Tin mới
Post-shock property market can grow better, expert says (10/03)
06/08/2010 - 31 Lượt xem
Dang Hung Vo, a former Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, said the real estate market suffered a set back as banks tighten loans in response to the central bank’s move to reduce the money supply.
The State Bank last month required all banks to raise their reserves from 10 percent to 11 percent of obligations, and raised its inter-bank lending fees for the first time in years.
It also announced it would obligate banks to buy more than US$1.25 billion in government bonds, denominated in Vietnamese dong.
As a side effect of these policies, many property investors and buyers could not get property loans.
Housing demand diminished and the market cooled down as a result, said Vo, who was one of the major architects of Vietnam’s current land policy during his 2002-2006 term.
He was, however, confident that the credit crackdown would facilitate banks to be more selective granting property loans and, in the long run, bring property prices down to a reasonable level.
The shortage of housing – fueled by speculation and the government’s weak management – inflated property prices beyond reach for the majority of people last year.
“Bringing down housing costs is the government’s and the people’s aspiration,” Vo said.
“What is most necessary now is better management of credit loans to prioritize good [housing] projects that help increase the housing supply for the community,” he added.
He believed that some time after the government’s “strong dosage” the market would grow “healthily, dynamically and in the right direction” again.
In the future, the property market and the stock market should be linked so property developers could have another channel to raise investments for their projects, he suggested.
The government should also work out a credit policy that favors developers of low-income housing projects and supports low-income people to buy houses, Vo concluded.
Source: Thanh Nien
