HÀ NỘI — After being transferred to new investors, many of Hà Nội’s unfinished real estate projects are still delayed, and home buyers are the hardest hit, Tiền Phong (Vanguard) newspaper reported.

A series of ownership transfers have been approved recently by local authorities. A list of transferred projects has been published on website of the city’s Construction Department. The department has required old investors to address disputes with house buyers before transferring.

The municipal People’s Committee approved transferring a complex of apartment buildings, offices and commercial services in Xuân Tảo Ward, Bắc Từ Liêm District. The ownership was transferred from NEWTATCO Joint Stock Company to Tây Hồ View Real Estate Joint Stock Company. The project named Kosmo Tây Hồ covers an area of more than 10,800 sq.m with total investment of over VNĐ1.3 trillion (US$56.5 million). Its completion is expected in the third quarter of 2019.

The committee also approved transferring a section of Dolphin Plaza project on 28 Trần Bình Street, Mỹ Đình District to Dolphin 2 Joint Stock Company. It is planned to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2019.

At the end of last year, AZ Lâm Viên building on Nguyễn Phong Sắc Street was transferred to AZ Real Estate Joint Stock Company. Sông Đà Thăng Long Company handed over CT2-105 building with total investment of over VNĐ1.5 trillion ($65.2 million) to Hải Phát Thủ Đô Investment Joint Stock Company.

Both projects are unfinished as the old investor ran out of capital before making the transfer to the new investor.

 After the transfer, Hải Phát Thủ Đô renamed the project Landmark Tower Lê Văn Lương. In the contract, the old investor promised to hand over apartments to customers no later than June 30 2014. Customers complained that they have been waiting for their apartments for years after paying huge amounts of money. As of now, only the basic structure of the building has been finished. Four hundred customers of tower CT2-105 have not received their apartments.

After the transfer, the new investor neither held meetings with customers nor agreed on compensation rate for the delay.

AZ Lâm Viên Project started construction in 2009. After its fourth floor was finished, the construction has been halted for four years. After the ownership transfer, the project was planned to be completed by the second quarter of this year. But still, only the basic structure construction finished. House buyers feel they have no choice but to accept the delay.

Phạm Sỹ Liêm, former Construction Ministry told Tiền Phong that punishments imposed on investors who delay the projects’ progress are too lenient.

“An administrative fine of VNĐ40-50 million ($1,740-$2,170) is nothing compared to the value of a project worth several hundreds of billions, even trillions of dong. It is not strict enough. Many investors commit repeated violations,” he said.

He recommended stricter punishments, adding that authorized agencies must check an investor’s capacity before issuing the investment license. – VNS