Summary of economic doctoral thesis factors affecting the intention to buy houses of people in urban areas of vietnam

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

NATIONAL ECONOMIC UNIVERSITY

TRAN XUAN LUONG

"Factors affecting the intention to buy houses of
people in urban areas of Vietnam"
Major: Real Estate Business Administration
Code: 9340101

SUMMARY OF ECONOMIC DOCTORAL
THESIS

The work was completed at:
National Economics University

Instructors:
1. Assoc. Prof. Pham Van Linh
2. Prof. Pham Lan Hương

1st reviewer: …………
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nd
2 reviewer:…………
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rd
3 reviewer:…………
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The dissertation will be reviewred in front of the State Council for

Thesis Evaluation at…….

The dissertation can be found at: National Library
Library of National Economics
University

Hanoi, 2020


INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale
Vietnam is stepping up on the process of urbanization in the local area, the speed of
urbanization is shown by the growth rate over time of urban population and urban area
(Tran Minh Tung, 2019 ). The World Bank (WB, 2011) argues that urbanization in Vietnam
is closely related to five transition factors, namely administration, space, economy,
population and social welfare. These transformations have drastically changed the physical
and non-physical appearance of urban areas. The increase in density in new urban space
areas, often located on the suburban, is seen as a result of the urbanization process through
new urban area projects.
Urbanization in Vietnam is happening at a very fast pace, with increasing population
pressure, and is putting the burden of housing problems on urban areas (Tran Ngoc Chinh,
2019). Cities in Vietnam are currently facing an imbalance between the availability of
housing and meeting real needs (JLL, 2020). Supply in high-end and luxury apartments is
currently quite high; According to JLL, the density of luxury apartments in Ho Chi Minh
City reaches 3 units per 1,000 people, nearly the same level as in BangKok, Thailand.
Although the market supply is very large, according to information from the Ministry of
Construction, at the end of 2019, the real estate market (RE) still has a large inventory
(about 22,976 billion VND). This fact shows that the current supply of RE products in urban
areas in Vietnam has not reached the suitable customers.
The calculation of JLL (2020) shows that, depending on the model, the basic facilities

and the location of the project, the price must be lower than $ 1,200 (approximately VND
27,000,000) per square meter will be considered affordable housing. This is a high price
even compared to the average income per capita of Hanoi capital in 2019 at VND
120,000,000/person/year. Therefore, the current RE market in Vietnam urban areas with
mostly middle and high-end apartments are only serving the middle class of society. The
middle class, according to the definition of the World Bank (2015), is the person with a
living standard higher than USD15/ person/day, equivalent to VND 10.6
million/person/month if calculated at the exchange rate in early 2020. This object of
Vietnam is growing rapidly in recent years, accounting for 15% of the population in 2019
(approximately 14.4 million) and is estimated to reach 20%, 25% soon. This is an important
role in economic development, boosting demand due to high consumption, contributing to
creating more jobs for society and helping the economy reduce its dependence on foreign
investment (Dang Hoang Hai Anh, 2020).
Although being a target customer of the Vietnam RE market, buying a house is always
one of the important things in human life (Felicia et al., 2014). Because buying a house is a
complex decision-making process, shown by the high cost, irregularity, risk, high selfexpression and significant differences in people's perceptions (Manivannan et al., 2014). ).
Buying a house is also considered a long-term investment decision since it is the main point
affecting people's living standards from both macro and micro aspects (Paul et al., 2019).
The middle class is said to be aware and demanding of high quality products; so with an
important, high-value product like housing, it becomes even more cautious.
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According to state and local planning regulations, The real estate market in Vietnam's
urban areas will include the main products of condominiums, villas, adjoining houses or
penthouse and shophouse. These are all high-value products, which have been located in the
middle and high-end segment in the past period, making purchasing decisions more
difficult. The real estate market in urban areas of Vietnam is paradoxical when the supply is
abundant, customers are available and increasing but the amount of inventory is still large.
The question is whether or not the sellers fully understand the buyers; know when the
customer's purchase process is formed, influenced by what factors, what are the special

factors that middle-class buyers require in housing supply. In addition, the rapid
urbanization process makes the law as well as institutional and administrative factors
developed incompatibly, leading to a lot of housing disputes in the past period, which makes
middle-class people become more cautious.
Research on the house buying intention (BI) of domestic and foreign authors shows
that there have been a number of studies of authors around the world on customers and
types of houses or real estate. However, in Vietnam, it is still very few and most are
focusing on researching social housing or low-income housing - the source of real estate
products is very few in Vietnam. Thus, it can be seen that both theory and practice show the
urgency of scientific studies, especially quantitative studies on housing buying behavior in
urban areas of Vietnam to provide grant bases to investors as well as policy makers in
reaching customers effectively. This process begins with the intention of buying a house
that matches the personal and psychological characteristics of the customer. Because
buying intention reflects consumers' beliefs related to the consumer behaviors chain is an
individual motivation in awareness to promote efforts to conduct behaviors (Ajzen and
Fishbein, 1980).
In this context, the PhD student selected the topic "Factors affecting the intention to
buy houses of people in urban areas of Vietnam" to be the subject of the doctoral thesis. In
which, focusing on researching on house buying intention of middle class people in
Vietnam - the target customers of the current urban real estate market. Because of the
different characteristics of housing products in urban areas, PhD student also plans to divide
the product types into two groups, called private houses and apartments. In which private
houses are understood as villas, adjacent houses and shops. An apartment is defined as an
apartment or a penthouse. And besides analyzing the factors affecting house buying
intention of people in urban areas of Vietnam, the thesis will also compare the differences in
buying intention between the two types of apartments and private houses of researched
customers.

2. Research questions
- What are the main factors influencing the intention to buy a house with the price range of

VND 3-5 billion of the middle class customers in urban areas in Vietnam?

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- Is there a difference in the influence of factors on the intention to buy an apartment and the
intention to buy a private house with the same price of 3-5 billion VND of the middle class
customers in urban areas in Vietnam?
- What demographic characteristics differ between two middle-class customers who intend
to buy an apartment or a private house, at the same price of 3-5 billion VND in urban areas
of Vietnam?

3. Research purposes and missions
Research purposes:
The dissertation is aimed at assessing the influence of different factors on housing
buying intention in urban areas of Vietnam. In particular: comparing the differences in the
influence of factors on the buying intention of middle-class customers for apartments and
private houses in urban areas Vietnam with prices ranging from VND 3 to 5 billion.
Detail goals:
- Review theoretical schools and previous studies on houses/real estate buying
intention. On that basis, determine the theoretical basis for the research of the thesis;
- Build a model to study the factors affecting intention to buy houses of people in
urban areas of Vietnam;
- Test the proposed research model with data collected from people with intention to
buy houses in Vietnam urban areas; in which divided into 02 groups: people with apartment
buying intention and people with private house buying intention;
- Make recommendations to consumers (homebuyers), developers and policy makers
in the design, construction and distribution of housing products in urban areas in accordance
with consumers' buying intention.
4. Research subject and scope

4.1. Research subjects
The research object of the thesis is the factors affecting intention to buy houses of
people in urban areas of Vietnam a comparison of the different levels of influence between
apartment buyers and home buyers.
4.2. Research scope
Scope of content:
- Research on house buying intention, the factors affecting house buying intention
and the characteristics of people in urban areas of Vietnam.
- The thesis does not study other processes in the behavior of consumers buying
houses in Vietnam's urban areas such as: decision of buying houses; satisfaction after
buying etc.
Scope of research method:
Assessing the influence of factors on house buying intention is analyzed from the
perspective of the house buyer, not from the perspective of the seller / broker or
construction investor or policy makers.
Scope of space:
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- The study focused on 02 groups of customers who are buyers of apartments and
private houses:
+ People who have buying intentions considering one of the above apartments or
private houses, up to the time of answering the survey questionnaire.
+ Middle-class customers are those who own a relatively better financial position to
actually make a choice of them (Linghi Li, 2010). Because the research objectives of this
thesis are not aimed at examining the solvency issue (price factor) but want to compare the
impact of factors on the intention of people on buying a house. How the intention of the
person who wants to buy the apartment is different from that of the person who wants to
buy a private house when they have the same amount of money to choose to buy a house.
+ The price of a private house or apartment that customers have intention to buy is in
the range of 3-5 billion. This price is chosen because according to the statistics of one of the

big and reputable real estate information sites (batdongsan.com.vn), this is the price with the
largest transaction volume in both types of apartment buildings and private house. In
addition, according to the evaluation of experts of the Real Estate Association of Vietnam,
in the last 3 years, the rate of absorption of residential real estate reached the highest rate,
nearly 95%. Notably, the absorption rate of apartments in the mid-end segment is the
highest, over 97%.
Scope of time:
- The thesis collects secondary data in the period of 2014 - 2018.
- Primary data was collected in the period from June 2018 to June 2019.
- Analysis and reporting data in the period 2019 - 2020.
5. Summary of thesis
a / The research process of the dissertation consists of 12 basic steps: research problem (step
1); building theoretical basis (step 2); research model and questionnaire establishment (step
3); scale construction, pilot test, perfect scale (step 4,5,6,7,8,9); extensive investigation (step
10); information analysis (step 11), discussion and recommendations (step 12).
b / The dissertation's research methodology combines the deductive method and inductive
method.
c / Data collection method:
For secondary data: the method of collecting desk data.
For primary data: in-depth interview method; expert method, test survey; Investigate by
questionnaire.
6. New contributions of the thesis
The thesis has contributions in both theoretically and practically, as follows:
- Contribution 1: Systematized theories about theoretical models related to human
behavior, consumer behavior as well as intention to buy houses.
- Contribution 2: Establishing an analytical model of factors affecting the intention to
buy a house in urban areas in Vietnam in the price range of 3-5 billion VND of middle class
customers based on the TPB model by Ajzen (2009, 2012). The model consists of 05
independent variables (attitudes, subjective norms, perception of behavior control, house
position, legality), 05 control variables that are demographic characteristics of people

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(gender, age, occupation, education level, family size) and 01 dependent variable (buying
intention).
- Contribution 3: Contribution 3: Comparison of the differences in the influence of
factors on buying intentions of middle-class customers for apartments and houses in urban
areas in Vietnam with prices ranging from 3- 5 billion.
- Contribution 4: Affirm the difference in the intention to buy an apartment or private
house with the price of 3-5 billion VND of middle-class customers with different
demographic characteristics.
- Contribution 5: Propose a number of suggestions to consumers, investors and policy
makers on home or apartment products at VND 3-5 billion in urban areas of Vietnam. These
suggestions may help:
+ Home buyers, brokerage consultants to have references to find themselves a private
house or apartment at VND 3-5 billion, suitable to their requirements.
+ Investors to build houses based on research results to make timely and effective
investment decisions.
+ State agencies to adopt appropriate guidelines and policies and approve investment
projects on housing construction, aiming at the right target, using effectively, minimizing
the phenomenon of "ghost town" causing losses for national resources, avoid wasting risks
and social consequences.

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household use or as a gift to someone else. Personal consumer purchases are ultimately for
personal consumption. On the other hand, group consumers buy products and services to
run an organization, including for-profit and non-profit organizations or governmental
organizations and institutions.

Engel's definition of consumer behavior, Blackwell & Miniard (1990:G4), states that
“actions are directly related to the acquisition, consumption and handling of products and
services, including decision processes before and after these actions”. More recent
descriptions or definitions (which are not substantially different from above) can be found in
Arnould, Price & Zinkhan (2002:5) and Peter & Olson (2002:6).
Consumer behavior is also defined as how individuals, groups and organizations
select, purchase, use and discard goods, services, ideas or experiences in order to meet their
needs (Kotler & Keller, 2009: 9; Solomon, 2009: 7).
A broader and “more complete” definition of consumer behavior is “the totality of
consumers' decisions with respect to the acquisition, consumption, and disposition of goods,
services, activities, experiences, people, and ideas by (human) decision-making units over
time."(Hoyer & Macinnis, 2010: 3).
Schiffman, Hansen & Kanuk (2012: 5) argue that “consumer behavior is about
finding, buying, using, reviewing and rejecting products and services that they hope will
meet the needs of people ”.

1.2.

Consumer behavior and housing products

Walters (1974: 7) defines consumer behavior as “the process by which individuals
decide what, what, when, where, how and from whom to purchase goods and services”.
Mowen (1993: 6) provides another definition by explaining consumer behavior as
“studying the units of purchase and the exchange processes involved in the acquisition,
consumption and disposal of goods, services, experiences and ideas ”. This definition
focuses on the purchases of entities that include not only individuals but also groups that
purchase products or services.
Schiffman & Kanuk (1997: 648) define consumer behavior as "The behavior
consumers display when searching, buying, using, reviewing and disposing products,
services and ideas". Schiffman & Kanuk (1997: 6-7) clarify the definition by explaining that

consumer behavior studies how individuals make decisions to use their available resources
(time, money, effort) on consumption-related items. It includes research about what, why,
when, where, and how often they buy and how they use the product. In addition, it includes
all the behaviors consumers exhibit in finding, buying, using, evaluating and disposing of
products and services they expect will satisfy their needs. Also according to Schiffman &
Kanuk (1997: 6-7), two different types of consumers can be distinguished as individual and
group consumers. Individual consumers who purchase products and services for personal or

Several studies have discussed homebuyers' buying choices and have determined that
homebuyers should be referred to as consumers in certain consumer activities such as
choosing, buying and using home products. (Fierro et al., 2009; Hoang & Yi, 2010; Opoku
& Abdul-Muhmin, 2010).
Housing selection aims to maximize benefits in housing use, in the context of housing
as a durable commodity of individuals and households ( Koklic and Vida, 2009; 2011).
Meanwhile, from a behavioral economics perspective, housing choice is seen as a problemsolving process with behavioral orientation, values-focused (Collen and Hoekstra, 2001;
Jansen, 2014) and influenced by psychological factors with many different biases (Gibb,
2009).
In the decision-making process, individuals need to consider different goals, for
example the individual makes a conscious effort to make a correct choice, maximizing
benefits on a experiences of minimizing negative emotions (Bettman et al., 1998). However,
individuals strive to achieve certain goals and values when solving their problems. The
problem-solving process takes place in a series of well-analyzed phases, although a
particular problem may repeat complicatedly. Collen and Hoekstra (2001) together with the
research team of Jansen et al. (2011) have reviewed the document and conceptualized stages
of the problem solving process such as: (1) Problem perception; (2) Clearly identify the
problem; (3) Design and testing; (4) Selection; (5) Consideration of commitments; (6)
Action; and (7) Feedback.
Interestingly enough, house buying decision making is often influenced by the people
involved. At the household level, family members have an influence on home buying

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CHAPTER 1. OVERVIEW OF THE RESEARCH AND AND RESEARCH
MODEL
1.1. Consumer behavior


decisions (Levy and Kwai-Choi Lee, 2004). In addition, the activity of choosing / buying a
house is considered an inherently social activity and each decision-maker is influenced by
emotional and other psychological factors. Therefore, the decision-making process includes
things such as: setting goals, discussing and negotiating family needs about housing,
consulting with intermediaries, forecasting changes in housing issues (housing features and
market trends) according to Levy et al. (2008).

Section 1.4 will focus on the definition of consumer behavior patterns, their purposes
and advantages and ultimately discuss some of the patterns of consumer behavior along

with their importance in understanding consumer behavior. These models include: the
Bettman information-processing model, the Nicosian model, the Howard Sheth model, the
Howard model, the Engel-Blackwell-Miniard (EBM) model, the Theory of Rational Action
(TRA), and the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB)
1.5. Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and house buying intention
1.5.1. TPB model studies on house buying intention
Research by Chung et al (2018) has mentioned quite a few different authors'
approaches to buying intention. Buying intention is defined as the probability that a
customer is willing to buy a product in the near future (Wu et al., 2011). According to Sidi
and Sharipah (2011), a buying intention is considered a subjective judgment by the
customers it reflects after the customer evaluates whether to buy a product or service. A

buying intention is also defined as a situation in which a customer is willing to deal with a
seller and may come to consideration of purchasing some products or service (Dodds et al.,
1991). The higher buying intention, the higher customer's willingness to buy a product or
service (Schuler and Adair, 2003; Chiew et al., 2014). Studies have also shown that the
clients are more likely to convert their intentions into actual buying behavior (Zawawi et al,
2004). Chung et al mentioned that buying intention is the dependent variable predicted by
an independent variable such as attitude, cognitive behavior control and subjective norms
(Ajzen and Fishbein, 1980; Ajzen, 1991).
In the study of Julius et al (2016) also reviewed some concepts of buying intention and
house buying intention of different authors. Wu and Teng (2011) identify buying intention
as potential customers in the plan to purchase a particular product or service in the future.
Interestingly, both buying intention and buying decision are at two different stages in
consumer behavior theory however there is a significant link between both phases,
especially the association related to house purchase (Ajzen, 1991; Han and Kim, 2010;
Kunshan and Yiman, 2011). According to Ajzen (1991), intention is considered to include
the motivating factors that lead to a particular behavior in which intention implies how
much effort a person performed for the act to happen. In other words, a person with a high
buying intention is more likely to buy. Hence, Julius et al. (2016) defined home buying
intent in their study as how consumers are willing to buy a home in the near future. This is a
definition consistent with the definition of Ajzen (1991)
Mohamad et al. (2013) mentioned that in research on real estate market development
in Malaysia, buying intention can be defined as the plan to buy a particular good or service
in the future. It can also be defined as a consumer's attitude toward a product referring to its
beliefs, feelings, and intentions to buy. Plabdaeng (2010) says that making buying decisions
is one of the activities that people do all the time. People actually make decisions about
many things. According to Sidin, Zawawi, Wong, Busu, & Hamzah, (2004), family
members will have different roles in making purchasing decisions. Sometimes, the decision
maker may not be the one with the purchasing power to buy the product (Mansumitchai,
2002).
Author Tawfik in the 2014, 2015 (a, b, c) publications also mentioned, intention is a

sign of one's willingness to act and it is the immediate premise of behavior. Because.
Intention is the dependent variable predicted by an independent variable namely Attitude,
Subjective Norm and Cognitive Behavior Control. Intention changes over time and as the
interval increases, the correlation between intention and action decreases (Ajzen, 1991;
Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980; Han and Kim., 2010; Kim and Han, 2010). Davis et al. (1989) and
Taylor & Todd (1995) found in their studies that intention is a strong predictor of behavior.

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1.3. Human behavior model
According to Kotler (in Gould, 1979: 33), the extremely difficult task is to discover
why people buy because they are influenced by many factors. One reason is that people are
greatly influenced by their mentality, which ultimately leads to the decision to make a
public purchase.
Runyon & Stewart (19B7: 694-695) explains the theory of human behavior by saying
that it represents beliefs related to human nature as well as the cause of their behavior.
Therefore, people can be viewed from many perspectives. For example, if people are
viewed from an economic perspective, marketers can try to influence them with incentives.
However, from a social theory perspective, marketers can try to influence people by calling
for group norms, reference groups and values.
According to Runyon & Stewart (1987: 695), when discussing human behavioral
models, it is important to note that the proposed models are considered to be an incomplete
description of people, in which the Different models may be suitable for different marketing
situations. However, the above attitudes and models of human behavior have provided
valuable input on consumer behavior, as they strive to provide insights into why people consumers make reasonable buying decisions.
To better understand human behavior, four models will be discussed with marketing
applications based on Kotler's findings (in Gould, 1979: 34-46). The models of human
behavior discussed below are: the Marshal economic model, the Veblenian psychosocial

model, the Pavlovian learning model, and the Freudian psychoanalysis model. In addition to
these four models, Maslow's need hierarchy theory discussed the importance of
understanding the impact of needs and motives on consumer behavior.

1.4. Consumer behavior model
The discussion of human behavior models in section 1.3 shows efforts to explain
human behavior as well as its effect on consumer behavior. The models take a very narrow
approach in terms of their interpretation of the person's behavior and its impact on consumer
behavior. They focus on only a small set of possible behavioral effects, such as the Marshal
model, only on the influence of financial resources on behavior.
The shortcomings of human behavior models led to more complex models of
consumer behavior appearing in the early 1960s. According to Runyon & Stewart (1987:
698), consumer behavioral models, in contrast to human behavioral models, attempt to
describe and systematize the entire purchasing process, thus providing a guide for further
learning and research on consumer behavior.


Therefore, the buying intention is the premise of the buying decision (Phungwong 2010).
In Tech's (2013) study on the intention to buy a greenhouse in Malaysia, the author
also pointed out that intentions are subjective assessments of how individuals will behave in
the future, which provide a connection between individuals and products purchased (Kim &
Littrell, 1999; Madden et al., 1992). The power of intention as an alternative measure for
future behavior has been demonstrated in previous studies (Morwitz etal., 2007; Chan &
Lau, 2000). Among the theories used to explain the buying intention, the Theory of Planned
Behavior (TPB) - an extension of Theory of Reasonable Action (TRA), has been shown to
provide a framework for identify predictors of the intention to buy a particular product
(Ajzen & Madden, 1986; Han et al., 2010). To determine the buying intention of home
buyers, it is necessary to know their attitudes.
Research by Nguyen Thi Tung Phuong (2018) mentions the concept of "apartment
choice". In the original sense, "choice" is an opportunity, right and power to choose, while

"decision" is to reach a conclusion or resolution after consideration and does not imply the
existence of alternatives. “Decisions” are influenced by the analysis of facts and
information. Choosing can range from low-impact to high-impact. However, unlike choice,
decisions are made based on facts, not on different beliefs and perspectives. Even so, a
decision can also be part of a choice.
In Vietnam, the study of apartment buying intentions is important for real estate marketing
and modern urban development. Because consumers 'house buying” behavior is so complex,
it is difficult to have a single model or theory that fully explains consumers' decisions to buy
an apartment. The process of forming an apartment purchase intention is a complicated
process, so it is not possible to fully and accurately explain all the factors that affect the
intention to buy an apartment of people living in the urban area. Buying a house to live in is
one of the most important economic decisions made by people of all income classes, so the
buyer is often required to gather and synthesize a lot of information about the features,
quality, facilities, design, price and surroundings (Le Va Xi, 2017).
1.5.2. TPB studies on factors affecting the intention to buy a house
There are many studies on house buying intention and the factors that affect it. A
recent study by Sridharan (2020) shows that the reason for buying a house is the pride in
owning property instead of renting someone else's, having no landlord and tax benefits.
Wijayaningtyas et al. (2019) study the behavioral control awareness factors of the Y
generation (millennials) for environmentally friendly buying intention. Anlan Liu (2019)
has a study of the impact of children on the household's willingness to buy a house. In
addition, the factors of family annual income and ownership of private cars have a negative
effect, while the effect of an individual's age and educational level on buying intention is
insufficient.
Lin et al. (2018) studied the green housing buying intention among young Chinese on
the basis of an extended theory of planned behavior (Theory of Planned Behavior - TPB).
Incentives from the Government are considered the most important factor, followed by the
attitude towards behavior and subjective norms of consumers. Cognitive behavioral control
is a factor that does not affect the green housing buying intention of young consumers. In
addition, subjective knowledge has an indirect effect through attitude toward behavior.

Attention to the environment also creates an indirect effect through attitudes toward

behavior and subjective norms on the corresponding buying intention. Therefore, the
government is implied to play an important role in promoting green housing at this stage.
Chung et al. (2018) studied the factors affecting buying intention of land assets in
Greater Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia. The results have shown that there are positive
relationships between attitudes, subjective norms, perceptions of behavioral control and
finance to buying intention of land assets, while location and living space are not showing a
similar relationship in the land market in Greater KL.
Mal et al (2018) studied the effect of feng shui factors on buying intention of the
Chinese people (Malaysian Chinese - Chinese originating from Malaysia). According to the
views on feng shui, potential buyers believe that feng shui arrangements can affect luck and
property. A survey questionnaire based on 24 criteria for feng shui was designed to use data
collection from two different locations, namely Kuala Lumpur and Sandakan. Demographic
factors collected are gender, age, income, home owners, house buyers intention of buying or
not, buying a house to stay or to invest. The characteristics of the house studied in addition
to feng shui are: location, house price, security, transportation system, public utilities,
development potential and resale potential.
Houses in Sabah are built by investors based on economic factors rather than on the
interests of consumers (Julius, 2016). Therefore, this study aims to understand consumer
behavior towards house buying by using The Theory of Buyer Behavior Model with
Perception and Output. Perception includes housing attributes such as house characteristics,
living space, distance and environment. The output refers to the intention of buying. The
exogenous variables of the model is the superstition about numbers, superstition about
ghosts, brand owners and financial investors. The goal of this study is to examine the
influence of these factors on buying intention. Based on the responses of 235 working
adults, the findings indicate that house, financial, distance, environmental characteristics
and superstition about numbers have a significantly positive relationship with house buying
intention.
Demographic criteria play an important role in determining people's characteristics

(Fernando, 2016). Factors affecting buying intention were identified as housing
characteristics, individual living space, finances, location and demographics. Demographics
were collected based on 07 criteria of age, religion, marital status, household size,
occupation, and income.
In 2019, Mydhili et al. Gathered a number of studies on the factors affecting the
purchase of BDS. There are a number of studies on house buying intention such as Mostofa
(2016), Al-Nahdi (2015) and Tawfik (2015). Research by Mostofa et al. investigated
potential market factors in the attitude of real estate buyers in Bangladesh to identify
opportunities for investors and traders in Realty. The research of Al-Nahdi et al. focused on
behavioral factors affecting Saudi Arabia's real estate purchase and aimed to see how real
estate buying intention is affected by attitude, how location, living space, public services,
and reference groups are. In 2015, Tawfik's doctoral thesis studied the effects of a number
of variables in the role of independent variables (attitudes, subjective norms, perception of
behavior control) and the role of moderator variables (location, public services) to the

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dependent variable is the intention to purchase real estate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. In
addition, demographic characteristics such as age, gender, marital status, family size,
citizenship, education, occupation, and monthly income are also control variables taken into
research. The theoretical basis of Tawfik's research is based on the Theory of Reasoned
Action (TRA) and TPB theory.
Karunarathne et al. (2015) argue that most housing market models are based on
rational choice and behavior optimization, but do not take into account observed behavior in
the housing market. . Therefore, two structures were identified, namely the self image and
the influence of the reference group.
The purpose of Polek's announcement (2014) is to study the importance of different

reference groups - Group References - affecting house buying intention for families living in
Thailand because houses are durable properties at high prices compared to The income of
the people of this country. The study applied Ajzen's famous theory of TPB (1991).
Mohamad et al (2013) considered that there are a number of factors that determine the
movement of the real estate market. From the results of the analysis, the influencing factors
have a significant relationship with real estate buying intention in Setia Alam, which are
personal characteristics, knowledge, social class and reference group.
The study measures the intention to buy green and sustainable housing in Malaysia
using an extended theory of behavioral models under the TPB plan (Teck Hong Tan, 2013).
Results obtained showed that attitudes towards green houses, cognitive behavioral control
and perceived identity (Perceived self-identity) have a positive impact on behavioral
intention to buy that house.
In Vietnam, there are a number of authors studying this content. Typically, Le Va Xi
(2017) on the topic "Factors affecting the intention of Vietnamese consumers to buy
apartments in medium-sized cities: A study in Hai Phong City" . The author has focused on
understanding 4 main groups of factors: cultural changes; land issues for urban housing
development; urbanization and population pressures; and finally the factors that provide
value to the residents of the apartments - the value of condos - including the quality of
construction design, services, environment and prices.
The research of Nguyen Thi Tung Phuong in 2018 is about choosing apartments in
urban areas in Hanoi city. The study showed two factors that influence the choice of buying
apartments in urban areas of Hanoi city, namely "family phase" and "lifestyle". In addition,
control variables added include: age, gender, occupation, income, purchase price per square
meter of the apartment.
In addition, there are a number of studies by Vietnamese authors about house buying
decisions. As researched by Truong Thanh Hiep and colleagues in 2018 on the impact of
fear of losses on homebuyer behavior. The Doctoral thesis and the publications of Nguyen
Tuan Anh et al. (2017; 2018a, b, c) studied the impact of financial and non-financial factors
on the choice of buying affordable housing. (social housing) and low-cost commercial
housing.

1.6. Research gap of the thesis
1.6.1. Some conclusions about the research review

Previous studies in the country and abroad presented above have helped the PhD
student have a relatively general view of the factors affecting house buying intention or real
estate buying intention (collectively referred to as house buying intention). A summary of
these factors is presented in Appendix 01 of the thesis. From the contents reviewed, the PhD
student draws some conclusions as follows:
- Most of the research on house buying intention and factors affecting the intention to
buy a house is currently by foreign authors. The main model used in the studies is TPB.
- The works have brought a lot of different factors to study the impact on buying
intention of consumers. But together, these factors are divided into three main groups:
• The first group contains the factors in the basic model of TPB: Attitude, Subjective
Norms, and perception of behavior control. These factors have also been further developed
or transformed by some studies: Self image (in reality, in imagination); Influence
(information type, standard type); Knowledge (Subjective Knowledge); Personality etc.
These factors often act as independent variables affecting buying intention. But there is also
research (Lin et al., 2018) that these variables also act as intermediaries when previously
influenced by a number of other factors.
• The second group includes factors that belong to the property (or real estate):
Ownership / Legal procedure; Location ; Price; Finance / Development potential /
Potential for resale; Environment; Living space (private); Public services (public utilities);
Transportation system; Feng Shui; Superstition (numbers, ghosts) etc. These factors mostly
play an independent variable affecting purchasing intention. However, in some studies of
Tawfik (2014, 2015), there are a number of variables (location, public services) that play a
role in regulating the relationship between the independent and dependent variables.
• The third group is the list of buyers' personal/demographic characteristics: gender;
age; job; field of work; work status; marital status; monthly income; educational
background; number of family members; environmental concern; social class; personal
characteristics; religion; nationality; civil rights; current type of housing; whether he/she

owning a car, etc. These are the factors that always play the role of control variables. Only
the citizenship factor in Tawfik's study (2015b) was analyzed as a moderator variable on the
relationship between the dependent and independent variables.
• The fourth group is other factors such as investors (brand, prestige), government
incentives, urbanization, culture etc. These variables often play the role of independent
variables.
1.6.2. Research gap
Based on the conclusions of the research situation, the PhD student determines the gap
for the thesis as follow:
- First, the gap about the research object:
+ Housing in urban areas has a price of 3-5 billion VND. The dissertation studies a group of
people with house buying intention in urban areas at a price of 3-5 billion VND to be able to
control factors of price and income.
+ Home buyers are middle class. Corresponding to the ability to buy houses at prices from 3
to 5 billion, according to experts, buyers are usually middle-class people. According to the

11

12


concept of World Bank (2015), the global middle class is defined as those with a living
standard higher than 15 USD / person / day, equivalent to 10.6 million VND / person /
month (exchange rate in 2020).
- Second, the gaps in influencing factors: the study focuses on evaluating two main
factors, which are location and legality, in comparison with the three basic factors of the
TPB model, which are attitude, subjective norms, and perception of behavioral control.
- Third, the gap of analytical content: the dissertation analyzes the difference in the
influence level of factors on the intention to buy two types of housing in urban areas,
namely apartments and private houses. The identified influencing factors include 03 factors

in the TPB model: attitude, subjective standards, and perception of behavior control; along
with 02 factors have been established as in the content gaps as legal status and location. But
there are two main types of housing in urban areas, which are apartments and private
houses, so the impact of these factors on the two groups of customers who intend to buy
these two types of houses will also be different. Therefore, the thesis will focus on
clarifying this difference.
- Last, the gaps in research space and time: housing research in urban areas of
Vietnam was conducted during the period from 2016 to 2020, collected primary data in
2019-2020 and Reported results in 2020.

13

CHAPTER 2. HYPOTHESIS AND RESEARCH METHODS
2.1. Overview of the study area
2.1.1. Vietnam urban area
Circular 34/2009 / TT-BXD dated September 30, 2009 of the Ministry of
Construction detailing a number of contents of Decree 42/2009 / ND-CP, dated May 7, 2009
of the Government on the for type of urban area, "Vietnamese urban centers are urban
centers, including cities, towns and townships recognized by decision-making authorities in
Vietnam". Although districts and communes in Vietnam are the administrative level in rural
areas, in special cases, if the size and the nature of urbanization are met, the district can be
recognized as urban, such as Prime Minister decided to recognize Phu Quoc island district
as a grade II urban area, the Ministry of Construction decided to recognize the expanded
Tinh Gia town area of Tinh Gia district (Thanh Hoa province) as grade III urban area (the
entire district Tinh Gia is a grade IV urban area, Duy Tien district (Ha Nam) or Tinh Bien
district (An Giang) is a grade IV urban area. Some communes in Vietnam that are district
towns preparing to be upgraded to towns may also be recognized as Grade V urban area by
the provincial government.
2.1.2. Housing in urban areas
Article 3, Housing Law No. 65/2014 / QH13 of the National Assembly of the Socialist

Republic of Vietnam provides the following concepts:
- House is a construction work for the purpose of staying and serving daily needs of
households and individuals.
- Private house is a type of house that is defined on a separate parcel of land under
the lawful use rights of organizations, households and individuals, including villas, attached
houses and independent houses.
- Apartment building is a building with 2 or more floors, with many apartments,
common aisles, stairs, a private area, a shared area and a system of infrastructure works
used for families, individuals and organizations, including apartments built for residential
purposes and apartments built for mixed use purposes containing residential and business
purposes.
2.1.3. Characteristics of housing in urban areas
As mentioned above, houses in urban areas of Vietnam is also a type of real estate.
Therefore, they have the basic characteristics such as immovability, lifetime, additional
costs, products and services, and future value. Besides, according to the Hoang Van Cuong
(2017), real estate in general and houses in particular have the following characteristics:
Position stability; Sustainability; Individuality and Scarcity; Value; Adaptability; Mutual
influence; Habits, Tastes and Psychology; Government of State laws and policies..
For 02 types of houses selected for research in the thesis, which are "apartments" and
"private houses", there are a number of distinctive features to mention such as house
purchase price, apartment value, payment , access to credit, house ownership certificate, use
right, living standards, location if the there is similarity in price, utilities, living space,
atmosphere, vision, security, buyers
2.2. Scale of factors
14


2.2.1. Buy Intention Factor
The intention to buy a house in Vietnamese urban areas is the level of consumer willingness
to choose and buy one of two typical housing types, Apartment or Private House in urban

areas of Vietnam with the main purpose of living and able to serve other needs that are not
prohibited by law such as trading (buying for resale) renting, giving, etc.
2.2.2. The Attitude Factor
Attitude refers to the extent to which a person has a favorable or negative rating relative to
an object, person or event (Robbins et al., 2015). It consists of three components:
perception, emotion and behavior. Studies have shown that there is a significant impact
between attitudes and intention to buy a house (Kamal et al., 2016; Al-Nahdi et al., 2015;
Phungwong, 2010; Chung et al., 2018).
2.2.3. Subjective Norms Factor
Subjective norms are the normative beliefs of an individual influenced by others such as
family members who think an individual should perform a particular behavior (Rivis and
Sheeran, 2003). Many studies show that the reference group has a strong positive effect on
buying intention (Panthura, 2011; Numraktrakul et al., 2012; Razak et al., 2013). For people
planning to buy a house, their reference group is usually family and close friends with real
estate knowledge.
2.2.4. Perception of behavior control factor
Perception of behavior control is defined as the degree to which the person controls internal
and external factors that facilitate or prevent the behavior (Han and Kim, 2010). This factor
has been shown by a number of studies to have a positive effect on behavioral intentions
(Han and Kim, 2010; Teo and Lee, 2010; Omar et al., 2012) as well as buying a house
(Phungwong , 2010; Chung et al., 2018). However, Al-Nahdi et al (2015), Tawfik et al
(2014, 2015, 2015abc) found that perception of behavior control has no effect on customers
who intend to buy real estate.
2.2.5. Location factor
Location is a factor related to accessibility to shopping malls or retailers, public transport,
schools, hospitals or close to work as it is not only convenient but also effective to work and
sending children to school. According to many studies, this factor has a positive impact on
buying intentions of consumers (Nasar and Manoj, 2015; Fernandez, 2017; Abdullah et al,
2012; Al-Nahdi et al, 2015; Tawfik, 2014, 2015).
2.2.6. Legal factors

The legality of the house relates to the law, to ensure the legal implementation of sale or
transactions, limit risks, as well as to protect their rights. Some early studies reinforcing the
positive relationship between legal factors and intention to buy houses include Ranthilaka
(2010), Sridharan (2020), Dang Hung Vo (2018).
2.2.7. Demographic characteristics of house buyers
Buyers’ demographics are the internal factors involved in decision making (Mateja & Irena,
2009). Demographic characteristics include individual factors by gender, age, educational
status, marital status, career, number of family members, children and real estate. To suit the
thesis, the demographic characteristics selected for analysis include: gender, age, main
occupation, education level, family size.
From the determination in the above factors, the scale is inherited and built including:
From the determination in the above factors, the scale is inherited and built
including:

15

Scale of intention
I will probably buy this type of house
I will try to buy this type of house
I want to buy this type of house
I make plans to buy this type of house
I intend to buy this type of house in the future
I will continue to buy this type of house in the
future

Attitude scale

Source
Sridharan (2020); Wijayaningtyas
et al. (2019); Anlan Liu (2019);

Lin et la. (2018); Chung et al.
(2018); Julius (2016); Tawfik
(2014;
2015;
2015abc);
Karunarathne (2015); Polek
(2014); Mohamad (2013); Teck
(2013).
Source

Buying this type of house is a beneficial decision
Buying this type of house is a good decision
Buying this type of house is a wise decision
Buying this type of house is an admirable
decision

Mydhili (2019); Chung et al.
2018); Karunarathne (2015);
Tawfik (2014; 2015; 2015abc);
Polek (2014); Teck (2013).

Subjective norms scale

Source

My family thinks that I should choose to buy this
type of house
My family wants me to choose to buy this type of
house
My family agrees to let me choose this type of

home
My family thinks that choosing this type of house
is a wise decision

Chung
et
al.
(2018);
Karunarathne (2015); Tawfik
(2014; 2015; 2015abc).

Cognitive behavioral control scale
I have enough opportunities to make a
decision to buy this type of house
I have enough time to make a decision to buy
this type of house
I have enough money to buy this type of
house
I have enough knowledge and skills about
this type of house to make my own buying
decision
I complete control over this type of house

Source

Scale of house location

Source
16

Chung
et
al.
(2018);
Karunarathne (2015); Tawfik
(2014; 2015; 2015abc); Polek
(2014); Mohamad (2013); Teck
(2013).


Scale of intention
The location of this type of house near public
transport is important
The location of this type of house near
workplace is important
The location of this type of house near school
is important
The location of this type of house near
shopping centers is important
The location of this type of house near
amusement parks is important
The location of this type of house near
relatives, friends is important
The location of this type of house near
grocery / retail stores is important
Legality scale
Ensuring immediate and full use of
infrastructure and utilities of this type of
house is important
Ensuring the freedom of living, repairing and

renovating this type of house is important
Ensuring long-term ownership of this type of
house is important
Ensuring no dispute over the usable space of
this type of home is important
Ensuring multi-purpose use rights for this
type of house (for living, for sale, for rent,
etc.) is important.
Ensuring the completeness and legality of
legal documents for this type of house
(construction permit, sale contract, land use
rights certificate / house ownership
certificate, etc.) is important.
2.3. Research model and hypothesis

17

Source

Mydhili (2019); Chung et al.
(2018); Fernando (2016); Julius
(2016); Tawfik (2014; 2015;
2015abc); Mimoza (2013).

Source

- H1: Attitude has a
positive
influence on
intention

to buy houses in
urban
areas in Vietnam
- H2: Subjective
norms
have a positive
effect on
intention to buy
houses in
urban areas in
Vietnam
- H3: Perceptions
of
behavior control
that
positively affect
home
buyers' intention to
buy
houses in urban
areas in
Vietnam
- H4: Location has
a positive
influence on house
buying
intention in urban
areas in
Vietnam
- H5: Legality has a positive effect on house buying intention in urban areas in Vietnam

Figure 1. Model of research on factors influence the
intention of people to buy houses in urban areas in
Vietnam
Source: Ajen (1991, 2012) and author (2019)
Sridharan (2020); Ranthilaka
(2010); Law on housing 2014;
Circulars
31/2016/TT-BXD;
Circulars
10/2013/TT-BXD;
Author and experts proposal
(2020)

_________________________________
CHAPTER 3. RESEARCH METHODS

3.1. Research design
The thesis is designed to research the questioning and research objectives of factors
affecting the intention to buy houses of people in urban areas of Vietnam. In the overall
process, financial research works have been done for different target groups such as
homebuyers, developers, and policy makers.
3.2. Research methods
- The research approach of the thesis consists of a combination of deductive and
inductive methods.
- Data collection methods:
+ Secondary data was collected through sources of conferences, topics, thesis, research
works, books, newspapers, internet domestically and internationally.
+ Primary data was collected through methods: in-depth interviews, surveys by
questionnaires.

- Data analysis method:

18


+ Quantitative methods include the following techniques: Testing scales (Cronbach's
Alpha coefficient and total correlation factor); Multivariate regression analysis (testing the
suitability of the model, testing relationships) and T-test (comparing between groups)

Figure 2. Research design for the thesis
Source: Author (2018)
CHAPTER 4. RESULTS OF THE RESEARCH ON FACTORS AFFECTING
THE INTENTION TO BUY HOUSES OF VIETNAMESE PEOPLE IN
URBAN AREAS
4.1. Survey sample statistics
The number of valid votes used in the analysis is 427, including 232 votes of
customers with house buying intention and 195 votes of customers with apartment buying
intention. These votes in terms of the total percentage as well as the percentage of each
customer group, all meet the minimum sample size. But these people are mostly men, from
40 to 60 years old, business owners or self-employed, university educated and living in
multi-generational families. There is only one big difference when it comes to each type of
housing at this price level, which is the gender characteristic, when most of the people have
apartment buying intention are women, while the buyers of private houses are mostly men.
4.2. Sample analysis

19

4.2.1. Evaluate the scales
The scales of AT, SN, PBC, L, PL all meet the testing criteria: Cronbach Alpha
coefficients must (≥ 0.7); Total correlation coefficient (≥ 0.3); Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient

when removing this variable is smaller than the current Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient.
Analysis of discoverable factors results in eliminating 01 scale in Cognitive variables.
The remaining scales are suitable for analysis.
4.2.2. Regression analysis of factors affecting on the buying intention of people in
urban areas of Vietnam
The regression analysis to test the influence of factors on buying intention in urban
areas of Vietnam is divided into two groups: one is apartment buying intention and the other
is private house buying intention. In each group, the regression analysis will be performed
in combination with each group of variables: the group of 05 demographic characteristics
variables (gender, age, occupation, education level, family size); variables of TPB model
(attitudes, subjective norms, perception of behavior control); group variables characteristics
of the house (location, legality). The analysis results of the models are as follows:
Model/Type of house
232 private 195
house
apartment
Model Sig.
.964
.061
-The test models of factors
1
affecting on the buying
GENDER
-.026
.022
intention of people in
AGE
-.003
-.088
urban areas of Vietnam in

OCCUPATION
.023
.201
Table 3.4 above have
EDUCATION
.053
-.025
shown that:
LEVEL
-When there are no factors
FAMILY SIZE
-.011
.073
of
buyer
psychology
Model Sig.
.000
.000
(according
to
TPB),
2
GENDER
-.038
.009
housing
characteristics,
AGE
.016

-.059
the model 1 of the
OCCUPATION
.009
.107
demographic
EDUCATION
-.006
.001
characteristics of people is
LEVEL
not statistically significant.
FAMILY SIZE
-.009
.006
That is, there is not
ATTITUDE
.315***
.352***
enough
evidence
to
SUBJECTIVE
.026
.007
determine
that
NORMS
demographic
PERCEIVED

characteristics with or
BEHAVIOURAL
.529***
.451***
without
influence
on
CONTROL
buying intention in urban
Model Sig.
.000
.000
areas of Vietnam.
3
GENDER
.004
.029
-Model 2 including the
AGE
.034
-.026
demographic
and
OCCUPATION
-.009
.095*
20


However, there is a slight difference in demographic characteristics between two

groups of customers buying houses and apartments, specifically:

+ Apartments buying intention are further affected by the characteristics of people's
occupation, while 04 characteristics of gender, age, education and family size do not show
the influence.
+ Private house buying intention continues to be unaffected by any buyer demographic
characteristics.
- Model 4 with 03 groups of factors including: demographic characteristics (05
factors), home buyer psychology (03 factors according to TPB) and house characteristics
(02 factors are home position and calculation juridical). The value of p-value shows that the
model is statistically significant and of which 04 out of 10 factors affecting buying intention
in urban areas of Vietnam are consumers' attitudes and perceptions. control the behavior,
location and legality of the home. The remaining factors have no influence.
- Similar results for the influencing factors in model 5 compared to model 4 when
demographic characteristics are removed from the model. There are further 4/5 factors that
influence buying intention in urban areas of Vietnam consumers are attitudes, awareness
control behavior, home location and legality of the home. Particularly subjective norms
factors do not show the influence on buying intention. This result is consistent with the test
result of model 1.
- Thus, for the types of condominiums or private houses at the price of 3 to 5 billion
VND in urban areas of Vietnam, buying intention of these two groups of customers has
some similarities and differences as follows:
Similarity:
- Attitude and perceived behavioural control are 02 variables that belong to individual
consumers, affecting their buying intention.
- The family, friends, relatives (subjective norms) of consumers have no effect on
their buying intention.
- Location and legality are 02 variables of the characteristics of the house that affect
the apartment buying intention of consumers, of which the legality factor has the strongest
impact.

Difference:
- While the location of the house is the second most powerful variable for buying
intention in the apartment building, the new perceived behavioural control is the second
most important variable in the consumer buying intention.
- Two factors that affect each other equally and at least to apartment buying intention
are Attitude and Perceived Behavioral Control; the two factors that have the least (and
equally equal) effect on private home buying intention are Attitude and Location.
- In apartment buying intention, the legal impact is 1.3 times higher than the variable
Location of the house; In private housing, the ratio is higher, reaching 1.68 times.
Regression equation according to the standardized Beta coefficient:
BIap = 0,392 + 0,289LE + 0,221L + 0,171AT + 0,171PBC
(1’)
BIph =
0,301 LE + 0,199 PBC + 0,179AT + 0,179 L
(2’)

21

22

Model/Type of house

Model
4

Model
5

EDUCATION
LEVEL

FAMILY SIZE
ATTITUDE
SUBJECTIVE
NORMS
PERCEIVED
BEHAVIOURAL
CONTROL
LOCATION
Sig.
GENDER
AGE
OCCUPATION
EDUCATION
LEVEL
FAMILY SIZE
ATTITUDE
SUBJECTIVE
NORMS
PERCEIVED
BEHAVIOURAL
CONTROL
LOCATION
THE LEGALITY
Sig.
ATTITUDE
SUBJECTIVE
NORMS
PERCEIVED
BEHAVIOURAL
CONTROL

LOCATION
THE LEGALITY

232 private 195
house
apartment
-.001

-.005

.005
.277***

-.020
.251***

.048

.015

.293***

.228***

.424***
.000
-.031
.043
-.011

.546***
.000
.036
-.008
.061

-.020

-.018

-.026
.247***

.010
.233***

.043

.026

.290***

.242***

.272***
.419***
.000
.249***

.358***

.394***
.000
.242***

.038

.021

.283***

.249***

.277***
.412***

.356***
.399***

psychological factors of
buyers (according to TPB)
is statistically significant.
A number of factors in the
model
have
shown
consumers' influence on
buying intetion in urban
areas, namely attitudes and
perceived of behavior
control. subjective norms

and
demographic
characteristics are not
influential.
- When considering the
location factors in model
3, the model also shows
statistically
significant
Sig values. Position along
with
attitude
and
awareness of behavior
control are 03 factors that
influence
buying
intention in urban areas of
Vietnam of consumers.
subjective norms continue
to show no influence.


Overall, it can be seen that Legality and Location of houses are two factors that people
with apartments buying intention pay more attention to. And for people with private house
buying intention is mainly concerned with the legality of the house.
4.2.3. Regression analysis of differences in the buying intention in Vietnamese
urban areas of homebuyers with different demographic characteristics
5 factors of the population: gender, age, main occupation, education level, household
size. In which:

- Gender: divided into 02 groups: Male and Female
- Age: divided into 03 groups: Under 40 (cumulative age); From 40 to under 60
(independent age) and From 60 and above (retired)
- Main occupation: divided into 04 groups: officers; staff at organizations and
businesses; self-employed, business owners and others.
- Education level: divided into 03 groups as High School Graduation (high school) or
lower; college Graduate; and after graduation
- Family size: divided into 02 groups: Nuclear Family (with 2 generations or less) and
Extended family (with 3 generations or more)
Regression analysis by two groups of customers with apartment buying intention and
customers with private house buying intention to determine whether in each customer
group, the differences in demographic characteristics make house buying intention become
different or not. 02 variables of Gender and Family size will be tested Independently.
Sample T-test, the remaining variables will be used one way ANOVA method.
The results of data analysis show that only people with apartment buying intention
with different occupations are statistically significant Sig values. Specifically, the group of
self-employed people (self-employed, business owners) and groups of people doing other
jobs (freelancers, housewives, artists, etc.) has higher apartment buying intention than the
group of Officers
4.3. Assessment of factors affecting the buying intention of people in urban areas
of Vietnam
- Firstly, from the research model with 05 factors capable of affecting the intention of
people in urban areas of Vietnam, the actual survey results have shown that only 4/5 of
these factors are affecting buying intention, are AT, PBC, L, PL
- Secondly, the degree of influence of the factors on house buying intention of 02
groups of customers buying apartments and own houses is similar and different. The same is
the factor PL has the most influence and AT has the least influence. The difference is that
for private houses, PBC ranks second, followed by L, and vice versa.
- Thirdly, for apartments buying intention, self-employed people (self-employed,
business owners) and groups of people who do other jobs (freelancers, housewives, artists,

etc.) have higher buying intention than those who are officers

________________________________

23

CHAPTER 5. SOME PROVISIONS RELATED TO FACTORS AFFECTING
THE HOUSE BUYING INTENTION OF VIETNAMESE PEOPLE IN URBAN
AREAS
5.1. Forecast of housing situation in urban areas of VietNam in the upcoming
period
5.1.1. Orientations, prospects for urbanization, real estate market and land transfer
- View and context of Vietnam's economic development in the period 2020-2030 and
vision to 2045
+ Vietnam to become a developed country.
+ A country with high income and diverse income sources.
+ Reach the economy of an industrialized country, overcoming the middle income trap
by 2030.
- Orientation and prospects for urbanization, real estate market and land transition
+ Focus on industrialization, modernization and urbanization..
+ By 2030, over 50% of the population of Vietnam is expected to live in urban areas.
+ Favorable legal system for land transition.
5.1.2.
Comment on Vietnam’s real estate market trends in 2019-2020 and in the following
years, many organizations and experts share the same opinion, the market is affected
by the following main development trends:
- Firstly, the legality for the real estate market is getting better in the direction of
stable and sustainable development.
- Second, affordable housing is getting better intention.
- Thirdly, small and micro flats are favored.

- The fourth is smart cities trend
- The Fifth is the explosion of commercial real estate.
Entering the year of 2021, the real estate market has a transition to the following five
trends:
-The first trend is "urban in urban" or "integrated real estate" is often used for largescale projects.
- The second trend noted is working remotely.
- Another trend is that e-commerce is promoting logistics and warehousing, becoming
a great driving force for the market.
- The fact that businesses still keep the "green" and sustainable direction is the 4th
leading trend in the real estate market in 2021.
- The fifth trend identified is the fact that investors are paying attention to the healthcare
industry.
5.2. Some issues about urban areas and housing situation in urban areas of Vietnam
5.2.1. Development strategy of urban area and urban housing
In the study of Tran Minh Tung (2019), new urban areas are a type of "dual development"
projects: urban space development and urban housing development. New urban projects are
being developed more and more in urban areas, from the first generation established by
24


state-owned enterprises (to be sure to meet expectations and test new strategies). ) to the
next generations to be expanded, allowing foreign investors or domestic private enterprises
to participate. The increase in density in new urban space areas, often located on the
suburban, seen as a consequence and manifestation of the urbanization process through
specific development tools, in which a new urban area project is a way to decipher the
issues related to the "(re) urban creation" in Vietnam (Tran Minh Tung, 2019).
5.2.2. Policies on housing in urban areas of Vietnam
Only in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, each year the population increases automatically
from 500,000 to 600,000 people, the pressure on housing is enormous. The rapid population
growth makes urban land become increasingly scarce, real estate prices soar. To serve the

needs of social economic development, the urban government must speed up the
urbanization rate to have land funds for infrastructure investment. But as urbanization
expands, a large number of people are moving from rural to urban areas, so housing
problems become more urgent (Tran Tuan Anh, 2020). Being aware of shortcomings, the
Government has directed the concerned ministries and branches to take short, medium and
long-term solutions.
5.3.
Some suggestions on factors that influence the buying intention in urban
areas of Vietnam
5.3.1. Recommendations for buyers
Based on the aforementioned analysis results, it can be seen that people with
apartments buying intention or private houses at the price of 3 to 5 billion are mostly people
over 40 years old; self-employed / owner of a business or other occupations (freelancer,
housewife, artist) and live in multi-generational families. There is only one gender
difference when women often have buying intention to buy apartments more and men prefer
to buy houses. Therefore, if the buyer has such characteristics, it is advisable to issue buying
decision for the corresponding type of house, which will ensure convenience factors.
- Focusing on the legality factor through: Selecting reputable investors (such as
Vingroup, Norveland, Dat Xanh Group, Nam Long, etc.); Interested in the certificate of land
use rights, construction permits, tax obligations of investors; Notice the terms of the house
purchase contract
- Location of the house: Priority to the center if you want to travel conveniently, or
further if you want to enjoy the fresh air. People with private home buying intentions rated
the "home position" factor as the least important. Because there is a current shift from
downtown apartments to suburban villas for the same price. And this is also a future trend
forecasted of the real estate market.
- For the two factors: Attitude and perceived behavioural control, for Vietnamese
these factors have become the goals of life, so just need to consider more about the factors
of investment or enjoyment, accumulation when choosing to buy a house.
- Regarding demographic characteristics, it can be seen that the majority of people

who buy apartments or houses at the price of 3 to 5 billion in Vietnamese urban areas are
over 40 years old, have good job and education. For consumers, this is also a reference for
more information because except for families with conditional or early success, the

remaining who want to buy houses at this price range should also consider about time of
purchase in life to make it more fully prepared. Women tend to buy apartments and men
tend to buy a house is also a point for consumers to consider when having their own plans
about buying a house.
5.3.2. Proposals for investors in urban areas
According to the Law, the investor of a construction project is an agency, organization
or individual that owns capital, borrows capital or is assigned to directly manage, use capital
to carry out construction investment activities. Investor is the person who is fully
responsible before the person determining investment and the law on the quality, progress,
cost of investment capital and other provisions of law. Thus, the construction investor is the
one who decides the "destiny" of the projects that they invest through selling the housing
products that they supply to the market or not.
And in order to become effective construction investors, understanding the trend of the
real estate market and understanding customers is something that any investor cannot
ignore. In the general trend, mid-end real estate as in the research area is no longer an
advantage when the market demand is focused on small and micro apartments. However,
the move towards smart cities will be a new way of developing these mid-range products. In
addition, the explosion of technology with the 4.0 revolution will also help to invest in midrange apartments with different bright spots. In order to develop in such a context, investors
need to understand themselves (their real estate products), understand the market (market
trends related to your products) and especially understand the customer (especially the
target customers being pointed out in this study). Research of the thesis also shows that, for
each different customer, the interest in the factors affecting home buying intention is also
different. If the people with buying intention mainly focus on the legality issue, the people
with apartment buying intention nowadays, cares about the location of the house and the
legal requirements are also being paid attention. Therefore, when investing in a construction
project, investors need to pay attention to the following issues:

- Firstly, understand the resources of the business and the type of real estate products
that the business provides:
+ Have clear perception of real estate;
+ Invest in real estate by capacity and opportunity;
+ Proactive solutions to capital sources for investors;
+ Build credibility for businesses and products, Understand the real estate products
that businesses provide.
- Secondly, understand the market and the ongoing trends related to real estate
products
More than half of the world's population currently lives in cities and metropolitan
areas, and this percentage is showing signs of continued increase. The rapid pace of
urbanization worries environmental experts, warning that the planet's future will depend
largely on the management of urban planners. The 4th Industrial Revolution (Revolution
4.0) with the development of the Internet of Things, cloud computing, big data analytics
tools, artificial intelligence has been strongly impacting the urban process visualization.

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- The last and also the most important, is to understand your target customers
+ Meet the legitimate needs of the legal buyers.
+ Select of real estate projects in urban areas of Vietnam shows those projects have
convenient locations, the ability to connect with public utilities such as kindergartens,
schools, hospitals, area for playing and physical training and sports;
+ Understand customers' attitudes and perceptions about buying houses in urban areas
5.3.3. Proposals to local State management agencies
- With urban planning and land management: Building a comprehensive /
integrated urban development strategy; Other market creation measures to support the land

supply.
- For companies investing in apartment building (construction company):
Implementing public-private partnership (PPP) program to provide affordable housing;
Understand the possibility of applying Housing Development Privileges; Other market
creation methods to support home development companies.
- With Housing Administration: Institutional strengthening; Fundamental elements of
housing sector governance; Other measures to strengthen governance of the housing sector.
________________________________
CONCLUSION
The thesis on the topic "Factors affecting the intention to buy houses of people in
urban areas of Vietnam" is presented in three main sections: introduction, content,
conclusion. The content is structured with 05 chapters including Overview of the research
and research model; Hypotheses and research models; Research Methods; Survey results;
and a number of recommendations for stakeholders, home buying intention people,
investors, relevant agencies, and policy makers.
Chapter 1 on research overview and research model conducted general research on
consumer behavior, housing products. Models of human behavior, consumer behavior
according to different approaches are synthesized and analyzed, from which to find the
appropriate model that is often used in research on house buying intention: the Theory of
planned behavioral (TPB). In addition, some conclusions about the research situation and
the gap for the thesis are given at the end of the chapter.
Chapter 2 is the construction of hypothesis and research model for the thesis. After
finding the research gaps, the TPB model is selected to be used as a basis for the study.
Some overview of the research area such as the concept of Vietnamese urban area, concepts
and characteristics of housing in urban areas of Vietnam have been synthesized to identify
the appropriate factors for the research model of the thesis. Suitable for the middle class
who intend to buy an apartment or private house in urban areas in Vietnam with the price of
3-5 billion VND, two Factors that are added to the research model are Legality and
Location. In addition, 03 psychological and emotional factors of buyers are attitude towards
behavior, subjective norms, awareness of behavior control are inherited. In addition, 05

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demographic characteristics that are most suitable for the customer groups studied in the
thesis were also selected to include in the analysis, including: Gender, Age, Occupation,
Education level and Family size.
In Chapter 3 of the research method, the author presented the research design in
accordance with the object and scope of the research. The research process consists of 12
overall steps from problem setting and research goals to final discussion and
recommendations. Secondary and primary data collection methods; as well as qualitative
quantitative analysis methods are also presented in detail for each part applied in the thesis.
The analysis of 427 valid questionnaires presented in chapter 4 showed that only 4/5
factors in the model had a statistically significant impact on the home buying intention of
middle-class customers, plan to buy one of two types of apartment buildings or private
houses in urban areas in Vietnam with the price from 3 to 5 billion. The factor that has the
strongest impact on both groups of customers is legality. For customers with apartment
buying intention, the second important factor is the house position, followed by 02 attitude
factors and awareness of behavior control. In contrast, for customers with private home
buying intention, the second is the Perceived Behavioral Control factor, 02 Attitudes and
Location ranked last. Particularly, subjective norms factors have no impact on the home
buying intention of the two customer groups studied. The majority of buyers participating in
the survey are those over 40 years old, self-employed / self-employed or in other
occupations, with a university or higher education and living in a large family. In particular,
only the group of customers with apartment buying intention has a difference in career when
buying intention of other professionals (artists, freelancers, housewives) and business
owners / self-employed are higher than apartment buying intention buildings of officers.
The conclusions drawn the assessments based on the factors of impact and characteristics of
the people, together with the macroeconomic factors are the end of the chapter analyzing
this situation.
In Chapter 5, the author mentions some predictions about housing situation in urban
areas of Vietnam from which to make some recommendations related to the factors

affecting buying intention of the customer group. Proposals are made for each consumer
who has apartments buying intention or private houses in urban areas of Vietnam; or
developers of urban areas. The final proposals are for central and local state management
agencies to effectively use the dissertation's research results to be able to offer investment
options, purchase and sale of housing products in the area. urban in the most appropriate
way.
Buying a house is an important decision not only for buyers but also for relevant
people such as families, sellers and the general development of society. Although studies on
buying intention have also been carried out quite extensively abroad, the number of
constructions is still modest in Vietnam. Another feature is that the real estate customer data is
still a "confidential" form, so the implementation process of NCS has encountered many
difficulties. Although with the limitations of capacity and time, the thesis will certainly not be
avoided. The PhD student looks forward to receiving valuable contributions from teachers
and colleagues to improve the thesis.
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LIST OF PUBLISHED WORKS BY AUTHOR
1.

2.

3.

4.

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Tran Xuan Luong (2019), "Factors influencing decisions of people in
Vietnam's urban areas", Asia Pacific Economic Review, No. 548, September

2019, pp. 32- 34.
Tran Xuan Luong (2019), "Analysis of some factors affecting the decision of
apartment buyers in Hanoi urban areas", Asia Pacific Economic Review, No.
550, October / 2019, pp. 29-31.
Tran Xuan Luong (2019), "Analysis of some factors affecting decisions of
people attached to land in urban areas of Vietnam", Scientific Workshop "Real
Estate Market - Perspective of researchers' in October 2019 organized by
Vietnam Real Estate Association and Asia Pacific Economic Review.
Tran Xuan Luong, Pham Van Linh, Pham Lan Huong (2020), "Factors
affecting the intention to buy apartments in urban areas of Vietnam", Journal of
Industry and Trade, Ministry of Industry and Trade, monthly issue 5/2020.

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