Inconsistent apartment service prices and quality have resulted in disputes between owners and apartment management service providers, an agency has said.
Keangnam residents protested against the property service management company
Hanoi Department of Planning and Architecture made the comments in a report recently sent to the city’s People’s Council.
Department Deputy Director Duong Duc Tuan said that authorities are still struggling to devise common policies to manage apartments, which has led to inconsistent management of such facilities.
Tuan said, “Apartment blocks have different features and quality, so investors apply their own management methods”.
Concerning apartment sizes, he said that this has been outlined in the Law on Housing but there was no detailed guidance on implementation, causing obstacles in defining common areas, ownership, interests and responsibilities of related parties.
Even though there were regulations on management fees, it was difficult to collect maintenance fees. It remained essential to clarify particular fees for apartments of different grades, he noted.
Loose management over public areas, including basements, ground floors and rooftops had caused disputes.
The lack of consistent prices and quality of apartment services is blamed for disputes between residents and managers. Developments including Keangnam in Tu Liem District, Golden Westlake in Tay Ho District, The Manor in Tu Liem District and Trung Hoa – Nhan Chinh in Cau Giay District had all suffered disputes.
The department added that although many apartments have been used for years, investors had yet to complete procedures to grant house ownership certificates to buyers.
In order to improve the situation, Tuan recommended that both Hanoi People’s Committee and People’s Council direct district authorities to regularly supervise the management of local apartments.
They should canvass local residents for solutions to long standing problems. Any violators should be strictly punished.
The municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment should step up granting house ownership certificates to apartment buyers in order to help deal them with difficulties with service management providers.