Marc Townsend, managing director of CBRE, a real estate service provider, said the prolonged global economic downturn has forced a lot of foreign investors to halt or reconsider their property projects in Viet Nam.

Besides, many factors in Viet Nam’s real estate market are less transparent than other countries including the regulations on land, investment formalities and site clearance, causing difficulties for foreign investors, he said.

He noted that several big projects in the heart of HCM City were built by Vietnamese enterprises, like the high-rise building by Vincom, a 64-storey financial tower by Bitexco, Times Square by Kinh Do and the SJC building by Saigon Jewelry Co.

Townsend identified the increase in demand for accommodation with smaller areas and reasonable prices as another merging property trend. This demand is set to increase remarkably by the end of this year, he said.

He said from the fourth quarter of this year until the end of next year, about 22,560 apartments will go on sale in HCM City, up from 14,967 from the beginning of 2008 to the third quarter of this year.

Nguyen Phuoc Duc, deputy director of Dia Oc Dat Lanh Ltd Co said although small apartments fetched lower profits, they were easier to sell. Such housing products are suitable for a large number of newly-weds, retirees and young people, he added.

Duc said there are 109,000 State employees and 43,000 newly married couples who look to buy small, affordable houses, while 328,500 students from 70 universities and colleges need rental housing every year.

Most of them do not have much money and don’t need large houses. Small apartments can meet their demand, he said.

The small apartment projects that are being planned and constructed aim to lower the pressure on the Government’s social housing policy and address the housing shortage faced by low-income residents, Duc added.

Bui Tien Thang, deputy general director of Sacomreal, said investors need to consider several aspects, including good infrastructure, convenient transportation and proximity to public services when eyeing property projects.

The chosen projects must have proper legal documentation and have high liquidity as well as market demand, he said.