A landlord in HCM City hands out gifts to tenants. —  VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — Landlords in many localities have reduced or exempted rent for tenants who have lost jobs or have suffered financial difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

About 70 landlords in Bình Phước Province’s Đồng Xoài Town have agreed to reduce rent by 20-60 per cent to help tenants.

Phạm Văn Thạo, a landlord who owns 53 rooms in Đồng Xoài Town, said he has offered a reduction of VNĐ200,000 (US$8.5) a room. The rent is normally VNĐ700,000 ($30) a room.

Most of the tenants are lottery ticket sellers and low-income employees who have been laid off due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Thạo said.

It is tough for them to meet basic needs when they have no income, he added.

Thạo promised to reduce the rent even more in coming months if the tenants remain unemployed due to the pandemic.

Many landlords in Chơn Thành, Đồng Phú and Bù Đăng districts have agreed to cut rent to help disadvantaged tenants following encouragement from the provincial Fatherland Front Committee.

The Trà Vinh Province Labour Federation has encouraged many landlords to exempt or reduce rent for their tenants.

Nguyễn Thị Vậy, chairwoman of the province's Labour Federation, said tenants in 250 rooms would receive rental exemption or reduction. 

Lê Thị Huỳnh Nga, owner of 100 rooms with more than 200 tenants in the province, said most of the tenants are workers who became unemployed amid the COVID-19 outbreak. She said she would not collect rent until they can return to their jobs.

Nguyễn Ngọc Hương, a worker at Long Đức Industrial Park in the province, said she had lower income due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in financial difficulties.

“The landlord agreed to take no rent. It is really meaningful action in this tough time,” she said.

Hồ Xuân Lâm, deputy chairman of the HCM City Labour Federation, said the federation has implemented various actitives to help workers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

District-level labour federations have worked with nearly 100 landlords who have been willing to reduce rental fees on 1,500 rooms by between VNĐ100,000 and VNĐ1 million (between $4 and $42).

A total of 4,680 workers facing financial difficulties due to the COVID-19 outbreak have received financial aid of VNĐ1 million ($42) a person and gifts worth VNĐ200,000 ($8.5) a person.

The federation in collaboration with the Business Association of High Quality Vietnamese Products have handed out 1,000 free meals and gifts to workers who have lost their jobs due to COVID-19.

Affected workers are eligible to take out low-interest loans from the Capital Aid Fund for Employment of the Poor (CEP) to maintain their livelihood, Lâm said. — VNS