The resort real estate market in Vietnam is witnessing a rigorous cleansing process as investors shift their focus from speculative price hikes to prioritizing safety and operational efficiency. This trend was discussed at the seminar titled "Tourism Real Estate Market 2026: A Cash Flow Accommodation Channel," organized by the Financial Investment Newspaper on June 23, with participation from regulatory agencies, economic experts, and real estate businesses.

According to data presented at the seminar, May saw the launch of 63 resort villa projects offering 2,526 units, marking a 3% increase from the previous period. The condotel segment also introduced 49 projects with 5,083 products available in the market. Despite the gradual improvement in supply, investor confidence has not fully recovered from the recent challenging period.

Tran Diem My, Vice Chairwoman of Five Star Group, emphasized the importance of real cash flow in the resort real estate sector. She noted that the market is entering a new development phase, where the criteria for evaluating projects have changed significantly. Previously, many investors focused on potential asset appreciation; however, they are now more concerned with actual operational efficiency. Questions have shifted from how much prices will increase to how projects generate cash flow, who operates them, and what their occupancy rates are.

PGS.TS Tran Kim Chung, former Deputy Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), assessed that 2026 will be a pivotal year for the tourism real estate market. He pointed out that one of the key drivers is the improved legal framework concerning land, housing, and real estate business, which addresses many long-standing issues. Additionally, the wave of public investment and numerous key infrastructure projects, such as the North-South Expressway and expanding international airports, are creating new growth opportunities for tourist destinations across the country.

Chung presented three scenarios for the market up to 2030. In the optimistic scenario, accelerated infrastructure development, continued legal reforms, and a significant increase in international visitors could make tourism real estate one of the most attractive investment channels. The baseline scenario suggests a stable recovery in line with current public investment and legal reforms. Conversely, a less favorable scenario could emerge if funding and legal bottlenecks are not addressed promptly, leading to continued cautious investment.

Experts agree that for investment capital to return robustly, the market must meet three critical conditions: a transparent legal framework, the ability to generate real cash flow from business operations, and a sufficiently strong infrastructure system to effectively exploit tourism potential. Following a period where many projects faced difficulties due to unsustainable profit commitments, the market now demands higher standards of transparency, operational efficiency, and management capability. This is viewed as a necessary filtering process that will help capable companies establish their positions in the market.