Apartment buyers want quality

Buyers of hi-end apartments are becoming increasingly discerning when it comes to location,
reliability of developers and the quality of build

High-end apartments still suffer from limited progress in terms of sales while many mid-end projects have remained unsold even following price cuts.

According to Dang Hung Vo, former Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, high-end apartments are still attractive enough to buyers.

Vingroup recently saw more than 800 buyers visiting the launching for their Vinhomes Nguyen Chi Thanh project, with more than 250 buying homes. Apartments cost from VND60 to 65 million ($2,800 to $3,080) per square metre.

“Through the good sale of this project we can see the demand for high-end apartments remains high,” Vo said.

Vinhomes Nguyen Chi Thanh could be seen as an outstanding case in a real estate market experiencing a downturn. Vo confirmed that all other projects developed by Vingroup such as Royal City and Times City had seen good sales recently.

“The problem is not that we lack high-end projects, but whether those projects meet buyers’ demands,” he added.

The improved sale of some high-end projects in Hanoi underlines Vo’s comments.

Sales at the Tan Hoang Minh Group’s D’. Le Pont D’or project have also seen improvements.

The D’. Le Pont D’or boasts prices from VND33 to 38 million ($1,500 to $1,800) per square metre, one of the lowest prices for high-end apartment projects in central Hanoi.

Other projects are sold at higher levels such as at VND60 to 70 million ($2,850 to $4,280) per square metre in The Lancaster and Discovery Complex II, or VND80 to 90 million ($3,800 to $4,280) in Hoang Thanh Tower. Despite these high prices, half the apartment stock has already been sold.

According to Vu Cuong Quyet, general director of Northern Dat Xanh, liquidity in the high-end apartment market has improved remarkably recently.

The reason for this improvement, Quyet said, was that due to the huge stockpile of real estate, developers exclude high-end projects from their portfolios.

Hanoi had recently issued a regulation to limit high-rise buildings in the four central districts of Ba Dinh, Hoan Kiem, Dong Da and Hai Ba Trung, and around West Lake, which would lead to fewer high-end projects in the pipeline.

Vo also admitted that another factor in their popularity was that their developers had paid attention to finishing all of the support facilities, in order to give buyers a perfect environment when moving in.

Pham Thanh Hung, deputy chairman of Cen Group, said that location was still one of the first priorities to attract buyers, together with already completed infrastructure and facilities.