Investment procedures for social housing are "multiple times" more difficult than commercial housing
According to Mr. Le Hoang Chau, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Real Estate Association (HoREA), the demand for social housing is very large in urban areas, first of all in centrally-run cities and provinces with high industrialization rates, but it is necessary to carefully research to develop social housing types suitable to the needs of people in each locality, avoiding the situation of "unsold" social housing as has happened in some localities.
The investment procedures for building commercial housing projects are "difficult once", but for social housing projects they are "twice as difficult".
If the investment procedures for building commercial housing projects are "1 difficult", then for social housing projects they are "twice as difficult", leading to the implementation results of the social housing development plan for the 2016-2020 period nationwide only reaching about 41%.
In particular, although Ho Chi Minh City achieved 75% of the plan, the actual number was only 15,000 social housing units (average 3,000 units/year), not meeting the huge demand for social housing.
“In the period of 2021 - 2023, the whole country has only completed 72 social housing projects with 38,128 apartments, reaching only nearly 9% of the 5-year plan of 2021-2025 of 446,000 apartments.
Of which, Ho Chi Minh City has only completed and put into use 2 social housing projects with 623 apartments (transferred from the 2016 - 2020 period) and has started construction of 7 social housing projects with 4,996 apartments, but due to "legal problems" it is almost impossible to implement construction", said Mr. Chau.
9 solutions to overcome difficulties and increase social housing supply
To "remove difficulties and promote the implementation of social housing projects" to increase the supply of social housing, HoREA proposed a number of solutions.
HoREA has just proposed a number of solutions to remove difficulties and promote the implementation of social housing projects to increase the supply of social housing apartments.
Firstly, proposing to immediately remove the procedure of "approving investment policy at the same time as approving investors" for all social housing projects and commercial housing projects nationwide, the Association proposed that the Ministry of Planning and Investment consider submitting to the Government to amend and supplement Point c, Clause 7, Article 31 of Decree 31/2021/ND-CP.
Second, on the basis of amending and supplementing Point c, Clause 7, Article 31 of Decree 31/2021/ND-CP and Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree 30/2021/ND-CP (mentioned above), the Association proposes that the Ministry of Construction direct the Department of Construction (Department of Planning and Architecture) of localities to appraise and approve detailed planning at a scale of 1/500 of social housing projects (and commercial housing projects) that have had "investment policy approval at the same time as investor approval" applied according to the provisions of Point b, Clause 3, Article 6 of Resolution No. 98/2023/QH15 of the National Assembly stipulating that "Zoning plans and detailed plans must be approved or approved for adjustment according to the provisions of law before preparing the Feasibility Study Report for construction investment and implementing the next steps of the project", which the Association has proposed to add to Point c, Clause 7, Article 31 of the Decree. 31/2021/ND-CP and Clause 3, Article 1, Decree 30/2021/ND-CP.
Third, regarding land funds for social housing development, the Association recommends that localities implement "bidding to select investors to implement projects using land" for social housing projects according to the provisions of the Bidding Law 2023, to select capable investors and effectively exploit and use "public land funds (clean land)" that have been planned for social housing development, overcoming the situation of "waste" of land resources as happened before.
Fourthly, regarding preferential credit sources to implement social housing policies, the Association proposes that the National Assembly Standing Committee consider allocating medium-term state budget capital to implement social housing policies, to arrange "recapitalization" for the Social Policy Bank or "interest rate subsidy" for 4 commercial banks (Vietinbank, Vietcombank, Agribank, BIDV) designated by the State Bank to implement preferential social housing credit policies. Because in the period of 2015-2020, due to the lack of medium-term state budget capital to implement social housing policies, project investors and buyers and renters of social housing are almost not entitled to preferential social housing credit policies according to the provisions of the Housing Law 2014.
Fifth, the Association proposed to supplement or increase preferential policies for social housing project investors to encourage and attract more investors to participate in implementing social housing projects.
Sixth, “inadequacy and difficulty” in “transitional handling” of the obligation of commercial housing project investors to reserve a portion of the land fund (20% land fund) of the project for social housing development, because Decree 100/2015/ND-CP stipulates that projects of 10 hectares or more must build social housing in the project; projects of less than 10 hectares, investors are allowed to build social housing in the project or exchange social housing funds of equivalent value or pay in cash.
Seventh, the Association recommends that the Ministry of Construction consider proposing that the Government and competent authorities consider adding the subject of "landlords" to enjoy "housing support policies when self-building or renovating and repairing houses" in accordance with the reality of each locality, because this subject has made a very important contribution to solving the problem of increasingly better quality housing for workers, laborers and immigrants. At the same time, the Association recommends that the Ministry of Finance consider proposing that the Government and competent authorities consider regulating a "fixed tax" rate of personal income tax of 5%/revenue for landlords, which is more reasonable.
Eighth, the Association proposes that the Ministry of Construction consider amending Decision No. 510/QD-BXD dated May 19, 2023 "announcing the investment capital rate for construction works and the total construction price of structural components of works in 2022" for "investment capital rate for construction of social housing works" in the direction of ensuring that it is equivalent to the "investment capital rate for construction works" of commercial housing, because the "investment capital rate for construction works" of social housing according to Decision 510/QD-BXD is only 76% of the "investment capital rate for construction works" of commercial housing of the same type, which is unreasonable and does not ensure the implementation of the goal of improving the quality of social housing works so that people can feel secure and trust in the State's social housing policy.
Ninth, the Association proposed that the Ministry of Construction coordinate with ministries, branches and competent agencies to "research and promulgate credit policies for loans to repair and build new houses for poor and near-poor households in rural areas" to implement Resolution 01/NQ-CP dated January 5, 2024 of the Government and guide and support provinces and centrally run cities to successfully implement the local social housing development plan targets for 2024.
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