Hồng Hạc City offers long-term ownership—not 50-year ownership. The project is built on urban residential land allocated by the Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee to developer Phu My Hung Development Corporation, rather than on time-limited leased commercial and service land, as with condotels, officetels and conventional commercial-service shophouses. In particular, in February 2025, the Chairman of the Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee signed an official document directing that separate red books be issued for each unit in the project, with completion required before 25 March 2025. This is the strongest state-level legal confirmation, completely dispelling concerns about the ownership term.
In terms of the legal distinction, a long-term pink book states “long term” on the certificate, has no expiry date and grants the owner 5 absolute rights: possession, use, disposition, inheritance and bank mortgage. In addition, a 50-year pink book states a specific expiry date, applies to leased commercial and service land, requires renewal under government policy after expiry and often presents difficulties when used as security for a bank loan.
In terms of specific benefits, long-term owners at Hồng Hạc City may register permanent residence, pass the property on to their descendants under the Civil Code and mortgage it with the 3 official partner banks—Vietcombank, BIDV and VIB—to borrow up to 70% of the property value at some of the most competitive interest rates on the market. Explore all the legal grounds and detailed analysis in the article below.
Does Hồng Hạc City Offer Long-Term or 50-Year Ownership?
Hồng Hạc City offers long-term ownership, not 50-year ownership, based on at least 3 clear grounds: the land is urban residential land, rather than commercial and service land; the land allocation decision issued by the Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee to developer Phu My Hung Development Corporation; and the directive from the Chairman of the Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee to issue separate long-term red books for each unit.
Specifically, under the current 2024 Land Law, urban residential land is allocated to individuals and households for long-term use, with the land use rights certificate stating “long term” and no expiry date. Conversely, commercial and service land is leased by the State for a fixed term—commonly 50 years—and applies to condotels, officetels, resorts and shophouses built on commercial land. Therefore, the fundamental distinction is that the land type—urban residential land versus commercial and service land—determines the ownership term, not the property type, such as a townhouse, shophouse or villa.
This is particularly important for Hồng Hạc City because the project includes shophouses in its property offering—but the shophouses here are built on urban residential land allocated for long-term use, making them entirely different from the 50-year commercial-service shophouses found in many other projects. Moreover, developer Phu My Hung Development Corporation, with more than 30 years of urban development experience in Vietnam, has not been involved in any serious legal disputes with buyers, thereby providing a stronger foundation of confidence than local developers in Bắc Ninh.
What is a permanent pink book? How does it differ from a 50-year pink book?
A long-term pink book is a certificate of land use rights for urban residential land. It does not state a specific term of use on the document and grants the owner indefinite use rights under the current Land Law.
Below is a detailed analysis of each type of book and the practical differences that directly affect the rights of Hồng Hạc City buyers.
What Is the Legal Significance of a Long-Term Pink Book for Hồng Hạc City Owners?
A long-term pink book at Hồng Hạc City grants the owner 5 absolute rights under the 2024 Land Law and the 2023 Housing Law: possession, use, disposition, inheritance and mortgage without a time limit.
More specifically, the table below summarises the 5 legal rights fully enjoyed by Hồng Hạc City owners with long-term pink books, helping investors understand the property’s practical legal value:
| Benefit | Specific details | Practical application |
| Possession | Exclusive use of the property and protection against interference by others | Living in it, allowing others to live there and operating a business |
| Use | Unlimited exploitation of its functions and economic benefits | Letting, running a business or living in it |
| Disposition | Freedom to transfer (sell), gift or mortgage it | Resell it at any time |
| Inheritance | Transfer the property to children and descendants under the Civil Inheritance Law | Pass the property down through multiple generations |
| Mortgage | Use it as security for a bank loan | Borrow up to 70% of the value from 3 banks |
In addition, long-term pink book owners at Hồng Hạc City may register permanent residence at the property address—a benefit entirely unavailable to owners of 50-year properties built on commercial and service land. Therefore, a long-term pink book at Hồng Hạc City is a “genuine wealth-building asset” in the true legal sense, unrestricted by any time limit.
How Does a 50-Year Pink Book Differ from a Long-Term Pink Book?
A 50-year pink book is a certificate of land use rights for commercial and service land leased by the State for a fixed term. It states a specific expiry date on the document and requires renewal under government policy after the 50-year term ends.
Specifically, the table below directly compares the 6 most important criteria between a long-term pink book (Hồng Hạc City) and a 50-year pink book (commercial-service projects), helping investors clearly see the difference in benefits:
| Criteria | Long-term pink book (Hồng Hạc City) | 50-year pink book |
| Land type | Urban residential land—allocated by the State | Commercial and service land—leased by the State |
| Term of use | States “long term”; no expiry date | States a specific expiry date (50 years) |
| Renewal | No renewal required | Renewal must be applied for and is subject to government policy |
| Bank mortgage | Straightforward; major banks approve up to 70% | Difficult, or a lower borrowing limit |
| Permanent residence registration | Permitted | Temporary residence registration only |
| Legal risk once the term expires | No risk | May not be renewed, or may be revoked |
Moreover, as the remaining 50-year term shortens, the market value of the property falls proportionately, because the next buyer acquires only the remaining term. By contrast, a freehold pink book at Hồng Hạc City has no term-based depreciation — the asset’s value depends entirely on the market, infrastructure and location, thereby ensuring stable liquidity throughout the asset’s life.
Which legal grounds confirm that Hồng Hạc City is freehold?
There are 4 main groups of legal grounds confirming Hồng Hạc City’s freehold status: the investment policy approval decision from the Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee (9/2024), the approved 1/500 detailed master plan, the decision allocating urban residential land (rather than leasing land) and the directive requiring individual red books for each unit to be completed before 25/3/2025.
Below is a detailed analysis of each group of grounds, so that investors have full information to carry out due diligence before signing a sale and purchase contract.
Which legal documents has the Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee issued for Hồng Hạc City?
The Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee has issued 4 groups of important legal documents relating to the Hồng Hạc City project, all of which confirm the project’s legality and its status as long-term residential land.
Specifically, the table below summarises the official legal documents issued by state agencies for the Hồng Hạc City project, giving investors sufficient grounds to verify the legal position independently:
| Document type | Journey time | Main content |
| Investment policy approval | September 2024 | Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee approved the project, with total investment of VND 27,000 billion and a scale of 197.76ha |
| Detailed 1/500 plan | Approved | Defines the boundaries, land plots and intended use of each sub-area |
| Decision on allocation of urban residential land | Completed | Urban residential land allocated to PMH (not commercial land for lease) |
| Directive on issuing red books | February 2025 | The Chairman of the Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee required individual red books for each unit to be issued before 25/3/2025 |
In addition, the approved 1/500 detailed plan is the most important legal foundation for issuing a pink book for each plot — without an approved detailed plan, individual red books cannot be issued. As a result, the entire legal chain, from investment policy through to the issuance of individual red books, has been fully completed, creating the strongest legal foundation that a real estate project in Bắc Ninh can achieve.
How far has the pink book issuance for Hồng Hạc City progressed?
Progress on pink book issuance at Hồng Hạc City is on track with the legal roadmap: the Bắc Ninh Provincial People’s Committee directive requiring red books to be completed before 25/3/2025 has been implemented, and individual pink books will be issued to buyers after handover of the homes and completion of the procedures.
Specifically, the process for issuing individual pink books at Hồng Hạc City follows this legal sequence: completion of construction and acceptance testing of the works, allocation of a house number and official address, land registration as required, and issuance of a separate certificate of land use rights to each owner. More importantly, individual pink books are issued only to the specific owner after the home has been handed over (expected 10/12/2026) and the registration procedures have been completed, which means investors will receive their books in the period between handover and completion of the required administrative procedures. Furthermore, the developer, Phú Mỹ Hưng, has a legal responsibility to support buyers in completing all of the book issuance procedures, thereby ensuring that buyers do not have to face complex administrative procedures on their own without support from the developer.
What rights does a freehold owner at Hồng Hạc City have?
Under the 2024 Land Law and the 2023 Housing Law, freehold owners at Hồng Hạc City have 5 main groups of rights: the right to live in and occupy the property freely, the right to derive economic benefit (letting, business use), the right to transfer freely, unrestricted inheritance rights and the right to mortgage the full value with a bank.
More specifically, the table below provides a complete list of the specific benefits available to Hồng Hạc City owners with long-term pink books and directly compares them with the rights of 50-year owners, helping investors clearly understand the differences affecting their lives and investments:
| Benefit | Hồng Hạc City long-term owners | 50-year owners |
| Residence and household registration | Permanent residence registration | Temporary residence registration only |
| Letting | Let without a time limit | Let for the remaining term only |
| Transfer | Resell at any time at a mutually agreed price | The buyer must consider the remaining term |
| Inheritance | Pass on to children and grandchildren under the Law on Inheritance | Inheritance within the remaining term |
| Bank mortgage | Full entitlement, with a high limit (70%) | More difficult or subject to a significantly lower limit |
| Apply for permission to renovate or rebuild | Under the regulations applicable to ordinary housing | More complex and subject to specific conditions |
In addition, the right to register permanent residence brings many practical benefits to daily life that many investors have not fully considered. Specifically, the children of Hồng Hạc City residents will be considered for admission to schools within the subdivision based on permanent household registration, receive full social welfare benefits linked to their residential address and enjoy other civic rights associated with permanent household registration in Bắc Ninh Province — none of which is possible with 50-year commercial and service land. As a result, for young families buying a home for long-term residence, a long-term pink book at Hồng Hạc City is not merely a financial asset but also a legal foundation securing the full range of living rights for multiple generations of the family.
Can a long-term Hồng Hạc City pink book be used as collateral for a bank loan?
Yes, a long-term Hồng Hạc City pink book can be used as full collateral for a bank loan, based on at least 3 grounds: three major banks — Vietcombank, BIDV and VIB — have officially launched loan packages for the project, with a maximum loan-to-value ratio of 70%, loan terms of up to 25 years and an interest rate of 0% throughout the entire construction period.
In addition, in practice, banks only accept assets with clear legal status as security. The fact that all 3 reputable national banks have jointly launched loan packages for the project is the strongest indirect legal confirmation of its long-term ownership structure, as banks have professional legal due-diligence departments that conduct thorough checks before agreeing to accept an asset as collateral. Furthermore, when the property needs to be resold in the future, the next buyer can also obtain a bank loan more easily with a long-term pink book, thereby ensuring stable secondary-market liquidity for Hồng Hạc City assets over the long term.
More importantly, a direct comparison shows that properties with 50-year pink books are often rejected by banks or offered only very low loan ratios (below 50%) because of the risk that the property’s value will decline as the remaining term becomes shorter. In particular, according to market information from May 2026, 50-year condotels and officetels are almost never accepted as collateral by major commercial banks, whereas Hồng Hạc City’s long-term pink books are supported by Vietnam’s 3 leading banks with loans of up to 70% — the clearest evidence of the legal difference between the 2 ownership structures.
What advantages does long-term ownership at Hồng Hạc City have over 50-year projects in Bắc Ninh?
Hồng Hạc City’s long-term pink books come out ahead on all 3 criteria that matter most to investors: full bank-financing eligibility, stable secondary-market liquidity and preservation of asset value without a time limit.
Below is an in-depth analysis of each advantage.
How does a long-term pink book affect borrowing capacity when buying at Hồng Hạc City?
Hồng Hạc City’s long-term pink books are accepted by Vietcombank, BIDV and VIB as collateral for up to 70% of the property’s value, whereas properties with 50-year pink books (condotels and officetels) in the same Bắc Ninh area are often rejected by these banks or offered loans of only 30–50%, depending on the case. In practice, this means that investors buying at Hồng Hạc City need to prepare only 30% in their own capital, while investors buying a 50-year project of the same value may need to prepare 50–70% in their own capital, thereby giving Hồng Hạc City a clear financial-leverage advantage and making it accessible to more investors than comparable projects at a similar price but with 50-year pink books.
Why does a long-term pink book protect investment value better than a 50-year title in the long run?
Property with a 50-year title begins to lose value along a declining curve as the remaining term shortens, especially when fewer than 20 years are left. Specifically, a 50-year property with only 10 years of use remaining will have a market value equal to just a small fraction of its original worth, as buyers are reluctant to own an asset about to expire. Conversely, the long-term pink book at Hồng Hạc City carries no time-based depreciation factor; the asset’s value depends entirely on location, infrastructure and the market — and with Ring Road 4 and Gia Bình Airport due for completion in 2026, Hồng Hạc City property values are expected to rise strongly alongside infrastructure. As such, a long-term pink book is the most important layer of investment value protection that no 50-year title can provide.
