Hoai Duc expects real estate boom

Bright City will provide 1,500 apartments in Hoai Duc district’s Kim Chung commune

Paying over VND1 billion ($45,454) for an apartment in Duc Thuong in Hoai Duc district to the west of Hanoi five years ago, Nguyen Thi Ly used to scold herself for her poor decision, having chosen a place 20 kilometres from the inner city.

However, Ly, a nurse at the Transport Hospital in Cau Giay district, now feels no regrets for her choice as the rural area is expected to become an exciting urban district over the next two years.

An urban district is born

Bringing an end to hearsay and guesswork, Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung affirmed the city’s plan to turn the rural district of Hoai Duc into an urban district by 2020, in the committee’s March meeting.

Chung requested that his subordinates outline the project’s details with a reasonable schedule to realise the plan. He told local media that there was no doubt about an upgrade of the district. “The city can make the investment of hiring a foreign consultant for the plan,” he said.

With the merger between the city of Hanoi and the former province of Ha Tay in 2008, the 82.67-square kiliometre district of Hoai Duc, one of Ha Tay’s most culturally rich centres, became a rural district of the capital city.

According to the Vietnam National Real Estate Association, the district holds great potential for the realty market. In addition to its traffic connections of Beltway 3.5 and Beltway 4 currently under construction, as well as the main axes of To Huu, Thang Long, and National Highway 32, there are also plans in the near future to build Hanoi’s first ever skytrain.

Ly is excited, even though the first phase of the 12km skytrain, connecting the nearby Nhon area with the inner city, will not be finished until 2021. “Although the skytrain has been delayed several times, I believe that it will soon be done,” she said.

Currently, it often takes Ly 30-45 minutes to get to work. With the new sky train, which will connect Hoang Mai district with Hoai Duc district’s Tram Troi town at its full length, it would be 20 minutes at most.

Aside from the advantages the train will bring, the whole infrastructure system in the district is changing rapidly. National Highway 32 has been expanded to four lanes, while Beltway 3.5 – to be finished in October – has a special section (5.6km long, 60m wide, and with a speed limit of 80km/h) that will connect it to Thang Long Boulevard.

Nguyen Thi Thu Hang, deputy director of Savills Vietnam, told VIR that since most of the land in the inner city is already occupied, the west of Hanoi is becoming more attractive with its improved transport situation.

Hang said that a complete transport system would also boost the retail and entertainment services in Hoai Duc and its neighbouring districts.

Favourable location

Located next to the districts of South Tu Liem, North Tu Liem, and Cau Giay, where education, health, entertainment, and retail are experiencing rapid growth, Hoai Duc earns its place as a more reasonably-priced home for people working and studying in those areas.

In addition, located close to Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park, which accommodates 81 projects with VND66.2 trillion ($3 billion) in investment capital, the growing urban projects and condominiums in Hoai Duc can provide better realty services to the park’s highly paid employees, as the park’s home district of Thach That offers few facilities.

Current major investors in the district are Lung Lo 5 (with its Westpoint project covering 32 hectares), Lilama Investment, Construction and Urban Development JSC (with its Son Dong Sunshine City), and Hai Phat Land.

Last June, the joint venture of Vinaconex and Phu Long Real Estate JSC of billionaire Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, which bought a 50 per cent stake of South Korea’s Posco E&C in the joint venture, resumed its $2.5 billion Splendora project in An Khanh after an 11 year delay, while realty developer Vingroup began the construction work on Vinhomes Thang Long in 2016.

Tran Huu Thang from Hai Phat Land told VIR that more and more customers are showing interest in its project in the district. Last year, Hai Phat Land opened a branch there to serve the increasing demand.

Land prices surge

Thang said a land plot of 70-80 square metres now costs VND 22-25 million ($1,000-1140) per sq.m, an increase of 20 per cent over the last two years.

Nguyen Long from Hoai Duc Realty Office said land prices in some areas have risen between 20 and 25 per cent since the beginning of the year alone, due to increasing land transactions.

The price of residential land in the areas of Van Canh, Kim Chung, Di Trach, Duc Giang, and Tram Troi is now much higher than it was in the past. Land in a prime location can cost VND20-50 million ($910-2,280) per sq.m, while land prices by National Highway 32 can reach more than VND150 million ($6,850) per sq.m.

Currently, Hanoi has 12 urban districts, 17 rural districts, and one town within its city limits. In addition to Hoai Duc to the west, the suburban districts of Gia Lam to the east and Thanh Tri to the south of the city also hope to be declared urban districts.