Da Nang Tackles ‘Broker’ Scams in Social Housing Transactions

The People’s Committee of Da Nang City has issued an official dispatch to rectify the submission of dossiers for the purchase and sale of social housing.

Accordingly, the Da Nang People’s Committee has tasked the Department of Construction with spearheading efforts to accelerate the progress of social housing projects. Additionally, project details must be fully disclosed at least 30 days before dossier submission. This includes information on scale, number of apartments, selling price, rental purchase price, dossier distribution time and location, and the start and end dates for dossier acceptance.

This information must be published on the Department of Construction’s website, the commune-level People’s Committee where the project is located, and at least once in a local newspaper.

The Department of Construction is responsible for guiding residents in preparing dossiers according to regulations to avoid multiple submissions. They must also direct relevant agencies to verify eligible individuals and income and housing conditions using the new Ministry of Construction’s forms. Furthermore, the department must publicly announce the list of eligible buyers and renters after contract signing and update the data to prevent duplicate entries.

The Da Nang People’s Committee specifically mandates that authorities collaborate to inspect and strictly penalize illegal brokerage activities, “middlemen,” deposit collection, “guaranteed dossier success” fees, and the unauthorized sale of “diplomatic slots.”

Additionally, violators must be publicly identified to warn residents, and communication efforts regarding social housing policies must be intensified to ensure public awareness and prevent fraud.

For social housing project developers, the Da Nang People’s Committee requires strict adherence to sales procedures. Project information must be publicly disclosed on the company’s website and submitted to competent authorities for publication as prescribed.

When receiving dossiers directly, developers must set up multiple reception points, organize queues by time or residential area, provide guidance signage, and deploy staff to prevent overcrowding. If the number of dossiers exceeds reception capacity, developers must extend submission deadlines and publicly notify residents to ensure universal access.

Da Nang City encourages the application of digital technology for online dossier submission, electronic queuing, and online dossier distribution to reduce direct interaction.

The Da Nang People’s Committee advises residents participating in social housing registration to proactively research legal regulations and project information through official channels. They should interact directly with developers’ staff, avoid transactions through “middlemen” or reliance on “diplomatic slots” or “internal slots,” declare information truthfully, and submit dossiers for only one project without using proxies.

Recently, the Da Nang Department of Construction has continuously announced the sale of social housing in various projects. Notable examples include 305 apartments in the Social Housing Apartment Building at lot B4-2 in the Bàu Tràm Lakeside Urban Area, 633 apartments in the An Trung 2 Residential Area, and 237 apartments in Block C of the Low-Income Housing Project in the Đại Địa Bảo Resettlement Area.