The HCMC Real Estate Association (HoREA) says that the Ministry of Construction’s statistics on real estate inventories are incorrect.
The ministry reported the total property inventory value at more than VND22.8 trillion (US$976.2 million) as of December 20, 2018, falling by over VND105.7 trillion (82.24%) against the first quarter of 2013, which are disputed by HoREA.
However, Mr. Le Hoang Chau, Chairman of HoREA, showed his distrust about the accuracy of MoC’s figures. He said this figure has not yet fully assessed the inventory issue, especially for enterprises with large inventory.
“The data that showed the decline in inventory may make people think inventory of real estate is still very low, so there’s no need to worry about it. However, in fact, the actual amount of inventory is very large, so it’s necessary to pay special attention to it, ensuring the stable and healthy liquidity and development of enterprises and the real estate market," said Mr. Chau.
According to HoREA, the previous inventory surveys have not generalized the market. Specifically, at the end of 2012, HCMC’s Department of Construction and HoREA conducted a survey on 45 out of over 1,207 real estate projects in the city, but it managed to collect data on 36 projects only, while data from the remaining nine were not available.
Therefore, the data of HCMC authorities and MoC did not fully reflect the real estate inventory at the survey in 2012. In addition, the above inventory data is only collected by MoC at the beginning of 2013. The numbers of new inventories from 2014 to the later years have not been updated.
Chau cited the State Securities Commission of Vietnam’s data to say that last year, the total value of property inventories of 65 real estate firms listed on the stock market reached over VND201.9 trillion, far higher than the numbers reported by the construction ministry.
Meanwhile, some large property firms such as Him Lam, Hung Thinh and Van Thinh Phat have yet to list on stock exchanges, so their inventories have yet to be taken into account.
Thanks to the Government's VND30-trillion home loan package, the local property market has returned to its high growth rate, helping reducing inventories, according to HoREA.
HoREA recommended that enterprises should have solutions to restructure their products; turn into the affordable segment; consider price reductions, even accept loss-cutting solutions to handle inventories.
