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2012 will be a good year for real estate investors despite the difficulties on the horizon, said real estate service firm CBRE.

Many real estate investors see a bright 2012

>> Buying apartments requires 50 years saving: CBRE

In 2011, the real estate market faced many problems from the income flows being challenged as the capital flows are restricted and customers’ interests faded.

However, Marc Townsend, Managing Director of CBRE in Vietnam said that 2012 will see more investment in the real estate market.

He also explained that sales in the automobile sector increased in 2011, indicating that customers still have money to spend. They are just not spending it in realty.

Townsend pointed out that the price of gold is currently at an all-time high. Once it cools down, people will move towards investing in the real estate market again. Affordable housing will probably be the most attractive for investors, he said.

Hanoi now still has 16,000 unsold apartments and will be offering 22,000 more in 2012. Therefore, the price is expected to stop rising and remain steady just like the prices in the Ho Chi Minh market.

Concerning the retail sector, Townsend added that Hanoi's commercial centres are scattered, making these areas more competitive as supply expected to surge this year.

With an additional 128,000 metres of office room from the western area, there was a record high of 48 per cent unoccupied offices, and 27 per cent in all of real estate.

Office prices are expected to keep falling because of vacancies. This will be a good thing for customers.

Townsend noted that the market will witness increasing activity in mergers and acquisitions in the next few years.

“For investors who have already invested in projects prices seem to be just too low. However, many companies or individuals will be able to find opportunities to gain from the real estate market in the near future. We believe all this will boost FDI," he said.

Not only the real estate projects are being completed, Hanoi's infrastructure is also being improved. In the next four years there are plans for construction projects in transport sectors across the board: highway overpasses, new bridges and urban railways.

This, it is hoped, will help facilitate easier and more comfortable travel between urban centres and the countryside.