The urban landscape of suburban areas, from advertising to reality.
In contrast to the bustling and crowded central area, the real estate landscape in many suburban areas of Ho Chi Minh City, such as the former Long An province (now Tay Ninh province), is rather bleak.
Despite significant investment in infrastructure and extensive marketing campaigns, many projects, even after a decade of development, remain empty, deserted, and desolate.
An on-site survey by reporters from the Thanh Tra Newspaper revealed that the Five Star Eco City project (located on the border of Can Giuoc and Can Duoc districts, formerly in Long An province, now in Phuoc Ly commune, Tay Ninh province) of the Five Star Group, despite its scale of hundreds of hectares and launch in 2015, has a rather "modest" occupancy rate after more than a decade.
A series of shophouses and townhouses, expected to generate commercial income, are now unoccupied and unutilized, including those located on prime street fronts.
Similarly, the Vietnam Lotus Village Urban Area Project (formerly Duc Hoa district, Long An province, now My Hanh commune, Tay Ninh province) by Phuc Khang Corporation (after more than 10 years since its launch) also shares the same fate of being "closed and locked". The urban area, once envisioned as a thriving cultural, commercial, and tourism hub, now has warning signs prohibiting the grazing of cattle because local residents are using the weeds within the project area for livestock farming.
The An Nong 5 (Rose Mall) residential project remains just an empty plot of land, overgrown with weeds, with no signs of construction activity. Photo: Ky Phuong
A more dire situation is occurring at the Young Town Northwest Saigon Project (formerly Duc Hoa district, Long An province, now Hau Nghia commune, Tay Ninh province). Launched in July 2019 with the promise of a "green real estate" featuring the Young Plaza shopping center, the Young Market traditional market, and a green park, hundreds of houses remain vacant after nearly eight years of development.
The guard post is unmanned, the business stalls are closed, and the park is abandoned.
At another project, the An Nong 5 residential area (Rose Mall, Duc Hoa district, former Long An province, now Duc Hoa commune, Tay Ninh province) by An Nong Group, distributors aggressively advertised, accepted deposits, and raised capital since 2021. After five years of implementation, the project still failed to attract residents to build houses, with an occupancy rate below 5%. It was so deserted that the developer even put up signs advertising luxury apartments for rent on part of An Nong Group's headquarters within the project.
The An Huy My Viet project (formerly Duc Hoa district, Long An province, now Duc Lap commune, Tay Ninh province), invested by An Huy Real Estate Joint Stock Company, began extensive advertising and sales activities on the market from December 2024.
However, to date, the overall project remains quite modest, with incomplete and stalled service infrastructure. The area is surrounded by rice paddies, and the access road is still an unfinished gravel road. The entire project site is devoid of workers, with no construction activity taking place.
Because the area is sparsely populated and overgrown with grass, the developer had to put up signs prohibiting livestock from grazing on the project site. Photo: Ky Phuong
Develop a strategy to attract residents with genuine housing needs.
Financial and real estate expert Nguyen Viet Hung believes that the situation of land plots and townhouses in the suburbs of Ho Chi Minh City, after many years of development, are in reality only covered with grass and grazed by cattle, is a direct consequence of an unbalanced development cycle of prioritizing land sales over human needs.
The nature of the market in these areas over the years has been dominated by speculative money. Up to 95% of market transactions are buy-and-sell activities between investors aiming to hoard assets and wait for price increases.
When a property doesn't fall into the hands of those who actually need a place to live, no one intends to build or move in permanently. The lack of residents inadvertently creates a negative cycle that is incredibly difficult to break. Without residents, businesses and amenities cannot survive.
Conversely, when a project completely lacks essential services, people are even less likely to move in. This vicious cycle causes the project to remain in a state of prolonged neglect.
Many shophouses located on the main road of Dinh Duc Thien Street remain closed. Photo: Ky Phuong
Besides speculation, the most significant weakness in the current suburban urban model is the serious lack of livelihoods and accompanying amenities. For a city to attract and retain people, it must meet basic living needs such as food, housing, transportation, education, healthcare, and most importantly, employment.
According to Mr. Nguyen Viet Hung, in order to rescue suburban cities from the label of "ghost cities" and address the waste of land resources, the market needs investors who take concrete action instead of empty slogans.
Specifically: Developers must invest their own money to provide essential amenities such as supermarkets, pharmacies, clinics, and cafes, rather than passively waiting for private businesses to open them. They must proactively invest capital or provide zero-cost land subsidies for 3-5 years. Simultaneously, they must organize scheduled shuttle services to transport residents to and from work and school in the city center of Ho Chi Minh City.
Stimulate demand for actual occupancy through direct financing. Instead of offering price reductions or discounts, developers should provide real interior design packages when residents complete their homes and move in within 6 months. Additionally, offer free management fees and parking fees for 3 to 5 years for early adopters.
Adjusting urban planning creates local jobs. In large cities with ample vacant land, it is necessary to request localized adjustments to convert a portion of commercial land into logistics complexes, data centers, or affordable satellite offices.
Regarding the Young Town Northwest Saigon project, the leaders of Thang Loi Group - the project developer - explained that the reason for the situation at the Young Town Northwest Saigon project is due to changes in the law, which have consequently altered the legal framework.
“The project has just issued land ownership certificates to 100% of customers. Furthermore, the market is too sluggish and relocation is difficult. This is a huge problem that requires time. We will be renovating the area soon. In three years, this area will attract residents,” a leader of Thang Loi Group affirmed.
According to a leader of Tran Anh Group, to solve the problem of attracting residents, developers must implement many measures simultaneously, including building a strategy to attract real estate to the area, not just simply selling real estate products.
Source: https://thanhtra.com.vn/nha-dat-57A4B2310/diu-hiu-tai-cac-khu-do-thi-vung-ven-tp-ho-chi-minh-980158edb.html
