Speculators dampen capital’s sales recovery

Despite sales only beginning to significantly increase developers are already increasing their prices from 10 to 20 per cent in some projects.

Prices at the Capital Garden have already increased to VND27 million ($1,285) per square metre from the previous VND23 million ($1,095) per square metre. Some units with better views are being offered at VND30 million ($1,428) per square metre.

At the FLC Complex in Pham Hung street invested in by FLC group, speculators are trying to flip units at VND31 million ($1,476) per square metre, up from the official price of VND27.5 million ($1,300) per square metre.

This 15 per cent increase has happened over the course of just one week.

At the CT2B Nghia Do building, prices increased to VND28 million ($1,300), from an initial VND25 million ($1,190) per square metre.

Similarly, in Helios Tower, the developer ratcheted up the price of the last unit to VND1.5billion ($71,400) compared to the usual price of VND1.4 billion ($66,600).

According to CBRE Vietnam, the market continued its recovery in the first quarter of this year with the availability of more high-end apartments.

A total of 4,879 new units were launched across 18 projects, an 82 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.

Five of the 18 newly-launched projects are aimed at the high-end segment, more than in any single quarter during the 2012 - 2014 period.

The number of newly-launched high-end units increased 60 per cent on-quarter and 30 per cent on-year.

According to Richard Leech, executive director of CBRE Vietnam, despite a long Tet break, sales transactions remained strong during the first quarter. An estimated 3,079 units were snapped up, double the figure recorded during the first quarter of 2014.

“It is noted that the share of transactions for high-end apartments increased to 26 per cent of total sales, compared to 14 per cent in the previous quarter,” Leech said.

The mid-end segment continued to account for the highest share of total units sold, while the low-end segment saw a dip in the share of total sales as compared to last quarter.

In terms of pricing, CBRE noted that some projects in prime locations near the city centre have increased their prices.

“On average, primary prices in both the high and low-end segments increased by 7 per cent and 5 per cent year-on-year, respectively. These are mostly projects near the city centre and are showing good construction progress or are being built by reputable developers,” according to Leech.