Business  » Property

After a long hibernation, work on many apartment projects in the golden land plots in downtown Ho Chi Minh City has recently restarted at a time when the real estate market still remains frozen.

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>> HCM City buys up resettlement housing

One of the latest players is the Saigon Centre project, which entered its second stage of construction last December.

The project, located in one of the most prime positions of the city center with three sides facing Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, Le Loi, and Pasteur streets, is invested by Keppel Land Watco with total investments worth more than VND3.3 trillion ($158.4 million).

Meanwhile, the People’s Committee of District 1 said the office building and apartment project in the quadrilateral Ben Thanh market (cornered by Le Thi Hong Gam – Calmette – Pham Ngu Lao – Pho Duc Chinh streets) is also completing procedures to break ground in the first quarter of this year.

The 8,640-square-meter lot will see two 55-story office buildings. The main investor is Bitexco Group, which will spend VND4 trillion worth of investments for the project that is expected to reach completion after three years.

A huge project on Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street consisting of five 34-story buildings functioning as the apartment, trade center, and hotel is also expected to begin in the first quarter.

Two other projects near the Ben Thanh quadrilateral zone have been slated to begin site clearance and compensation this year.

Tran Thanh Xa, director of the Ben Thanh Housing Development Co Ltd, the main investor of the project on Nguyen Dinh Chieu street, said although the project had been initiated as early as 1996, it was delayed until now due to problems in site clearance.

In the first quarter, the company will begin construction on the 34-story tower as a resettlement place for the residents whose houses have been cleared to give place to the project, Xa said.

Commenting on the VND3.5-trillion capital required for the project, Xa said he would mobilize from other investors and bank loans.

“Many banks had accepted to offer loans for the company,” he said.

Similarly, Bitexco said its project was also delayed due to some changes in site clearance regulations, and other investment procedures.

Although the real estate market remains frozen, Bitexco will still implement the projects to give the city downtown a facelift, it said.