The assessment of opportunities for specialized industrial real estate products in Vietnam is a critical aspect of understanding the evolving landscape of the country’s real estate market. As Vietnam continues to attract foreign investment and experience economic growth, the demand for specialized industrial spaces, such as industrial parks and logistics centers, has increased significantly. This assessment aims to delve into the current state of the industrial real estate sector in Vietnam, highlighting key factors driving its growth, the challenges it faces, and the potential for investors and businesses to tap into this dynamic market.
1. What is specialized industrial real estate?
Vietnamese law does not have any definition of specialized industrial real estate, however, based on land laws and documents related to industrial parks, specialized industrial real estate is understood as investment projects on the construction of industrial parks such as building ready-built warehouses, ready-built factories, cold storage, logistics (warehouse logistics), last-mile logistic, data centers, etc.
2. Current industrial real estate market in Vietnam
a. Overview:
In the overview of Vietnam’s commercial and industrial real estate market in the first 6 months of 2023, industrial real estate continues to be the “bright spot” of the market.
According to statistics from the Foreign Investment Agency (Ministry of Planning and Investment), as of the end of July 2023, foreign direct investment (FDI) into Vietnam reached 13.43 billion USD; of which, the real estate sector attracted 1.53 billion USD – holding the 3rd position among industries and fields.
In August 2023, Vietnam received a 165 million USD project.
With increasing FDI capital, demand for industrial real estate increased. The Ministry of Construction’s report for the second quarter of 2023 said that the demand for renting industrial park factories in the quarter remained stable and increased slightly in some provinces such as Bac Giang, Bac Ninh, Quang Ninh, Nam Dinh, Hai Phong due to signing contracts with many foreign partners in the early period of 2023.
b. Demand source:
In the first half of 2023, the market recorded the expansion of many large manufacturers such as Foxconn and Goertek in Bac Giang and Bac Ninh industrial parks. On the other hand, the strong expansion of Chinese manufacturers in many different fields has further contributed to helping the industrial land and ready-built factory segments record good absorption in the North.
Similarly, the demand of the Southern market are also diverse. Tenants in the automobile manufacturing, garment, and packaging industries are among the industry groups actively looking for industrial land, ready-built warehouses and factories in the South.
3. Opportunity:
a. For economics and market
– FDI capital flow is more than expected:
While the commercial real estate market is almost “frozen”, industrial real estate has emerged as a bright spot thanks to the FDI capital flow, particularly:
+ Recently, a delegation of 52 US business’s representatives came to Vietnam to discuss investment opportunities in Vietnam, including a number of large corporations interested in the possibility of cooperation and investment in Vietnam, including SpaceX, Amazon, Meta, FedEx, Roblox, UPS, Citi, etc. This could be a positive signal for a new wave of FDI from the US into Vietnam in the near future.
+ Also in June 2023, the President of Korea visited Vietnam to discuss the strategic cooperation relationship between the two countries. Accompanying the president is a delegation of 205 leaders of leading corporations such as Samsung Electronics, SK Group, Hyundai Motor, LG, etc.
– In addition, in the context of manufacturing business and economic difficulties, the trend of renting ready-built factories and warehouses will continue to prevail because it helps Vietnamese businesses rent them to preserve capital and costs with small investment.
– Factory rental profits are higher than other types plus industrial land rental prices have been recently increasing higher which is expected to make huge profits to investors.
b. For labor source:
Vietnam has low labor costs, young and abundant human resources whose standards are improving increasingly (the number of young Vietnamese laborers who know Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages is increasing to meet the job’s requirement), etc. are factors that attract many big and leading companies and corporations to set up manufacturing factories here. Thus, compared to investing in countries like Thailand and Indonesia, investing in Vietnam will help investors save a large amount of personnel costs.
c. For Legal:
Vietnam is currently in a period of industrialization and modernization, accordingly, the industrial sector is also given priority for development. The legal corridor is relatively clear along with many of Vietnam’s major preferential policies have contributed to attracting domestic and foreign investors to the industrial real estate sector, particularly:
(i) Vietnam’s participation in the FTA free trade agreement:
This has opened up many opportunities for the development of the industrial real estate market. Through this agreement, a series of tariffs are eliminated.
(ii) In 2022, the Government issued Decree No. 35/2022/ND-CP regulating the management of industrial parks and economic zones, including regulations on the construction of specialized industrial parks and economic zones, high-tech zones, eco-industrial parks, effective from 15 July 2022.
This Decree has removed procedures for establishing industrial parks to reduce administrative procedures for industrial park developers. At the same time, the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Provincial People’s Committee receive additional authority for overseeing the management of industrial park operations.
Simplifying legal procedures and decentralizing more power to localities can help reduce investment licensing procedures in industrial zones, especially when industrial zones will be able to have investment licenses immediately upon approving investment policy. The issuance of this Decree demonstrates the State’s keen interest in investing in specialized industrial real estate. It simplifies licensing procedures and establishes favorable conditions, enabling investors to expedite and efficiently execute their specialized industrial real estate projects.
(iii) According to Clause 2, Article 149 of the 2013 Land Law, the use of industrial real estate will be based on the form of industrial land lease according to the provisions of law such as:
Land lease with one-time land rent payment, annual land rent payment. Specifically, the government exempts investors from paying land rent for areas designated for constructing common-use infrastructure in industrial parks, industrial clusters, and export processing zones. This infrastructure encompasses internal road systems, water supply and drainage systems, wastewater treatment systems, power supply systems, public lighting systems, internal communications systems, security, and other facilities essential for industrial park operations. This is one of the attractive regulations in the state’s policy towards investors in the field of specialized industrial real estate.
Conclusion
In conclusion, although the industrial real estate market has witnessed significant development, it remains characterized by scarcity as the supply falls short of meeting the demand. The dynamic growth of industries such as electronics, automotive, and logistics, coupled with favorable government policies and foreign investments, presents a promising landscape for investors and developers alike. Therefore, the industrial real estate market is a fertile “land”, bringing many opportunities for investors. By strategically capitalizing on the unique demands of these burgeoning sectors and adapting to the evolving market dynamics, stakeholders can unlock substantial potential in the specialized industrial real estate market. The future holds exciting prospects for those willing to explore and seize these opportunities in Vietnam’s ever-expanding industrial landscape.
HMLF is always available to offer assistance in understanding the procedures with authorities.
Harley Miller Law Firm “HMLF”
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