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The Livestream Trend in Real Estate: How Effective Is It, and Who Protects the Buyers?

21 August, 2025

On a summer evening in June, Mr. Nguyen Quoc Cuong, Chairman of C-Holdings JSC, appeared in a livestream on TikTok to introduce and sell apartments in The Felix project in Binh Hoa ward, Thuan An city, Binh Duong province (now belonging to Binh Hoa ward, Ho Chi Minh city).

According to C-Holdings, in just three hours of broadcasting, the livestream attracted more than 151,000 views, 31,000 comments, over 1,200 phone numbers left for consultation, and 517 successful bookings, with an estimated transaction value of VND 800 billion.

Source: C-Holdings channel on TikTok

At the beginning of July, Sunshine Group broadcast an online auction of luxury apartments in the Sunshine Green Iconic project in Long Bien, Hanoi, attracting nearly 30,000 live views and tens of millions of views on television and their private app, according to the company.

An apartment with a market price of about VND 8 billion was sold at VND 5.5 billion, a 30% discount. Just a week later, Sunshine continued to organize more livestreams, selling townhouses, duplex apartments, and villas at preferential “secret bid” prices, creating a strong media buzz.

Source: sunshinegroup.vn

Even a financial institution like ACB bank joined the trend. On the evening of March 14, 2025, ACB held its first livestream to introduce a real estate basket with properties priced from VND 1.6 billion, along with attractive loan packages. The event attracted more than 6,200 viewers, and by the end, over 2,000 people had inquired and registered.

From the outside, the impressive numbers of views, phone numbers left, and bookings seem to indicate that livestreaming is becoming an effective channel for real estate promotion, replacing, to some extent, traditional showrooms, fairs, and launch events that are costly and limit the number of people reached.

But is this just a short-lived trend or a sustainable business model in the real estate industry, which requires legal transparency, strict transaction procedures, and involves high-value assets?

How Effective Is It?

The success of these real estate livestreams largely stems from well-known brands or influential individuals hosting the events. The popularity of C-Holdings’ livestream cannot be separated from the charisma of Mr. Nguyen Quoc Cuong, who has been an influential figure on social media for many years. Similarly, Sunshine Group already had an established ecosystem, including an app, television channel, and fan pages, to create an “organized” sales campaign across multiple platforms.

However, according to Mr. Dinh Minh Tuan, Sales Director of Batdongsan.com.vn, real estate livestreams are mostly advertising and marketing rather than actual sales. While creating a strong media impact and raising awareness about the project, booking through livestreams usually involves a small, refundable amount, making it challenging to assess the actual sales effectiveness.

The Sales Director of Batdongsan.com.vn stated that for a real estate project to be sold via livestream, the legal requirement is to have a sales permit and complete construction legalities, regardless of whether it is an online or offline sale. Livestreaming is just the beginning, and legal risks are usually borne entirely by the buyer.

“Real estate is a high-value product with stringent legal bindings, and one cannot decide to purchase solely based on an online format. Buyers need to thoroughly check the legal aspects, physically visit the project to assess its quality, and carefully read the sales contract,” Mr. Tuan shared.

Additionally, the booking numbers announced during livestreams should be cautiously considered as they are challenging to verify and are often part of the marketing strategy. Online money transfers also pose high risks for consumers due to the lack of stringent regulations.

Which Format Is More Costly?

In terms of cost, Mr. Tuan believes that organizing a livestream is not cheap and could even be more expensive than traditional launch events, as it requires investing in a team, KOLs/KOCs, technology platforms, and extensive marketing campaigns.

However, livestreaming offers the advantage of reaching younger audiences on social media platforms like TikTok and Facebook and creating rapid viral effects. While this demographic may not be suitable for premium or ultra-luxury products, livestreaming can succeed with affordable offerings and policies targeting this age group. In the long run, this format helps build brand recognition among young people, laying the groundwork for future purchases when they have sufficient financial means.

The expert also assesses that in the next 1-2 years, the trend of livestreaming real estate is unlikely to completely replace traditional sales channels such as fairs, showrooms, or agencies, as agencies still play a pivotal role in transactions. Instead, livestreaming will serve as a supplementary channel for sales and marketing.

For investors and homebuyers, Mr. Tuan advises treating livestreaming as an initial information source. Attractive discounts offered during livestreams are often “bait” for inexperienced individuals, leading to mistaken decisions.

To make a sound real estate investment decision, whether a seasoned or new investor, it is imperative to dedicate time to thoroughly research the legal aspects, location, project quality, developer capabilities, and, most importantly, physically visit the property.

Thanh Tu

– 09:00 21/08/2025