Investors home in on Long An

Long An - illustration photo

Travelling between Long An and Ho Chi Minh City, the country's economic hub, has become significantly easier and quicker with the development of many transport projects – some of them already complete – which has accelerated socio-economic development in the province.

They include the Ho Chi Minh City-Trung Luong Expressway which opened in February 2010, Nguyen Van Linh and Vo Van Kiet Roads, Belt Road No 3, and the Tan Son Nhat – Long An Expressway which is under construction.

According to real estate analysts, since late 2010, Long An has become a hotspot for property investors, with prices of land near Ho Chi Minh City rising by between VND500,000 and VND4 million per square metre so far this year.

Doan Chi Thanh, general director of the Hoang Anh Sai Gon Real Estate Company, said much buying and selling has been happening at major projects like Five Star, Happy Land, Long Hau, Everluck Residence, and Long Dinh trade centre.

Since late 2010, both the prices and number of transactions here have shot up, he said.

Property industry insiders said the markets in most places near Ho CHi Minh City, including Binh Duong, Long An and Dong Nai were expected to flourish this year.

There have already been symptoms of that, they said.

Asked about the phenomenon, analysts said the Ho Chi Minh City market is saturated while the minimum investment needed is also large.

Besides, there is little land there to be sold, forcing many investors to move to neighbouring localities, particularly Long An, they added.

Property prices in places like Binh Duong, Dong Nai, and Long An are still low and likely to yield better profits to investors, Luong Tri Thin, chairman of the Dat Xanh Group, said.