Purchasers get fairer deals

November 21, 2011 | 07:44

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It’s now a buyers’ market when it comes to property in Vietnam, according to one market expert. “We are a long way from the time when customers struggled to register to buy an apartment,” said Tran Nhu Trung, associate director of research and consultancy of Savills Vietnam.

In 2007, hundreds of people rushed to see the model house at The Vista in Ho Chi Minh City, on the slim chance they might get their hands on an apartment in the coveted project. The project invested by CapitaLand carried a price tag of $1,600 per square metre when it was launched.

It was a similar story at many other projects in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City – projects like Phu My Hung invested by CT&D, The Mansion of Khang Viet Company in Ho Chi Minh City and Nam Cuong Company’s Le Van Luong Residentials in Hanoi.

In those heady days, projects’ investors and developers even resorted to auctions or lucky draws to choose people eligible to buy an apartment. “I remember that the term launching didn’t exist because every product was bought before it was announced. The sellers could finish sales in a very short time, without any effort. There was no advertising, no promotion and no bargaining either,” Trung said.

“Back then, being registered was a big success. A lot of people even made big wins by selling their products even before they were finished,” added Nguyen Ninh Truong, a staff member at one property joint venture in Hanoi.

Truong recalled that developers then divided the right to buy apartment in their projects among company staff. The majority of those staff then did very well out re-selling this right on to others.
“At that time this right was seen as a bonus for company staff and it was divided like a company allowance,” Truong added.