Hanoi Planning: Important Direction-finder for Investors

Property experts said the capital master plan ratified by the Prime Minister in late July is an important legal basis for investors to define investment directions and map out long-term development strategies.

 

The Hanoi master plan is also the keystone for any adjustment to the capital region planning. Mr Tran Ngoc Chinh, Member of the Steering Committee for Capital Region Construction and Planning, and Chairman of the Vietnam Urban Planning Association, said: Hanoi must first of all utilise spaces that affect urban development. It means that [it] must choose where to build, where to locate urban zones, where to build schools, and so on in a well-organised space. Therefore, the planning that is one step ahead is vital to sustained urban development and it thus has a very strong impact on the real estate market, not only in Hanoi but also its neighbours.

 

According to the planning, Hanoi will be a multi-functional capital city with 12 million citizens. Chinh said real estate companies need to define their development orientations to develop their projects with a suitable scale and in a good location.

 

With respect to implementing the approved master plan, Mr Duong Duc Tuan, Deputy Director of Hanoi Planning and Architecture Department, confirmed that the Hanoi master planning requires urban planning and architecture management regulations and all-inclusive urban management instrument. At present, Hanoi is setting up plans and carrying out some 30 general urban planning schemes, 30 sub-region planning schemes, 60 detailed and specialised planning schemes.

 

As regards the supply for the property market, Mr Phan Thanh Mai, President of the Vietnam Real Estate Association, said the most pressing concern of the people is how to “clear” the market. “What will Hanoi do to supply houses for more than 10 million citizens by 2030 - the figure anticipated in the master plan? Where will it take money to fund urban development demands as planned,” Mai added.

 

In this regard, Mr Vu Xuan Thien, Deputy Director of Housing and Real Estate Market Management Department under the Ministry of Construction, said: The supply for the real estate market is currently very limited. Of the total 85 million square metres of houses built in recent years, only 30 percent are commercial accommodations and the rest is self-built by the people. Given its population scale, the housing demand remains very high in Hanoi in the coming time. Thus, the lacklustre atmosphere is temporary and this is the chance for the market to restructure the supply and prices.

 

Attending investors expressed their concerns about the shortage of information about new steps of master planning and of accurate expert evaluations on impacts of Hanoi master planning on the market. The workshop also gave a panoramic picture for real estate investors and developers to have more effective approaches.