HCMC approves five more projects for foreign ownership, list nears 170

The city has cleared five more housing projects for sale to foreign buyers, the 15th batch added to its foreign-ownership list, CafeF reported on 11 November 2026. The same report puts the running total at nearly 170 projects, with roughly 6,188 foreign-owned homes issued certificates in the city to date. Tuoi Tre listed the five projects and their land areas the same day.

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The approval matters because the supply of legally sellable units is the binding constraint for foreign buyers here, not demand. CafeF reports 1,519 apartments registered to foreign owners since the Housing Law 2023 took effect on 1 August 2024, a figure that shows how slowly the eligible pool converts into signed sales. Each new batch widens the choice of buildings where a foreigner can actually complete a purchase.

The five projects, by land area

Tuoi Tre published the sites with their land areas on 11 November 2026. Sizes vary widely, and that matters: a larger site usually carries a larger absolute number of foreign-eligible apartments, even though the 30% cap is set as a share of each building rather than a fixed count.

Thao Dien is the name most expat families will recognise first, and that is not a coincidence: the area already carries a settled Korean, Taiwanese and Chinese resident base, international school runs and a short commute into District 1.

What it means for foreign buyers

Nothing changes about the terms. Under Article 20 of the Housing Law 2023, you own for up to 50 years from the date the Pink Book is issued, you can renew that term, and the unit becomes long-term (permanent) ownership once it is resold to a Vietnamese buyer. Article 19 keeps foreign ownership inside 30% of the apartments in each building, and 250 individual houses in a ward-level unit with a 10,000-resident threshold. Decree 95/2024/ND-CP sets out how those limits are counted in practice.

You can buy from the developer, either a new unit or one the developer still holds in a completed building, or from another foreign owner on a sale contract. You cannot buy from a Vietnamese owner; Article 17.2 of the Housing Law 2023 gives foreigners no path to that. The exception is a foreigner married to a Vietnamese citizen living in Vietnam, who holds housing rights on the same footing as a citizen under Article 20.2.c.

For a family paid in won, NT dollars or yuan, first check which building has quota left, whether the seller is the developer or a foreign owner, and whether the Pink Book has been issued. Instalments from income earned in Vietnam follow the SPA schedule. For money from outside Vietnam, plan the transfer and paperwork before signing. Our walkthrough of the 30% foreign quota and the 50-year ownership term covers both.

What the approval does not settle

It is an eligibility decision, not a sales launch. Neither source reports asking prices, rents, or groundbreaking and completion dates for any of the five projects, so there is no basis yet for pricing a unit or timing a handover. It also does not create quota: the 30% is measured building by building, and a project on the list can still be full in a given tower.

That is the check to run before any deposit. Have the foreign-buyer sales team confirm the seller's status, the remaining foreign quota in the specific building, and the Pink Book position in writing. You can browse the projects open to foreign buyers to see what is on the list today.

Ask the English desk on Zalo or WhatsApp for the 15th-batch list broken down building by building, with the remaining foreign quota checked for each project you are considering.

Sources

• Tuoi Tre Nha dat: HCMC adds five projects eligible for foreign ownership (2026-11-11)
• CafeF Bat dong san: Five more Ho Chi Minh City projects are approved for sale to foreigners (2026-11-11)