“Sudden Spike in Rental Rates Leaves Hundreds of Market Vendors Struggling”

Market vendors in Dien Nam Trung, Quang Nam province, were recently taken aback by the local government’s decision to hand over the market to a private company. The new rental rates set by the company have caused great concern among the vendors.

Over 400 vendors at risk of leaving the market

According to VTC News, the Dien Nam Trung market was built and operated by Nguyen Thinh Phat Investment and Construction Company in 2014 at the site of the old Dien Nam market.

In 2017, the People’s Committee of Dien Ban town spent approximately 16 billion VND to take over the market from Nguyen Thinh Phat Company. For the past eight years, the market has been managed by the People’s Committee of Dien Nam Trung ward under the supervision of the Dien Nam Trung Market Management Board.

On May 19, the People’s Committee of Dien Ban town decided to hand over the management and operation of the market back to Nguyen Thinh Phat Company starting June 1, 2025.

On May 24 and 25, Nguyen Thinh Phat Company organized a meeting with over 400 vendors to discuss the expected new rental rates for the market.

The company representative announced that they would be implementing new rental rates, which are higher than the rates previously agreed upon between the vendors and the Dien Nam Trung Market Management Board.

Mr. Vo Nhu Thu, a resident of Dien Nam Trung ward, could not hide his frustration as he and hundreds of other vendors were suddenly put in a difficult situation.

According to Mr. Thu, at the beginning of 2024, the Dien Nam Trung Market Management Board signed new rental contracts with 436 vendors operating in the market. The contracts are valid until the end of 2026.

“It is absurd that at the present time, the contracts between the vendors and the Market Management Board are still valid. So, when we received the notice that the market would be handed over to a private company, we were all taken aback and confused.” – Mr. Thu said, and then provided an example to illustrate the significant increase in rental rates.

Specifically, for a 2.25 sqm lot selling fish, which Mr. Thu and his wife have been renting for over 10 years, the monthly rent was 90,000 VND (1,080,000 VND per year). With the new rental rates, for the same area, Mr. Thu has to pay more than 5.7 million VND per year to the company. What has made not only Mr. Thu but also hundreds of other vendors unhappy is that Nguyen Thinh Phat Company requires them to pay the rent for 10 years in advance. This means that Mr. Thu has to pay more than 57 million VND to continue his business in the market.

Like Mr. Thu and more than 400 other vendors in the market, since receiving the information about the increased rental rates, Ms. Le Thi Hoa Phuong has been very worried.

Ms. Phuong is the vendor who rents the most kiosks in Dien Nam Trung market (8 kiosks selling furniture and household appliances). According to the contract signed last year, she has to pay the Market Management Board 2,880,000 VND per month for all 8 kiosks (360,000 VND per kiosk).

“This means that I pay less than 35 million VND per year to the previous management, and for 10 years, it would be 350 million VND. With the new rates set by the company, I have to rent 8 kiosks for 10 years at a cost of more than 1.2 billion VND. While I used to pay monthly, now I am required to pay the rent for 10 years in advance, which is clearly beyond the means of the vendors.” – Ms. Phuong shared.

Some vendors added that the rates announced by the company are for renting the space for the whole day. If vendors do not want to rent for the whole day, they can sign a contract to rent by the half-day. Ms. Vo Thi Ngoc Anh, a seafood vendor in the market, explained: “At the meeting, the representative of Nguyen Thinh Phat Company clearly stated that vendors who wish to sell in the afternoon must clean up the space after finishing their business so that the company can rent the space to others in the morning. This is difficult for vendors selling perishable goods like seafood, vegetables, and fruits, and even more challenging for those selling household appliances or miscellaneous items. Even if we rent by the half-day, the rate is still twice as high as the old rate we signed with the Dien Nam Trung Market Management Board.”

At the meeting on May 25, when the representative of Nguyen Thinh Phat Company threatened to close the market from June 1, all the vendors stood up and left the meeting, facing the risk of leaving the market due to the high rental rates and unacceptable regulations.

When contacted by VTC News, the representative of Nguyen Thinh Phat Company briefly responded that they could not answer questions over the phone due to health reasons. On the morning of May 29, when VTC News tried to contact the company again for an in-person meeting, the call was busy.

Authorities will work with the company and vendors to find a common ground

This was shared by Mr. Nguyen Van Minh, Vice Chairman of Dien Nam Trung Ward People’s Committee and Head of Dien Nam Trung Market Management Board, during a meeting with VTC News.

According to Mr. Minh, at the moment, the Market Management Board has completed the handover of Dien Nam Trung market to Nguyen Thinh Phat Company. The handover minutes clearly state that the company must continue to create favorable conditions for vendors to operate continuously without interruption. At the same time, the local authorities sent a notice to the vendors, encouraging them to terminate their contracts with the previous management and transfer to the new company. However, the vendors have not agreed to this.

Regarding the new rental rates, Mr. Minh informed that the company set the rates based on Decision No. 06 dated March 22, 2019, of the People’s Committee of Quang Nam province on regulating the service prices for using selling space in the markets in the province.

Specifically, for a grade 2 market like Dien Nam Trung, the rental rates should not be more than twice the rate set by the government. “So, in this case, the company’s rates are not wrong. However, the problem is that Nguyen Thinh Phat Company requires vendors to pay the rent for 10 years in advance, which is difficult for the vendors. Perhaps the company should consider a phased payment, for example, every three years, to give vendors more flexibility.” – Mr. Minh said.

“Regarding half-day rentals, this is also challenging for vendors because many goods cannot be cleared daily. We have suggested to the company to monitor the market’s business situation because, for a long time, the market has only been operating in the afternoon, and there are hardly any customers in the morning.” – Mr. Minh added.

As a direct participant in the meetings between the vendors and Nguyen Thinh Phat Company on May 24 and 25, the Vice Chairman of Dien Nam Trung Ward People’s Committee confirmed that no agreement has been reached between the two parties. Therefore, the local authorities will continue to mediate to balance the interests of the vendors, who have been doing business in the market for many years, and the new company that has just taken over the management of the market.