HCMC housing market momentum remains strong in Q3: property consultancy
Buildings are seen along the Saigon River in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Reuters
The Ho Chi Minh City housing market reported more new launches and sales, especially in the south of the city, in the third quarter, property services firm CBRE Vietnam said Tuesday.
Duong Thuy Dung, director of research and consulting at CBRE, said a total of 10,114 new units were launched at 26 projects, triple the number seen in the third quarter of 2014.
New supply in the south (Districts 4, 7, 8, and Nha Be) accounted for 36 percent and the recent hot spot in the east (Districts 2, 9, Binh Thanh, and Thu Duc) for a more modest 29 percent in July-September, Dung said at a press briefing in HCMC Tuesday.
“It is interesting to once again see southern properties taking the lead compared to the east, particularly following the recent news that HCMC plans to develop its first special economic zone in the south with a focus on the marine economy.”
Dung expected the market to “witness more competition” between these two popular locations, especially in the context that the Thu Thiem urban area in District 2 has kicked off development with the first condominiums, Sarimi, to be launched this quarter.
The third quarter also saw a revival of some long-delayed projects, which new developers have taken over and revitalized by providing more finance or redesigning unit layout, size or mix, according to a CBRE quarterly report released at the press briefing.
They include City Gate Towers in District 8, Linh Tay Tower in Thu Duc District, and C.T. Plaza Nguyen Hong in Go Vap District.
The property services firm said the market sentiment remains relatively positive despite the “ghost month” – the seventh lunar month that ended September 12 -- with good cash inflows from buyers.
An estimated 7,862 units were sold in the third quarter, an 88 percent year-on-year increase.
Continuing the trend from the previous quarter, high-end apartments accounted for a majority share of the units sold. In the first nine months of this year high-end apartments accounted for 35 percent, up from 32 percent last year.
In terms of pricing, the average primary price decreased by 4 percent from the previous quarter in dollar terms, a result of the recent dong devaluation.
Three months after new regulations allowing foreigners to buy housing in Vietnam came into effect, some initial interest has been seen from foreign buyers.
Marc Townsend, managing director of CBRE Vietnam, said, “There has not been a notable increase in sales to foreigners to date as many potential buyers are awaiting more guidance and progress in implementation.
“Being an agent proactively targeting this group of buyers, we have observed that professionalism, language proficiency and ease of credit card payment are some of the key issues where foreign buyers are involved.”
