HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Experts have called for clarifying the legal status of tourismreal estate properties such as condotels, tourism villas and shophouses tosafeguard stakeholders’ benefits, helping revive the tourism sector.

Nguyen Van Quyen, Chairman of the Vietnam Bar Association, said the legality ofthese properties had to be made clear but the legal framework remainedinadequate, creating difficulties and inconsistencies in management, worryingboth investors and developers.

There are around 150 developments with 20,000 condotels and 5,000 villas in 15provinces and cities across the country, many of them completed and sold butfacing problems related to legality, according to the chairman.

According to Dr Can Van Luc, member of the National Monetary and FinancialPolicy Advisory Council, tourism real estate properties have not been mentionedin the Vietnamese Land Law and thus are not eligible for a certificate ofownership.

The products are currently traded under ‘capital contribution contracts’ and others,which do not guarantee legality.

This also causes a risk for credit institutions.

He said the Government should call on the National Assembly to issue a decreeto remove obstacles while waiting for the Land Law, Housing Law and Real EstateBusiness Law to be amended.

“The most important aspects are product definition, purpose, technicalstandards, and ownership.”

It is important to have clear criteria for each type of tourism property andfor common areas in apartment buildings, basements and share of maintenancecosts, he added.

Dr Nguyen Văn Dinh, Vice Chairman and General Secretary of the Vietnam RealEstate Brokers Association, said the Government should issue a circular tosolve the immediate legal problems faced by tourism properties to safeguard thebenefits of investors.

Phan Trung Ly, former Chairman of the National Assembly’s Law Committee, saidhowever, “It is difficult to promulgate such a circular due to a lack of alegal framework.”

Instead, he said, the Government could ask the National Assembly to issue a“special resolution” to mitigate the difficulties faced by developers andbuyers.

Tourism properties are a major segment of the real estate market in largecities due to a rising middle class looking to tap the income potential they mightoffer.

According to the Vietnam Real Estate Brokers Association, as of September lastyear the country had 239 tourism real estate projects with more than 114,097condotels, 24,399 tourism villas and 30,899 shophouses./.