Urgent: VND25M/sqm Housing Unaffordable for Low-Income Workers

Last week, the National Assembly convened to deliberate a draft Resolution aimed at introducing policies for social housing. Numerous representatives expressed concerns regarding the elevated prices of social housing in relation to the average income levels.

Ta Van Ha, a representative from Quang Nam and Vice Chair of the Committee on Culture and Social Affairs, mentioned that with a typical price of VND25 million per square meter, it is exceedingly challenging for individuals earning less than VND15 million monthly to afford social housing. “Even the rental rates of VND6 million per month are unaffordable for those in need, particularly young workers with unstable, low-income jobs,” he explained.

Nguyen Hoang Bao Tran from Binh Duong province took two minutes during the assembly meeting to voice the concerns of workers. She highlighted that millions of low-income laborers in industrial and export processing zones across the nation only aspire to live decently, work diligently, start families, and secure small homes to provide stability for their children and care for their parents.

“However, this remains an elusive dream due to harsh realities: stagnant wages paired with soaring housing and consumer costs,” she remarked.

She pointed out that workers earning roughly VND10 million monthly hesitate to imagine owning a home while struggling with rising food prices, educational expenses, rent, and other basic living costs.

“The prices of social housing are far out of reach for workers, and the eligibility criteria, application processes, and standards are not tailored to accommodate low-income earners, which leads many to abandon their applications for social housing,” she added.

Minister of Construction Tran Hong Minh shared that the draft resolution addresses two primary groups: beneficiaries (including funds, conditions, and prices for purchase/rent) and investors (including procedures and project execution timelines).

As it stands, current regulations allow for up to 300 days to finalize procedures for selecting investors via bidding. The draft resolution aims to streamline these regulations to drastically shorten the time involved in administrative processes.

In response to suggestions about establishing baseline prices for social housing, the Minister indicated that this approach may not be viable due to fluctuating material costs across various regions. Instead, following the finalization of housing designs, local authorities in Construction and Finance will validate the proposed prices, ensuring that the final social housing prices do not exceed the estimated figure by more than 10 percent.

Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc expressed optimism that the national housing fund would boost the availability of social and affordable housing options for low-income individuals and young people lacking homes.