Circular No. 03/2014/TT-BXD amends and supplements Article 21 of Circular No. 16/2010/TT-BXD dated September 1, 2010, issued by the Ministry of Construction, detailing and guiding the implementation of certain contents of Decree No. 71/2010/NĐ-CP dated June 23, 2010, of the Government, providing detailed guidance on the implementation of the Law on Housing.

CIRCULAR

Amending and supplementing Article 21 of Circular No. 16/2010/TT-BXD dated September 1, 2010 of the Ministry of Construction detailing specific provisions and guiding the implementation of certain contents of Decree No. 71/2010/NĐ-CP dated June 23, 2010 of the Governmentproviding detailed regulations and guidance on the implementation of the Law on Housingprovides detailed regulations and guidelines for the implementation of the Law on Housing

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Pursuant to the Law on Housing dated November 29, 2005 and Law No. 34/2009/QH12 dated June 18, 2009 amending and supplementing Article 126 of the Law on Housing and Article 121 of the Land Law No. 13/2003/QH11;

Pursuant to Decree No. 71/2010/NĐ-CP dated June 23, 2010 of the Government providing detailed regulations and guidance on the implementation of the Law on Housing (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 71/2010/NĐ-CP);

Pursuant to Decree No. 62/2013/NĐ-CP dated June 25, 2013 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Construction;

The Minister of Construction hereby issues this Circular to regulate the issuance of real estate brokerage practice certificates; guide the operation of real estate trading floors.

The Minister of Construction issues this Circular amending and supplementing Article 21 of Circular No. 16/2010/TT-BXD dated September 1, 2010 of the Ministry of Construction detailing specific provisions and guiding the implementation of certain contents of Decree No. 71/2010/NĐ-CP dated June 23, 2010 of the Government providing detailed regulations and guidance on the implementation of the Law on Housing (hereinafter referred to as Circular No. 16/2010/TT-BXD).

Article 1. Amending and supplementing Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 21 of Circular No. 16/2010/TT-BXD as follows:

2. Amending and supplementing Clause 5 as follows:

"1. Transactions concerning housing must be documented in writing (commonly referred to as a housing contract) containing the contents prescribed in Article 93 of the Law on Housing, the Civil Code, Clause 63 of Decree No. 71/2010/NĐ-CP, complying with model contracts and the contents of the housing contract stipulated in the appendices attached hereto.

For housing purchase contracts with real estate businesses, the parties must prepare four copies, one copy for the buyer to keep, three remaining copies for the developer to process tax payments, stamp duty payments, and procedures for issuing the Certificate of House Ownership and Land Use Right (hereinafter referred to as the Certificate) to the buyer and for retention; this housing purchase contract has legal validity to determine the rights and obligations of the buyer throughout the management and use of the purchased housing, including cases where the buyer has already been issued the Certificate by the competent authority."

2. Amend and supplement Clause 2 as follows:

"2. For purchase contracts of commercial condominium units signed with the developer, in addition to the contents prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, the parties must also clearly record the following additional contents: the area belonging to common ownership and use, the area belonging to the exclusive ownership of the condominium owner; the floor area of the condominium unit; the usable area of the condominium unit (clear water area) for calculating the purchase price of the condominium unit; the maintenance fund of 2% of the sale price of the housing; the fee level and principles for adjusting the management and operation fee of the condominium during the period before the establishment of the Condominium Management Board. Accompanying the purchase contract of the commercial condominium unit is the Internal Regulations for the Management and Use of the Condominium Building issued by the developer, the design drawings of the condominium unit layout, the floor plan with the condominium unit, and the condominium building plan with the sold condominium unit which have been approved.

The usable area of the condominium unit is calculated according to the clear water dimensions as illustrated in the example drawing below and recorded on the Certificate issued to the buyer, including the area of internal walls separating rooms within the condominium unit and the balcony, loggia (if any) attached to the condominium unit, excluding the outer walls of the building, walls dividing condominium units, and floor areas with columns and technical compartments inside the condominium unit.

When calculating the balcony area, the entire floor area is included, in cases where the balcony has a shared wall, the calculation starts from the inner edge of the shared wall. At the time of handing over the condominium unit, the parties must clearly record the actual usable area of the condominium unit handed over and the area recorded in the purchase contract in the handover certificate or in the annex of the contract; the handover certificate or the annex of the contract is considered an integral part of the purchase contract of the condominium unit."

Article 2. Provisions on the sale and purchase contract for commercial condominium units

1. Along with this Circular, a model contract for the sale and purchase of commercial condominium units between the developer and the buyer is issued to replace the model contract for the sale and purchase of commercial condominium units stipulated in Appendix 16 issued along with Circular No. 16/2010/TT-BXD.

2. From the date this Circular takes effect, sale and purchase contracts for commercial condominium units between the developer and customers that do not comply with the contents and according to the model contract issued along with this Circular shall not be recognized by law and shall not be used as a basis for issuing the Certificate of Ownership. The developer is responsible for registering the sale and purchase contract for commercial condominium units according to the model prescribed in this Circular with the competent authority in accordance with the law on consumer protection.

Article 3. Implementation Provisions

1. This Circular takes effect from April 8, 2014.

2. In cases where the parties have signed a sale and purchase contract for a condominium unit before the date this Circular takes effect, the determination of the area of the condominium unit for calculating the purchase price shall be carried out according to the agreement in the sale and purchase contract that the parties have concluded.

3. During implementation, if there are difficulties, please send comments to the Ministry of Construction for amendment and supplementation within its authority.