Nghe An strives to develop social housing.
Nghe An province aims to complete 28,500 social housing units by 2030, including 19,500 for workers. This is a major goal that requires focused effort.
Great effort
As of March 2025, the whole country had implemented 644 social housing projects, with a total scale of over 580,000 apartments. Of these, 96 projects have been completed (nearly 57,700 apartments), and 133 projects are under construction (scale of over 110,000 apartments). The government aims to complete at least 100,000 social housing units in 2025 and a total of 1 million units by 2030. In Nghe An province, the People's Committee has planned to complete 28,500 social housing units by 2030, of which 19,500 are specifically for industrial park workers – a group with urgent needs but difficult access to suitable housing.
The People's Committee of Nghe An province is directing departments, localities, and investors to implement 31 social housing and low-income housing projects. Upon completion, these projects will provide approximately 22,519 homes for the people. This is a significant effort, especially considering that many localities still face difficulties regarding land availability, investment capital, and approval policies.
According to information from the Management Board of the Southeast Economic Zone, Nghe An province has approved the investment policy for 4 social housing projects for workers in industrial zones within the Southeast Economic Zone, with a total of approximately 8,200 units.
Specifically, nearly 7,300 units belong to two projects by Central Vietnam MK Solar Power Joint Stock Company and BMC International Trading Joint Stock Company in Nghi Long and Nghi Thuan communes (Nghi Loc); 525 apartment units and 23 low-rise townhouses for workers and employees in the industrial zone of Kim Thi Real Estate Joint Stock Company in Nghi Xa commune (Nghi Loc); and nearly 300 units belong to a project of Song Lam Cement Joint Stock Company in Nghi Tien commune (Nghi Loc)..
In addition, many businesses in Nghe An have also built housing systems for their workers. Notable examples include the Luxshare-ICT Nghe An factory dormitory, with 2,055 rooms, providing accommodation for approximately 8,220 workers in the VSIP Industrial Park; and the Everwin Precision Vietnam Technology Co., Ltd. dormitory, providing accommodation for about 1,200 workers. It is expected that in 2025, the Luxshare ICT Nghe An 2 factory's worker housing complex will begin construction, comprising 3,288 apartments for 12,474 workers.
Many difficulties
Kim Thi Real Estate Joint Stock Company is one of the first investors in social housing construction in Nghe An province. Currently, the company is implementing a project to build 190 social housing units. However, to date, the project is still facing obstacles as the company has not yet recovered the money spent on land clearance.
Discussing the issues arising in the current social housing construction process, Mr. Nguyen Dinh Dung - Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kim Thi Real Estate Joint Stock Company - said: The policy of attracting investment in social housing is urgent, but currently, there is a shortage of land for investment and implementation. Many industrial zones have been established but have not allocated land for the construction of social housing. Commercial housing projects do not prioritize the construction of social housing or have not allocated 20% of the land as stipulated.
In addition, new regulations under the 2023 Housing Law (effective from August 1, 2024) have also caused investors to reconsider, such as the very strict requirements for selling houses under construction, from completing the foundation and infrastructure systems to releasing the mortgage (the investor's project is mortgaged to the bank) and notification from the management agency before the transaction.
Another issue causing difficulties for some projects is the lengthy process of verifying the list of eligible homebuyers. Some developers have reported that they submitted customer lists to the authorities quite some time ago but have yet to receive a response, affecting the company's finances as they are unable to raise capital from customers.
Verifying whether people own land or houses to ensure they meet the conditions for purchasing a home is currently very complicated because many cases involve land ownership that has not been transferred or is not registered in the owner's name. Checking the system of relevant authorities does not clearly show this. This prolongs the process and affects the ability of people who genuinely need housing to access it.
Another difficulty, according to the investors, is the difficulty in accessing bank loans. According to the State Bank of Vietnam, Region 8, there are two projects in Nghe An that are eligible for disbursement but have not yet received funding.
Businesses propose that, in order to rapidly develop commercial social housing projects, the State should review commercial housing projects that have allocated 20% of their land for social housing but have not yet been implemented, and reclaim the land to reassign it to other capable entities. Local authorities should be responsible for and expedite the compensation and land clearance process to provide "clean land" for businesses. The eligibility criteria for purchasing and renting social housing should be expanded, increasing access for people without housing.
In addition, authorities should allow for the provisional calculation of house prices based on actual costs at the start of sales, then adjust them after final settlement and after the official price is determined by the appraisal agency; limit the time taken to review the list of homebuyers, so that businesses can rotate capital and people can settle into their new homes sooner...
