In a report sent to the committee following their latest inspection on housing construction, the department said that they found 67 separate houses being divided into tiny living quarters, just big enough for a bed, which are often called sleep boxes.
Checking 58 out of the 67 houses, the inspection team found 2,165 sleep boxes while the remaining nine facilities were closed as their owners were not home, preventing the inspectors from entering and evaluating them.
Some districts that have large numbers of sleep boxes include Go Vap with 15 facilities and 474 sleep boxes, district 10 with nine facilities and 440 boxes, and Phu Nhuan with nine facilities and 335 boxes. Each box spans some two metres in width and rental costs of about VND2 million per month.
According to the department, these sleep boxes pose high risks for fire, explosion and other safety hazards, and need to be strictly managed and controlled. They urged the municipal people's committee to direct local authorities in local districts to check and deal with any violations.
Sleep boxes have become more common in the southern metropolis since 2021 when low-income earners including students and workers seek cheap housing for rent.