Real estate sales in May rose slightly month-on-month, compared with the first quarter this year, according to the Ministry of Construction’s Management Agency for Housing and Real Estate Market.

Successful transactions were mostly in the mid- and hi-end segments, while affordable ones were not sold owing to their limited supply.

During the month, Ha Noi recorded nearly 1,200 successful deals, up by some 14 per cent against last month, raising the five-month volume to about 5,400.

In the southern metropolis HCM City, nearly 1,300 deals were reached, marking a 12 per cent increase. Between January and May, up to 5,870 transactions were successful.

Brokers said successful deals were mostly those located near downtown. Buyers also take into account transport convenience, facilities, apartment design, payment progress and the appreciation value.

In Ha Noi, major sales were predominant in the southwest, such as The Golden Palm in Thanh Xuan, Gelexia Riverside in Hoang Mai and Gemek Premium in Ha Dong, which have synchronous infrastructure.

Hi-end projects in HCM City also sold well, such as Vinhomes Golden River Ba Son in District 1 and Ha Do Centrosa Garden in district 10.

Low-rise housing in Lucasta Khang Dien in District 2 and Thu Thiem Garden in District 9 saw considerable sales.

Tourism and resort properties in coastal localities, such as Da Nang City, Nha Trang City in central coastal Khanh Hoa Province and Phu Quoc in southern Kien Giang Province, have become attractive to investors at home and abroad.

Unsold properties nationwide were valued at about VND27.89 trillion (US$1.23 billion), as of late May, down 10 per cent from the end of 2016. The figure declined VND474 billion ($20.87 million) from April.

Unsold land for housing accounted for more than 3.37 million square metres worth VND13.2 trillion ($581.33 million), the biggest proportion of total unsold property value.

It was followed by low-rise housing (3,492 units worth VND7.38 trillion or $325 million), condominium apartments (3,325 units worth VND4.83 trillion or $212.7 million), and land for commercial purposes (648,140 square metres worth VND2.48 trillion or $109.2 million).

Although unsold properties continued to decrease, the rate of decrease slowed down. Most of the unsold land is part of uptown projects lacking infrastructure, the management department said.

The value of unsold real estate in Ha Noi was still higher than in HCM City in May. It was estimated at VND5.45 trillion ($240 million) in Ha Noi and VND5.18 trillion ($228.13 million) in HCM City, down VND23 billion ($1 million) and VND100 billion (4.4 million) from April, respectively. — VNS