear water/month, while apartment buildings with elevators are from 4,000 VND to 9,300 VND/m2 clear water/month.
The Department also clearly stated that the investor, Management Board and operating management unit are responsible for basing on the price frame to calculate and determine the price of operating management services according to regulations, and at the same time organize revenue, expenditure and accounting in a public and transparent manner.
Regarding the handling direction of the case, the Lang Son Provincial Department of Construction said that on April 6, 2026, it issued an official letter requesting the investor to consider and resolve residents' petitions at GP1, GP2, GP3 buildings. This agency requested relevant units to organize implementation, and at the same time report the settlement results in writing for the Department to summarize and report to the Provincial People's Committee according to regulations.
Thus, according to the response of the Lang Son Provincial Department of Construction, considering and resolving residents' petitions in this case is the responsibility of the investor, operating management unit and related entities according to the law on housing; while the increase in apartment service fees, if it is to be implemented in accordance with regulations, it must have the consensus of residents or comply with the price mechanism in the issued framework.
