Illustrative image.—VNS File Photo

HCM CITY (Biz Hub)— The Viet Nam Real Estate Association (VNREA) will continue to help its members overcome difficulties, advise and seek policy support from the Government, and promote market transparency, officials said yesterday.

Speaking on the sidelines of an exhibition on "Housing for True Demand," which is part of a series of events celebrating the association's 10th anniversary, property developers said that in the near future, businesses are likely to focus on developing social and low-income housing, taking advantage of preferential policies in place for this segment.

The three-day exhibition is being attended by many big property firms including Hoang Quan, Thu Duc House, Thanh Binh and the Housing and Urban Development Corporation.

Association officials said the event would help property developers nationwide popularise their projects and attract domestic as well as foreign investment.

It would also give property firms an opportunity to promote their brand and prospective customers to make choices based on quality information.

Meanwhile, developers can speed up sales and mobilise capital for ongoing or new projects, the officials said.

The exhibition also offers the possibility of linking enterprises with banks in order to improve credit access for both enterprises and prospective home buyers, helping the stagnant property market move ahead, they added.

A grand ceremony with the attendance of Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai and other dignitaries including the Governor of the State Bank of Viet Nam Nguyen Van Binh and senior officials of the Ministry of Construction and the HCM City administration will be held this morning to mark VNREA's 10th anniversary.

Later in the day, officials of the Construction Ministry, the central bank, relevant agencies, industry insiders and experts will gather at a seminar that will seek solutions for solving the problem of unsold property inventory under the Government's Resolution 02/NQ-CP.

The seminar will also focus on ongoing challenges as well as opportunities.

VNREA deputy chairman Truong Anh Tuan, who is also chairman of the Hoang Quan Real Estate Corporation, said yesterday that many businesses will now focus on developing social and low cost housing to take full advantage of preferential policies for this segment, including reductions in VAT and corporate income tax, preferential interest rates and other measures.

Following the Government resolution, his company will convert four commercial housing projects in HCM City, Can Tho, Vinh Long and Binh Thuan to social housing projects. This year, it will launch 1,000 low cost apartments and 2,000 social houses, Tuan said.

VNREA officials said that at the end of the seminar, several agreements will be signed among leading credit institutions like Agribank, Trustbank, and BIDV to implement the resolution that seeks to revive the property market.

Total housing space in Viet Nam has more than doubled since 1999 from 709 million sq.m to 1.6 billion sq.m at present. During this period, per-capita housing space has doubled from 9.68 sq.m to 19.2 sq.m, according to VNREA. — VNS