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The Vietnam News

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Hanoi housing projects target low income households

HANOI - Hanoi authorities are getting constructive in a bid to house the city's swelling population and ensure low-income earners are not left out. Economic growth has spurred a boom in housing development, but the good times have also seen property prices march up. The Hanoi Municipal People's Committee plans to build 15 million sq.m of residential accommodation to help low-income earners afford a home of their own.

Some 20 per cent of the city's population can afford to buy houses for their families, but this minority is considered affluent by national standards. A further 10 per cent get preferential housing because of contributions to nation-building or because they are considered the most disadvantaged of the city's residents. The remaining 70 per cent simply cannot afford to buy private houses or flats. Most of them are State employees living in dilapidated and old-fashioned housing blocks built and offered and provided by the Government under the centrally-planned economy.

A self-contained flat in a residential block costs an average of VND200 million (US$13,000), out of reach for many low-income earners. To solve this problem, the Hanoi People's Committee has initiated work on 56 major and 140 small housing development projects in outlying districts of the city. The developments will occupy 2,000ha and have a combined floor space of 15 million sq.m. They will then be sold off at preferential rates to low-income residents. Hanoi has for years suffered from an acute housing shortage, particularly as migration from the provinces has increased. The Hanoi Housing Investment and Development Corporation hopes its construction schedule will ease the burden on many low-income households in the capital. It has already launched a pilot project on 15ha of land in Thanh Tri District's Cau Bieu, with 8ha given over to housing units spanning 300,000sq.m. The first stage, estimated to cost VND300 billion ($20 million), will provide houses for 3,000 low-income households. The corporation has worked with authorities and ministries to procure credits and soft loans for the project.

Housing construction, expected to kick off by the third quarter of 2003, will be handed over to the responsible municipal body for management and sale to low-income earners. The pilot will harness the joint efforts of the State and the public. The Government will take responsibility for encouraging organisations, communities and people to take part in the project. It will zone areas for housing development and finance infrastructure development. The project needs proper and adequate investment capital, concessional loans and a reduction in land use fees to make it viable.

Between 1991 and 2000, the country's residential floor space increased from 630 million sq.m to more than 700 million sq.m. Some 5 million sq.m were added every year in urban areas over the past decade. The average per capita flooring space in rural areas is now 8.6sq.m and in urban centres it stands at 7.5sq.m.

Vietnam News Agency - September 24, 2001.