EXCLUSIVE: When Vietnam relaxed its foreign property buying restrictions earlier this year many people thought there would be an influx of buyers and investors from overseas.
“So far we have seen only limited interest from overseas Vietnamese buyers,” said Marc Townsend in an exclusive email interview with Dot Property Group.
Last week local media reported how there could me as many as one million overseas Vietnamese workers wanting to invest in property in their homeland, but those numbers do appear to be wildly inflated.
The article also suggested that overseas property investors would not be able to repatriate the proceeds of any sale to their home country after a sale in Vietnam. Again, that information appears not to be true.
Townsend said: “The Vietnamese banks are all saying “create a paper trail” when you bring funds into Vietnam. Do not take any short cuts and tell the banks and authorities why you are bringing in the funds, then there will be not issues about taking the funds out again upon disposal of the property (following the payment of all carrying and holding taxes and capital gains tax upon disposal).”
Townsend also confirmed that finance is available to foreigners, but only for the length of their residency card. In his own case he admitted that is just two years.
“Realistically it is still a cash market,” he added.
He confirmed that In spite of the large number of unanswered questions from mainly Vietnam-based Investors, CBRE Vietnam has seen some early signs that the new legislation has been well received.
He said: “Whilst it is not currently a game changer, the new laws that allow foreign ownership is catching the attention of mainly Asian entrepreneurs, especially those from Hong Kong, China, Korean, Taiwan and Japan, who have businesses and factories in Southern Vietnam in particular.
“For the most part however; European, American and Australian expats and investors are happy to wait and see what the final circulars and decrees look like.
Ending on a positive note for the country, Townsend said: “For some high-end property developers, foreigners are now making up to 50 percent of enquires and 20 percent of actual condominium sales.”
Image: Vinhomes Cental Park, being marketed by CBRE Vietnam, is a modern complex project that is promising to grown a bustling and modern resident community in Hoh Chi Minh City.