According to Lao Dong reporters, on November 30, Thanh Oai district (Hanoi) organized an auction of 22 plots of land in Do Dong commune. The plots of land put up for auction had the smallest area of over 85m2, the largest of over 135m2. The starting price of these plots was from 5.3 million VND/m2, corresponding to a deposit of 90.89 - 143.84 million VND/plot.
The auction is conducted in a direct secret ballot with multiple rounds; at least 6 rounds are required; the minimum bid is 5 million VND/m2. Thus, participants must pay a minimum of 35.3 million VND/m2 to be able to own the land.
However, a representative of Thanh Oai District People's Committee said that in the 8th round, the highest price was about 70 million VND/m2, but because customers all dropped out, all auctioned lots were unsuccessful. The unsuccessful auction of 22 lots this time greatly affected the district's budget revenue.
Previously, on November 29, public opinion was stirred when at the land auction in Soc Son district (Hanoi), an investor offered up to 30 billion VND/m2, an unprecedentedly high price. However, in the final round, this person asked not to bid any further.
On November 30, the People's Committee of Soc Son district announced the results of the land auction and publicly disclosed the identity of the customer who bid 30 billion VND/m2 in Xuan Thu commune and Quang Tien commune.
At the end of the auction, 22/58 plots of land were successfully auctioned with the lowest winning price of 32.4 million VND/m2; the highest was 50.4 million VND/m2; the total amount of money according to the auction results of the 22 plots of land was 112.2 billion VND. 36 plots were not auctioned because all customers did not bid in round 6 (the final round).
To stabilize the auction land market, real estate experts say the State needs to control starting prices and ensure a more transparent auction mechanism to limit the situation of deposit cancellations and land brokers pushing up prices, causing market disruption.
Regarding this issue, Mr. Nguyen The Diep - Vice President of Hanoi Real Estate Club - commented that the act of paying high prices and then giving up is a sign of speculation and price inflation. Although public information is an effective measure, stronger measures are needed to prevent it.
Experts emphasize that before each land auction, the financial capacity of the auction participants must be considered. A tax toolkit is needed to prevent the situation of abandoning land auction deposits.
The amended Law on Property Auction, effective from January 1, 2025, has added sanctions to handle violations against auction participants in Article 70. Accordingly, in the case of land allocation or lease for project implementation, the auction winner who forfeits the deposit, causing the result to be canceled, will not be allowed to participate in the auction for 6 months to 5 years.
The case of an individual winning the auction but forfeiting the deposit is regulated in the Land Law. According to Decree 102 guiding the 2024 Land Law, the auction winner who fails to pay the full amount within 120 days will have the result canceled and lose the deposit.
