This service has been available in some inner-city districts such as Cau Giay, Thanh Xuan and Dong Da since last year with the name Bee Home.

A 50 square-metre five-floor house in Cau Giay District has up to 54 such rooms. The first floor of the house has two larger rooms for vehicle parking and a 10 square-metre area used as cooking and washing. Cameras are instead in these rooms.

Meanwhile, each 20-25 square-metre room has been partitioned into 6-8 smaller units on the other floors covering around three square metres, and rented at VND1.5-1.7 million (USD65.21-73.91) per month, including water, electricity and wifi fees. The rooms shared an air conditioner and a bathroom. 

Some rooms have a window.

The belongings of people who hire the rooms are quite simple.

Duong Quoc Anh, 19, said he has lived with his friend in the room and gradually become familiar with his surroundings. He works all day and often only returns to the room in the evening.

Most of the service users are students and low-income labourers. Many rooms are decorated based on their hobby.

Sometimes, the bathroom is jammed, particularly at peak hours. 

The kitchen area 

Nguyen Xuan Dai, owner of the first Bee Home service in Hanoi, said that over the past year, he has built nearly 1,000 such rooms in Hanoi’s inner-city districts. The room hire rate stands at around 90 - 95%.

The Goshiwon model has been found in South Korean for 40 years. Dtinews

Huong Thao