At the seminar “Interest Rates and Real Estate Investment Opportunities in the New Growth Cycle” organized by Tien Phong Newspaper on March 23, experts recommended that fixing interest rates for the first few years, combined with a financial contingency plan, will help minimize risks in the current volatile context.

Nguyen Khanh Phuc from TPBank, amid unpredictable interest rate fluctuations, said both banks and real estate developers have made adjustments toward reducing financial pressure for buyers.

If previously interest rate support programs only lasted 1-2 years, currently some major developers have increased this to 3-5 years. 

Meanwhile, at some banks, loan terms have been extended to 30-35 years, or even 40 years; the principal grace period has also increased to 36-60 months. 

These changes help buyers ease the debt repayment pressure in the initial stage, especially when income is unstable or during the early investment cycle.

Nguyen Van Dinh, Vice Chair of the Vietnam Real Estate Association, said the market is witnessing a clear change in buyer behavior. Instead of chasing low prices, customers increasingly prioritize high-quality products, good infrastructure and living spaces.

Dinh said that there is no basis for deep reductions because input costs remain anchored at a high level. However, the market has begun to see price "lowlands" in some new projects, creating better selection opportunities for buyers.

Tran Xuan Luong, Deputy Director of the Vietnam Institute of Real Estate Market Research and Evaluation, believes that buyers for residential purposes or long-term investment will be less affected at this interest rate range.

Luong warned that waiting for interest rates to decrease may not be an optimal strategy. In fact, previous cycles show that when interest rates drop sharply, real estate prices usually do not decrease because input costs are still high.

“Buyers may benefit from the cost of capital but have to buy at a higher price. The risk of waiting is missing out on price opportunities,” Luong explained.

Buyers’ long-term financial plans

Nguyen Quang Huy, a finance and banking expert, forecasts that interest rate levels may gradually stabilize in the coming time, but still require flexible regulation from the State Bank. Opportunities in the market still exist but will be clearly differentiated by segment and risk appetite.

Experts recommend that buyers build long-term financial plans, balance cash flow, and choose suitable loan packages. Fixing interest rates in the early years, combined with financial contingency plans, can help reduce risks amid current volatility.

According to Luong, the current tight monetary policy is only a short-term adjustment, not a long-term trend. “It is like braking a car: we only brake when necessary to adjust speed, then release it for normal movement. Therefore, investors need to clearly define whether their goals are short-term or long-term, how much leverage they use, and whether they can withstand interest rate fluctuations.”

From a regulatory perspective, Tong Thi Hanh, Director of the Housing and Real Estate Market Management Agency under the Ministry of Construction, said that one of the key foundations for sustainable market development is a transparent and stable legal framework.

She said the amendment of the Law on Real Estate Business in the near future is expected to contribute to removing bottlenecks that have lasted for many years.

The draft law is expected to be included in the 2026 law-making program and submitted to the National Assembly for approval in October. A notable point is the new approach toward clearly distinguishing the State's management role and the activities of enterprises.

Accordingly, the State needs to strengthen management in the public sector, while expanding autonomy and responsibility for enterprises in civil and commercial relations.

Building a market data system according to the criteria of “accurate, sufficient, clean and live” is considered an important step to increasing the transparency of transaction prices.

“When data is made public, price manipulation and speculation based on rumors are expected to decline, helping the market operate more healthily,” Hanh said.

Hong Khanh