Secondary apartment prices soar

The cause of the increase in secondary apartment prices comes from the imbalance between supply and demand.

Although the real estate market in Ho Chi Minh City has recently seen many new apartment projects launched, the selling prices of many secondary projects (apartments that have been transferred ownership one or more times) in the city center and suburbs have still increased sharply, even surpassing the old record.

Dizzying increase

A survey by a reporter from the Lao Dong Newspaper shows that at Vinhomes Central Park, My Thanh Tay Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, a 2-bedroom apartment with an area of 80 m² is currently priced at VND8-9 billion/apartment (an increase of VND800 million to VND1 billion compared to a year ago). A 90 m² apartment in the Landmark area alone has reached nearly VND12 billion, about 15% higher than in 2024.

Apartments at The Sun Avenue project have increased in price sharply in recent months after news of removing obstacles in the pink book process.

In the old District 7, Quoc Cuong Gia Lai 's project opened for sale at the beginning of the year at VND54-55 million/m² (about VND3.6-3.7 billion/2-bedroom apartment, area 73 m²). However, the market price has now increased to more than VND64 million/m², equivalent to VND4.3 billion/apartment (excluding VAT). If tax is included, the price can be up to VND4.8 billion. Some apartments are traded at around VND60-62 million/m².

Ben Van Don area (old District 4) is not out of the trend. The Tresor project invested by Novaland , recorded the price of a 1-bedroom apartment (50 m²) from 3.2-3.3 billion VND at the beginning of this year, now jumped to 4-4.2 billion VND. A 2-bedroom apartment (58 m²) is being offered for 5.4-5.5 billion VND, an increase of about 30% compared to last year. Meanwhile, the Icon 56 project, also invested by Novaland, has a pink book so the price is higher: a 1-bedroom apartment of 50 m² is 5.2 billion VND, an increase of 22% compared to last year.

The Sun Avenue (Binh Trung Ward) has seen the biggest increase. Mr. Pham Minh Nguyen, a resident here, said that last year someone offered 4.3-4.4 billion VND for a 2-bedroom apartment (67 m²) but he did not sell. Currently, the price has increased to 6.5-6.7 billion VND (about 82 million VND/m²), an increase of more than 50% in just one year. The main reason, according to Mr. Nguyen, is the information that the project is about to complete the issuance of pink books.

Some other projects with lower starting prices but have just completed legal procedures have also increased significantly in price, such as: Saigon Gateway (Vo Nguyen Giap Street, Tang Nhon Phu Ward) from 30-35 million VND/m² last year to 38-42 million VND now; TDH Riverview (Tam Binh Ward) also increased from 30 to 35-36 million VND/m²; The Capella project (Luong Dinh Cua Street, An Khanh Ward) recorded a 22% increase in price over the past year, with an average price of 6 billion VND for a 2-bedroom apartment with an area of 87 m².

Mr. Phan Quoc Danh, a broker at a real estate company, said that secondary apartment prices in the East of Ho Chi Minh City have increased more sharply than in other areas recently because most of the newly launched projects have very high starting prices. For example, right next to The Sun Avenue, The Prive project of Dat Xanh sells for 120 million VND/m² or Eton Park not far away also has a similar price, while Global City is now up to 140 million VND/m². This has dragged down market sentiment, pushing secondary prices up sharply.

It's not hard to explain.

Mr. Ta Trung Kien, Director of Wowhome Real Estate Company, said that it is understandable that many apartment projects have been handed over and legal problems have increased in price. As for The Sun Avenue, the recent sharp increase comes not only from legal factors but also from the spillover effect from surrounding projects.

According to Mr. Kien, many neighboring projects of other investors in the past year have been sold at over 100 million VND/m². "This large price gap makes both sellers and buyers in handed-over projects tend to "pull" prices up to approach the new level. In addition, the traffic infrastructure of this area is well connected to the East of Ho Chi Minh City and the traffic axis towards Ba Ria - Vung Tau (old), meeting the needs of home buyers for convenient travel and work after the administrative units have been rearranged" - Mr. Kien explained.

Dr. Pham Viet Thuan, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Institute of Economics and Environment, analyzed that the main reason for the increase in secondary apartment prices, especially projects that have just completed legal procedures, comes from the imbalance between supply and demand. For many years, the supply of new apartments has continuously decreased, and the number of projects in the mid-range and affordable segments has almost disappeared from the market. Meanwhile, people's housing demand remains high, especially in Ho Chi Minh City.

At the same time, a series of projects that had been stalled due to legal issues have been cleared, allowing investors to speed up the handover process. This has both created trust and encouraged demand. The issuance of pink books for previously stuck projects has also contributed to increasing the value of apartments, especially apartments that have been handed over for many years but are in good locations.

In addition to legal factors, key infrastructure projects, such as Metro Line 1, expanded major roads, or newly opened commercial centers, act as "magnets" to attract cash flow. "Any area that benefits from infrastructure has seen a clear increase in prices. For example, along Pham Van Dong Street or in some wards in Thu Duc City (old), apartment prices have increased sharply after traffic improved.

This context, combined with the fact that primary prices in many new projects are already very high, has caused many buyers to turn to the secondary market, where they can find apartments with convenient locations, clear legal status, and prices that are still "more affordable" than those in newly launched projects. This demand pressure continues to push up prices for old apartments, creating a new price level across the market.

Search demand increased by 70%

According to data from Batdongsan.com.vn, by mid-2025, the demand for apartments in Ho Chi Minh City has increased again, with the number of searches increasing by 70%. In fact, in the second quarter, many projects continued to launch new products, but most of them were in the high-end segment, priced from 80-100 million VND/m2 or more, such as The Global City, Celadon City, CitiGrand, Alta Height... The primary price level continued to increase by 4%-6% in new projects and 2%-4% in old projects.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/gia-chung-cu-thu-cap-leo-thang-196250811200521105.htm