Buying costs are low in Vietnam

How high are realtors´ and lawyers´ fees in Vietnam? What about other property purchase costs?

Transaction Costs

Who Pays?
Value Added Tax (VAT) 5% buyer
Registration Fee for Real Property 0.50% buyer
Registration of Title VND20,000 (US$.90) buyer
Notary´s Fees VND1 million (US$43) + 0.06% of property value over VND1 billion (US$47,480) seller
Costs paid by buyer 5.51%
Costs paid by seller 0.06%
ROUNDTRIP TRANSACTION COSTS 5.57%
See Footnotes
Source: Global Property Guide

How difficult is the property purchase process in Vietnam?

Foreigners are not allowed to own land. In fact, even citizens are not allowed to own land. In Vietnam, land is theoretically collectively owned by the people, but regulated by the State.

Foreigners who are residents in Vietnam are permitted to purchase dwelling houses. They can own a house but not the land on which it is built. They have the option to lease the land from the State.

However the leading foreign estate agent in Vietnam, Chesterton, is marketing a 50-year lease scheme, which is almost a sale. Under this scheme, the buyer acquires a right to the apartment for 50 years, and the right to renew the lease at the term´s expiry without payment of additional rent. If property ownership by foreigners becomes legal within that time, the complex owner will transfer the apartment title to the buyer. If the building for some reason has to be sold, the buyer will get a pro-rata share of the proceeds. And because the contract is only a lease, the buyer can sub-let his apartment. In other words, the contract gives the buyer many of the rights of ownership. Chesterton for example sells 38-year leases in the Parkland building, which has been in existence 12 years (the maximum lease length under Vietnamese law is 50 years).

A foreign investor may also invest in Vietnamese real property by forming a joint venture company with a local partner, or a wholly foreign-owned company, or by forming a Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) company or one of its variants.

Foreigners who are residents in Vietnam can own dwelling houses but cannot sub-lease these dwellings. Foreign residents can also sell, donate, inherit, or give dwelling houses as gifts. But where they terminate their residence in Vietnam without disposal of their dwelling, 90 days after their departure from Vietnam their dwelling house certificates will automatically cease to be valid, and the Vietnamese State will manage and use their houses.

One thing that separates real estate transactions in Vietnam from the rest of the world is it´s done in pure gold. In June, according to Thanhnien News, one tael (1.25 ounces) of gold is equivalent to VND11.45 million (US$497). It is very important to keep this in mind when looking for a property. The buyer must be aware of the prices and conversions at all times.

Registering property in Vietnam is not particularly onerous, taking about 43 to 71 days to finish the four procedures needed, and costing considerably less than elsewhere in the region.

vietnam real estate, vietnam real estates, vietnam realestate, houses for sale in vietnam, homes for sale in vietnam, houses in vietnam, warehouse for rent, land for sale in vietnam, vietnam houses for sale, real estate ho chi minh city, vietnamese real estate, vietnam real estate for sale, saigon real estate, cheap houses for sale in vietnam, real estate vietnam, vietnam homes for sale, house for sale vietnam, houses for sale vietnam, real estate in vietnam, houses in ho chi minh city, vietnam property for sale, warehouse rental, osaka houses, japan real estate, traditional japanese houses for sale, sangenjaya, tokyo real estates, buying land in japan, houses for sale in japan, houses for sale in okinawa japan, okinawa real estate, traditional japanese homes for sale, denenchofu, akiya banks, okinawa homes for sale, homes for sale in okinawa japan, maborishi, japanese house price, tokyo real state, houses for sale in vietnam, tokyo real estate, osaka real estate, seijo, hokkaido real estate, musashi kosugi, okinawa house for sale, sekai property, sldk, real estate in japan, akiya bank, homes for sale in okinawa, vietnam property for sale, asagaya, danang real estate, kyoto real estate, nerima, vietnam real estate for sale, 3 ldk, mejiro, japan house prices, yoyogi uehara, homes for sale in vietnam, buy land in japan, real estate japan, okinawa japan real estate, japanese house prices, traditional japanese house for sale, gotanda, chitose karasuyama, nerima tokyo, nerima japan, tokyo houses for sale, houses for sale in tokyo japan, real estate tokyo, japan house price, fukuoka real estate, houses for sale in osaka japan, meijiro, japan housing price, minpaku, houses for sale in kyoto japan, kadomas for sale, kunitachi, japanese real estate, average house price in japan, real estate in vietnam for sale, house in vietnam, house prices in vietnam, vietnam house for sale, vietnam homes, vietnam houses, property for sale in vietnam, phu my hung house for sale, buy house in vietnam, warehouses for rent, saigon villa, apartment for rent in ho chi minh city, house for rent in vietnam, how much is a house in vietnam, vietnam house, vietnam home, houses in vietnam for sale, vietnam real estate agents, vietnamese house for rent, vietnam condo for sale, apartments in ho chi minh city, ho chi minh city real estate, house in vietnamese, vietnam apartments, vietnam property, warehouse for rent near me, vietnam properties for sale, vietnam house for rent, vietnam houses for rent, apartment for rent in saigon, realtor vietnam, sky garden vietnam, vietnam condominiums for sale, vietnam condos for sale, phu my hung villa, phu my hung house, vietnamese homes, buildings to rent, vietnam house price, saigon apartments for rent, vietnamese house prices, hcm real estate, property for sale in ho chi minh city vietnam, shophouse rent, ho chi minh city apartments, vietnam properties, vietnam condo, ho chi minh apartments, apartment ho chi minh, vietnam house prices, factories for sale, restaurants for sale, vietnam apartment, bakery for rent, the estella apartment, buying house in vietnam, apartment for rent saigon, house for rent in saigon, appartment for sale, ho chi minh house, rent district 9, property in vietnam for sale, vietnamese houses, vietnam housing prices, factory for rent, property in vietnam, buy land in vietnam, rent shophouse, rental shops, wharehouse for rent, rent a factory, vietnamese real estate agent, apartments for rent in saigon vietnam, apartment for rent ho chi minh city vietnam, buying properties in vietnam, vietnam apartments for rent, buying land in vietnam, apartments in vietnam, shop for rent, empty warehouse for rent, buy property in vietnam, danang real estate, hoc mon vietnam, vietnam beach house for sale, restaurants for rent, factory rent, land ho land for sale, vietnam villas for rent, saigon pearl vietnam, rent shops, rent in vietnam, renting a factory, vietnam shop, vietnamese restaurant for sale, saigon realty, estella apartment, buying property in vietnam, starting a business in vietnam, binh than, apartments in ho chi minh city district 1, apartement for sale, rent a shop, houses of vietnam, warehouse for rent by owner, housing in vietnam, vietnam rentals, rentwarehouse, cafes for rent, building for rent, small shops for sale, hoc mon, ware house rental, ware house for rent, pizzeria for rent, coffee shop for rent, saigon apartments, showroom for rent, bar for rent, vietnam building, warehouse rent, my duc, werehouse for rent, apartment for sale, factory rental prices, coffee shop for lease, rental in vietnam, renting in vietnam, aparment for sale, vinhomes central park, tan binh district, ho chi minh painting, small shop for rent near me, business shops for sale, penthouses for rent, hpuses for rent, ascent building, restaurants forsale, hauses for rent, saigon pearl ho chi minh, factory for lease, hcmc green building, sunrise city vietnam, usd apartments, saigon trade center, coffee shops for sale, hoses for rent, vap buildings, houses fot rent, houses for ren, vietnam factories, vietnam shops, go vap district, land for lease on gon, phu my hung vietnam, phu nhuan dist, houses fo rent, houses for reant, vietnam factory, houses for tent, resturants for sale, houses ofr rent, houses fro rent, vinhome central park, vietnam villa, ab tower, 8 room house for sale, district 1 restaurant, my apartments, restaurant building for rent, wilton tower, hungvuongplaza, hung vuong plaza, vietnam buildings, houses for renr, housew for rent, phu hoang, hoc apartments, houses foe rent




Footnotes to Transaction Costs Table


The round trip transaction costs include all costs of buying and then re-selling a property - lawyers´ fees, notaries´ fees, registration fees, taxes, agents´ fees, etc.

Notary Fee
Notary fees are around 0.06% of the property value.

Registration Fee
Registration fee is around 0.50% of the property value.