Property price surge to halt after reopening

Once the "living with Covid-19" scheme has been activated, the property market would not post growth until the second or even last quarter next year, said economist Dinh The Hien.

No market sees prices increase forever, he said, adding there had already been a surge in property prices between 2016 and 2019, and from 2020 to the end of the second quarter this year.

However, the fourth Covid-19 wave has left a severe impact on property trade volume, which makes the scenario of a continued rise in prices unlikely, Hien said.

Some projects in November might see a price hike but the same trend won’t happen in the whole industry, he added.

In the last four months, investors have been struggling with plunging income that have dragged down property trading volume in the major markets of Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Da Nang, Binh Duong and Dong Nai.

Tran Khanh Quang, CEO of real estate developer Viet An Hoa, said there would likely be more sellers than buyers as the economy reopens.

In the next three to six months the market would likely fluctuate, while its recovery depends largely on the success in controlling and adapting to the pandemic, he said.

Even though the offering prices might rise, real negotiations would go the other way and buyers could get their desired property at 5-10 percent discount, Quang added.

Data from property company Propzy shows although offering prices for property in HCMC have risen 10 percent year-on-year, negotiated prices are actually 4.2 percent lower.

Huynh Phuoc Nghia, senior consultant for Global Integration Business Consultants, said the fourth Covid-19 wave could turn upside down the business plans of investors in at least the next six months.

This means in this quarter and the next, the property industry would face many challenges, he added.