Buying and selling rental houses is a topic of interest to many people, especially workers who are renting houses in big cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and have a need to buy a house in the future.
Article 168 of the 2023 Housing Law, which has just come into effect, regulates the purchase and sale of rented houses as follows:
In case the owner sells the rented house, he/she must notify the lessee in writing about the sale and the conditions of the sale.
The lessee has the right of first refusal to purchase the house if he has paid the full rent to the lessor up to the time the lessor notifies the lessor of the sale of the house, unless otherwise provided by the Civil Code.
Within 30 days from the date the lessee receives the notice and does not purchase, the homeowner has the right to sell it to another person, unless the parties have another agreement on the time limit.
In case the lessor transfers ownership of the leased house to another person while the lease term is still valid, the lessee may continue to rent until the end of the contract; the new owner of the house is responsible for continuing to perform the previously signed lease contract.
In case of selling a rented house which is public property, it shall be implemented according to the provisions in Section 2, Chapter VIII of the 2023 Housing Law.
In the case of pre-purchase of housing, Article 169 of the 2023 Housing Law stipulates that when the parties have signed a housing sale and purchase contract but the State has a need to purchase that housing for use in national defense, security purposes or for national interests, emergency situations, or natural disaster prevention, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee shall issue a decision to pre-purchase that housing.
The purchase price, terms and methods of payment for the house purchase are implemented according to the house purchase contract signed by the parties. The State shall compensate the parties for damages (if any), the house purchase contract signed by the parties is no longer legally valid.
