Having intended to buy an old apartment building in the inner city when the apartment segment increased, Ms. Tran Thanh Ngoc (character's name has been changed, 36 years old, working in Cau Giay district) had to quickly leave after seeing the current status of the house being advertised for sale on social networks for 2 billion VND.
According to Ms. Ngoc, at first she wanted to buy an old apartment building because it was located in the city center and the price was suitable for her income. However, due to being in use for too long, the To Hieu apartment building in Nghia Do has shown signs of deterioration, the space is humid and stuffy.
"At first, I thought the apartment complex was located in the inner city, so it would be convenient for work and the education of my two children. But when the broker took me to see the house in person, my husband and I reconsidered and gave up this idea because the quality of the housing was deteriorating," said Ms. Ngoc.
Ms. Bui Thu Minh (name changed, media staff in Hanoi) informed that in October 2024, she was taken by a broker to see an old apartment building with an area of 48 square meters, 2 bedrooms for 2.7 billion VND, equivalent to 57 million VND/square meter in Dong Da district.
Although the location of the house is quite convenient and has full amenities around, Ms. Minh still did not decide to buy it because if she moved in, she would have to invest a lot in renovation costs.
According to Lao Dong reporters, in the context of the real estate market in Hanoi experiencing strong fluctuations, Hanoi has a compensation and renovation policy, and old apartment buildings in central districts are being sold by their owners at high prices.
Experts from the OneHousing real estate ecosystem believe that old apartment buildings in Hanoi have the advantage of being located in the center of the capital. However, when looking to buy this segment, people need to pay attention to the quality of the building and the actual area of the apartment building after expansion compared to the actual area on the red book.
Mr. Nguyen Van Dinh - Chairman of the Vietnam Real Estate Brokers Association (Vars) - commented that many old collective apartments located in "golden land" locations in the center of Hanoi have high selling prices and are being sought after because of the scarce supply of new houses.
However, Mr. Dinh said that when buying and selling old collective houses, buyers also need to pay attention to the actual area and quality of the house. The reason is that during their stay, many households have added tiger cages of dozens of square meters, causing great risks and reducing the value when buying, selling and transferring.
