Daily Real Estate Briefing: Major Projects Break Ground as Credit and Housing Prices Remain Under Pressure

The real estate landscape last week was marked by a wave of large-scale project groundbreakings around September 2, spanning Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Phu Quoc. Ho Chi Minh City alone allocated more than VND 181 trillion to key transport and urban projects, a move expected to provide seed capital, expand development space and support the real estate market and urban economy. In the northern region, localities are implementing seven expressway routes, comprising 14 projects or component projects, while Hanoi has begun concretizing its 100-year master plan through 81 detailed plans. The West Lake improvement project, with total investment of more than VND 30 trillion, has also attracted attention as asking prices for houses and land around the lake commonly reach hundreds of millions of dong per square meter, with some areas exceeding VND 1 billion per square meter.

Elsewhere, the Ma Lang urban improvement project was officially launched, although residents hope to be resettled in place, with compensation rights protected and their livelihoods and living conditions maintained. In Cau Giay, eight land lots in the new urban area are scheduled for auction. The 231-square-meter lot has the highest starting price, at nearly VND 41 billion, equivalent to VND 176.6 million per square meter. Ho Chi Minh City has also applied unified regulations on land subdivision and consolidation across the city since August 28, setting minimum areas of 36 square meters for residential land and 500 square meters for agricultural land.

Liquidity and credit remain key concerns as home loan interest rates rise to 13% to 16% per year, prompting many owner-occupier buyers to rent instead. New proposals favor classifying real estate credit risks rather than imposing across-the-board tightening, with capital prioritized for legally compliant projects serving genuine housing demand. Buyers are also increasingly choosing properties with practical value, income-generating potential and operating capacity instead of relying solely on price appreciation. At the same time, home prices are considered unlikely to return to previous levels because land, construction, capital and legal costs all remain high. In the corporate sector, the owner of Saigon Marina IFC reported a loss of more than VND 200 billion in the first half of the year and had more than VND 10 trillion in outstanding bond debt. The Central Steering Committee for Housing Policy and the Real Estate Market was also reorganized under Decision 1666/QD-TTg dated August 27.