HCMC to Build 85,500 Low Priced Apartments in 2009-2015

“So far, there have had 25 low priced housing projects built in urban areas across the country, with a total investment of over VND5.2 trillion. These projects are expected to benefit up to 70,000 low-income people. In Ho Chi Minh City alone, there will have 6,000 low price apartments next year,” said Nguyen Manh Ha, head of the municipal management department for housing and real estate.  

Pending projects to be revoked
In front of some opinions saying the encouragement of low price housing projects can lead to a series of pending projects, Deputy Construction Minister Nguyen Tran Nam said “the policy of building apartments for low income people gives lots of priorities for enterprises so the projects should not been stagnant”. 

 

 A circular issued by the construction ministry has offered specifically mechanisms and priorities for low cost housing projects, including the regulation on completion deadline of each project. Thus, if there is any project delayed for a long time, it will be revoked. Mr Nam said Hanoi has many pending projects, leaving hundreds hectares of land unoccupied. Many plots of land which have been planed for social housing projects are being used for other purposes.

 

Enterprises enjoy subsidised loans
According to the Ministry of Construction, building homes for low-income people is a stimulus measure to curb the economic downturn. Therefore, procedures are open and clear in order to facilitate the projects to work promptly. Ha said the ministry has asked localities to check and review the demand of low priced housing as well as the fund of land which is available for the projects to be located in.  

According to the ministry of construction, creating the fund of land and capital source are the most important factors in carrying out low cost housing projects. Under the regulation, the investors of commercial housing projects and new urban areas, with land of more than 5 hectares, may have to reserve at least 10 percent of the land fund to build low-cost houses. The rate of land fund for low cost apartments of each commercial housing project or new urban area need to be defined in the detail work plan approved by the authorized unit. Nam added that in the case investors have detail construction plan but have not yet zoned land fund for low price housing, they will have to adjust their scheme.   

Regarding capital source for the low priced housing projects, Nam said enterprises investing into this kind of project will receive priorities like exemption of land usage and renting fees, exemption of corporate income taxation for four years and reduction of 50 percent of corporate income taxation for the four next years.    

Enterprises will also enjoy preferential loans and supported partially or totally interests by provincial people’s committees. With the above-mentioned priorities, the price of an apartment will be much lower than that of commercial apartment. A 60 square-meter-widen apartment will cost only over VND300 million, Nam said. As a result, people in urban areas will be able to buy their own house thanks to savings and financial supports from their families or bank’s loans.

 

Currently, there are 14 enterprises in Ho Chi Minh City having registered to build low priced apartments. Besides the quality management like with other construction works, independent consultancy companies will attend to check the quality of low cost housing projects. 

 

The project of building 85,000 low cost apartments, low income people in Ho Chi Minh City will have opportunity to buy suitable apartment in the near future.