Data is important. Every good business decision requires the correct information. Companies worldwide use data from sources like in-depth interviews, comprehensive statistics, and focus groups to guide their market entry and development strategy as well as fulfill business goals. The need for correct information is significant; in 2017, the global market research industry was valued at $76 billion.
In the real estate industry, correctly interpreting a range of data—from local average rent prices to regional land values—creates better decisions that affect a firm’s ability to sustain its operations.
A real estate company, however, does not have the resources to conduct an in-depth investigation across a major country’s property investment landscape. Besides the sheer number of developments currently in progress, a significant number of new deals are taking place every day. This activity leads to further information about a location’s land value and property tax.
Real estate data in Vietnam
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Vietnam, in cooperation with the Center for Education Promotion and Empowerment of Women (CEPEW), conducted a study from July 2021 to June 2022 to determine how Vietnam’s municipalities and provinces disclose land information data. Their findings indicate that:
- Less than half of the country’s municipalities and provinces, as well as district-level agencies, provided information about their district land use plans.
- Documents pertaining to a particular topic are found in multiple categories on the state agency’s websites or e-portals instead of in one location.
- Around 19% of municipalities and provinces provided complete information involving their land use plan.
- The provinces of Tra Vinh, Tien Giang, and Gia Lai performed remarkably in terms of information disclosure.
How Decree No. 44/2022/ND-CP improves information transparency
As part of its efforts to streamline the information available for interested parties, the Vietnamese government—through the Ministry of Construction in Vietnam—will develop a database on the county’s real estate market. This database will contain a wide variety of information, including:
- Area and quantity of houses in rural and urban areas
- Sale, purchase, or transfer of properties, as well as tax information on transfer transactions
- Investor background on property development projects
- Trade price index
The law also stipulates the responsibilities of individuals and organizations. It mainly states that interested parties must not lose, damage, or falsify real estate data, as well as use such information to harass other parties.
The database can be found here.
Why is this important
This database allows investors and other interested parties to find project-level, province-level, and national-level information on real estate transactions. Therefore, companies can anticipate any property development risk, minimize danger to public safety, and promote efficient land use.
The move towards transparency is also essential in resolving a key concern: land use disputes. A study in 2020 from UNDP in Vietnam states that the presence of information asymmetry—another term for lack of information for the public—can trigger land conflicts.
As the Vietnamese government continues to adapt to economic shifts in the region and worldwide, as well as respond to climate change, building an updated database of real estate industry data allows local and foreign parties to contribute to the country’s push for sustainable and smart urban development.
