A view of Trung Hoa-Nhan Chinh residential area in Ha Noi. There were 9,651 apartments and houses available in Ha Noi, up 3,862 units against December last year. — VNS Photo Truong Vi

HA NOI (Biz Hub)— The value of the country's real estate currently on sale on the market at the end of June was roughly VND108.77 trillion (US$5.06 billion), down 15.4 per cent against the first quarter, said Deputy Minister for Construction Nguyen Tran Nam.

Nam said that 27,805 high rise apartments worth VND41.54 trillion ($1.93 billion) are currently available, accounting for 38.19 per cent of the country's total housing stock.

There are also more than 2 million square metres of land plots on the market, Nam disclosed at a meeting in the capital yesterday of the Central Steering Committee on Housing Policy and Real Estate Market.

Nam said that these figures were inadequate as several cities and provinces have not yet provided accurate figures but the data provided from 56 out of 63 cities and provinces nationwide.

HCM City and central Khanh Hoa Province were the areas to record the biggest drop in available real estate.

The value of unsold real estate in HCM City at the end of June had fallen to roughly VND26.69 trillion as city-based property developers sold an additional 1,877 apartments in the first half of the year.

In Ha Noi, there were 9,651 apartments and houses available, up 3,862 units against December last year. The total value came to more than VND17 trillion.

During yesterday's meeting, the State Bank of Viet Nam also reported that total outstanding loans to the real estate industry in the first half of this year rose by 4 per cent against December last year to reach VND237.5 trillion ($11.04 billion).

Of the total, lending to industrial and processing zones came to VND14.96 trillion, up 0.1 per cent. Loans to residential urban developers were VND46.68 trillion while VND55.84 trillion was allocated for purchasing houses and repairs.

However, the central bank noted that non-performing loans in the real estate sector stood at 6.53 per cent at the end of June, against 5.39 per cent in December last year.

As for the VND30 trillion housing stimulus package, the central bank said that it would pay more attention when carrying the programme, out as currently it is difficult for individual borrowers to access the package that offers the preferential interest rate of 6 per cent per year. — VNS