Who needs to stay calm?

(Baonghean)In a newspaper interview on the last day of 2012, the Minister of Construction delivered a message stating that: Regarding the prospects of the real estate market in 2013, we need to look at it objectively and calmly. However, he did not specify who needed to be objective and calm.

So who is the one who needs to be objective and calm?

A closer look reveals that when the real estate market freezes, the first to panic are secondary investors who have accumulated a significant amount of inventory beyond their means and are unable to quickly resell for quick profits as before. When the freeze continues, real estate developers panic because they lack the funds to complete construction. Even if they have enough money to complete the projects, the situation isn't much better because they can't sell the properties.

Next, the banks, having poured large sums of money into real estate projects, lost their composure. Projects failing to sell meant banks couldn't recover their loans. In reality, hundreds of trillions of dong were stuck in unsold real estate, a significant portion of which became "bad debt" for bankers. Investors, project owners, and banks struggled with the lack of demand for their products, and now the government is losing its composure. The actions of relevant ministries and agencies in this sector, urging efforts to rescue the real estate market, demonstrate this. Recently, the head of government officially affirmed his commitment to rescuing the real estate market.

As for objectivity? Investors, project owners, and banks are trying every possible way to get rid of that pile of bad debt as quickly as possible, regardless of the method. Therefore, one cannot expect objectivity from these parties. Their ultimate goal is to rely on the State, because in the current difficult circumstances, no one has the resources to thaw the frozen real estate market and the pile of bad bank debt. Consequently, many conferences and seminars have been organized to find ways to resolve this market issue. From the speeches of some delegates regularly invited to these conferences, the influence of real estate project owners or bank owners is subtly felt. Therefore, no perfect solution has yet been proposed to ensure the interests of all three parties: investors, banks, and customers. Ultimately, people want to involve the State, and the State has begun to intervene with the actions mentioned above. Therefore, the entities that need to "assess the situation objectively and calmly" here are the relevant government agencies in this field.

The state is expected to bail out the real estate sector with an estimated 40 to 50 trillion VND, according to some media reports. Let's not discuss whether that amount is large or small; instead, the relevant authorities tasked with this responsibility should dedicate sufficient time to studying and considering the matter. This will allow for an objective and calm approach to ensure the funds are used transparently, fairly, and effectively. Without this calmness, deliberate influence from various sources could easily lead to chaos, improper rescue methods, and misdirected actions. In such a scenario, various forces might jump in to stir up trouble for their own gain. Conversely, if the process is not objective, as many have warned, the money could be used to bail out real estate businesses that are "backyards" of certain individuals, in various forms. In short, without objectivity and calmness, it is impossible to resolve the difficulties facing the real estate sector, create momentum for sustainable market development, and meet the diverse housing needs of different social classes.

Duy Huong (Nhan Dan Newspaper)