Question: I would like to purchase social housing. What should I pay attention to?
Answer:
To purchase social housing, you should take note of the following points:
I. Eligible groups for purchasing social housing
According to Article 76 and Clause 1 Article 77 of the Law on Housing 2023, the following groups, if meeting the statutory conditions, are eligible to purchase social housing:
- People with meritorious services to the revolution and relatives of martyrs who are eligible for housing support.
- Poor and near-poor households in rural areas.
- Poor and near-poor households in rural areas frequently affected by natural disasters and climate change.
- Poor and near-poor households in urban areas.
- Low-income individuals in urban areas.
- Workers and employees of enterprises, cooperatives, and unions of cooperatives inside and outside industrial zones.
- Officers, professional soldiers, non-commissioned officers, public security workers, national defense officials and employees; cryptography officers and persons receiving salary from the state budget who are currently performing duties and have not received housing support policies.
- Cadres, civil servants, and public employees.
- Persons who have returned public housing as prescribed, except for cases where the return is due to violations.
- Households and individuals whose land has been revoked, or whose houses have been demolished or cleared but have not been compensated with houses or residential land.
The Provincial People’s Committee may provide additional support policies for the groups in items (2) and (3) depending on local conditions.
II. Conditions for purchasing social housing
Under the Law on Housing 2023 and its guiding decrees, eligible individuals must meet the following conditions:
a) Housing conditions
- They do not own any residential property in the locality where the social housing project is located.
- They have not previously purchased, rented, or rent-purchased social housing and have not benefited from housing support policies in that locality.
- If they already own housing, the average usable area per person must not exceed 15 m²/person.
- Cadres, civil servants, public employees, military officers, etc., must not currently be occupying public housing.
b) Income conditions for low-income groups (items 5, 6, and 8)
- Single individuals: actual monthly income does not exceed VND 20 million.
- Single individuals raising children under 18 years old: income does not exceed VND 30 million/month.
- Married persons: combined income of both spouses does not exceed VND 40 million/month.
Income must be certified by the employer or organization where the person works. If a low-income person does not have a labor contract, the certification must be provided by the commune-level police authority based on population data. Certification must be issued within 07 days.
The Provincial People’s Committee may adjust the income criteria in accordance with the socio-economic conditions of the locality but not exceeding the ratio of local average income compared to the national average.
c) Income conditions for armed forces personnel (item 7)
- Single individuals: their actual income (including salary and allowances) must not exceed the income level of an officer holding the rank of Colonel.
- Married persons: If both spouses are in the armed forces: their combined actual income must not exceed twice the income level of a Colonel. If only one spouse is in the armed forces: the couple’s combined income must not exceed 1.5 times the income level of a Colonel.
If they belong to poor or near-poor households, they must prove this according to the poverty standards issued by the Government. Workers without labor contracts must be certified by the commune-level People's Committee.
d) Conditions for poor and near-poor households
The groups in items (2), (3), and (4) must be classified as poor or near-poor according to the poverty standards issued by the Government.
