Nguyen Huu Nhi, Legal Officer of Daewon – Hoan Cau, the owner of Cantavil – Hoan Cau project, told a Tuoi tre reporter, on December 17, that CBRE has still not given a satisfactory answer about the basis for CBRE’s conclusion that Cantavil – Hoan Cau apartment prices have dropped from $3,700 per sq m to $2,600. Nhi said that only one email came from an employee of CBRE, which said that CBRE referred to the price of a real estate broker in district 4, HCM City, who quoted the price on Internet. 

However, when the real estate developer contacted the broker, it discovered much false information. The broker said the apartment has three toilets, while each of the apartments here has only two. Moreover, the broker said that he just guessed the apartment price. 

Nhi said that he does not know what method CBRE has used to calculate real estate prices, however, considering the way a CBRE employee sent the email, one can see that CBRE is irresponsible. 

Truong Quoc Hung, Marketing Director of Phu My Hung Joint Venture Company, also said that CBRE has reported completely inaccurate information about the prices of its apartments. 

“They (CBRE) said our My Phuc apartments’ prices have dropped by 50% to $872/sq m. I dare CBRE to successfully purchase the apartments at $1,500/sq m,” Hung said. 

The fact that a lot of real estate developers have denounced consultancy companies of reporting false information about real estate prices has raised questions about whether foreigners are trying to control the real estate prices in Vietnam. 

Currently, only CBRE has regular meetings with press agencies, where it provides information and comments about the real estate market, from policies to data about transactions. 

Nguyen Ngoc Son, Chairman of Nam Ngoi Sao Viet Joint Stock Corporation, said that there is no foundation with which to conclude that foreigners are controlling the real estate market. However, Son has called for reconsideration of the morality of the real estate broker as it regularly reports false information about real estate prices. 

“Brokers can update the market prices and use that for reference. But it cannot use the prices of specific transactions to conclude that this is the situation of the market,” Duong said. 

Le Hoang Chau, Chairman of HCM City Real Estate Association, said that there are many real estate brokers and consultants on the market, including CBRE, Vinaland and Sacomreal, who release reports and make conclusions about apartment and land prices. However, prices released by different consultants prove to be very different. He said that it is now the right time for the Ministry of Construction to enter the market to ensure accurate reporting about the real estate prices. 

Lawyer Co Hiep, from the HCM City Bar Delegation, said that Daewon – Hoan Cau can win the case if it sues CBRE. However, it still must do several necessary things to prove the damages caused by the false information released by CBRE.