The National Assembly passed the Law on the Real Estate Business on June 21. Under the law, to take effect on January 1, 2007, individuals, organisations, foreigners and overseas Vietnamese will be authorised to offer real estate services including brokerage and agency, appraisal, marketing, and consultancy.

Lawmakers have made efforts to ensure the interests of foreign investors when there are changes in the law that effect those interests. But problems still arise when, for instance, a foreign-invested enterprise receives tax or land lease preferences that may later be made illegal.

Problems in land use planning and a lack of planning in some areas were discussed by deputies at yesterday’s National Assembly session.

 New urban areas have been springing up to meet increasing public demand for housing. Real estate transactions for housing in new urban areas or in projects still under construction are increasingly common, while the laws and regulations of Viet Nam are not yet adequate to protect the rights.

Lawmakers have agreed to force developers, who fail to deliver properties as contracted, to pay interest on buyer deposits. The draft law will put scores of developers under the hammer

Land use policy is one of the first issues considered by foreign investors when deciding whether to put their money into Viet Nam. With unique laws regarding ownership of land and a ream of regulations to sift through on the issue, land use rights are one of the most complex aspects of foreign investment.

The Land Law 2003 (Land Law) was considered the most meticulous of statutes. However, during its application, many shortcomings have come to light. Among them are regulations on obtaining land use rights by foreign investors directly from the State. The Land Law 2003 (Land Law) was considered the most meticulous of statutes.

A draft Housing Law intended to halt chaotic development and stabilise the real estate market was introduced to the National Assembly yesterday morning. So too was draft legislation that will make electronic transactions legal and a proposed Youth Law.

The issue of auction of land use right has been regulated in a number of legal documents, which have been implemented in many provinces for some time, but the first time the auction of land use right was regulated in detail was in the Land Law 2003 document, which was considered to be a turning point in the State administration of land use.