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Hello geomglasgow, you may also post an advert in HCMC classifieds > accommodation section, it may help.

Harmonie.

Hey there. The price is very various. It depends on location and the apartment. Around Pham Ngu Lao district, they have some room 360$/ a month

To get a handle on rental prices look at CraigsList VietNam for a week.

You seem to be paying high BUT it depends what is included.

A friend saw a place in Quan 4: 2-bedroom, 1-bathroom, large  balcony (5 metres long), lounge, air-con, dining area attached to kitchen.

Fully furnished. Services included: Water, cable TV, garbage, condo maintenance fee, Services NOT included: Parking (80,000), electricity, bottled gas, telephone). NO generator; NO elevator.

Quan 4 has a dubious safety reputation - after all it is a dockland are. The through traffic is staggering, the noise is high, pollution high, and on weekend motorcycle race course.

10 minutes travel to Pasteur & Ham Nghi at rush hours.

12 month lease: $550.

Quan 7 (Nguyen Van Linh side road 320). Condominium, 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom (one with bathtub), small balcony, air-con, lounge, dining area with storage off kitchen.

Fully furnished, copious built in closet storage. Standby generator. Swimming pool, roof top party area/sun deck, elevators.

Services included: Sun deck, swimming pool. Services NOT included: Water, garbage, electricity, garbage, condo fee (around VND800,00 per month), InterNet (fast) VND200,000, cable TV VND65,000, parking VND40,000. 24 hour uniformed security.

Time to Pasteur & Ham Nghi 20 minutes rush hour (Two routes). The area is quiet (except for cockerels), the air is less polluted with particulate matter.

12 month lease: $400.

Note: If you are thinking of breaking a lease, do it for cause. This means rats/vermin in building, insecurity of building (strangers entering), flooding inside/outside building.

Landlords typically pay one month's rental as commission to rental agent so finding someone to assume your lease will be better.

Pham Ngu Lau is a noisy tourist slum and over 50% is classed as uninhabitable even for VN and when the city has built some more housing the demolishing people will move in.

If your friend, who says your rent is too high, is VN you should remember he/she can rent buildings you can not (condition/ownership) and that the police have lists of non-Foreigner buildings. The police can move you out.

Furthermore the government has a minimal rent policy for Foreigners, you may or may not be required to sign another document apart from the lease. This document is filed with the city and they ensure it complies with the policy. Landlords often fill it with things they are not actually paying for to get around this policy.

When renting a place always ask what the total monthly cost will be, not the monthly rental rate.

Some rental agents get crafty by adding VAT to monthly bill (tell them you want their VAT number AND a monthly receipt for the tax so you can reclaim cost. This is usually the last you hear about VAT.

The second one looks interesting.Thanks a million for that Jaitch,I really apreciate you taking your time to give me these tips.

[Moderated: please post in classifieds]

I have been searching all day,I have viewed quite a few apartments so far but of them all I only found one suitable and the price was still a bit on the high side.

A lot of the so called apartments I am viewing are offering the same standards as a basic hotel room and charge the same rate or higher.
If you are going to pay more than you do for a hotel then obviously you want to get something a bit better.

The hunt goes on.

ps,Honey001 I sent you a PM,thanks.

afrproperties.com.vn can help.

Someone wrote:


"Quan 4 has a dubious safety reputation - after all it is a dockland are. The through traffic is staggering, the noise is high, pollution high, and on weekend motorcycle race course."

Yes it has a reputation, possibly from just after the American War. I have lived in C/C Khanh Hoi 360c Ben Van Don Q4 for 6 years now. I live here, I have my dentist here, my favourite restaurants are here. I feel extremely safe and comfortable here.

I have NEVER witnessed any crime here nor heard of any problems around here.

Heresay from a decade ago is not valid today.

Please PM me and I'll show you around geomglasgow, I'm not an agent but I know of many good places both here in Q4 and in Q7.

Good Luck

Jaitch thanks for the tip. I've been living in Q7 not far from Nguyen Van Linh (Tran Xuan Soan HAGL2) for almost a year now & my lease is up for renewal soon. Would most certainly like to have a look at the place if you could give me the full address.

Have you previously lived there? The management fee seems a bit high for a 2b/r apt. Any idea what is the floor area. My current 3b/r 1200sq ft apartment management fee is only 500,000 max (incl water & basement parking)

Hi Halfway I tend to agree with Jaitch about Q4. I live in Q7 and have to pass thru Q4 everyday to get to Q1. I actually live across the river from where you are at. I agree Ben Van Don street is pretty decent but crime is still rampant everywhere in HCM.

To back Jaitch up the motor gangs are a nuisance in Q4. You should try visiting Cau Ong Lan during the end of week. You'll see them hangout by the hundreds around the bridge area. You'll also see an army of cong an trying to keep them in check.They come out late nights & hangout till about 3am. That also accounts for all the motor accessories shop in the area hehe. I had my bike modified there as well.

Just a word of advice for newbies in HCM. Snatch theft is prevalent in any non-developed country. Just be vigilent 100% of the time. If you become a victim blame yourself for making yourself an easy target. I've seen many snatch thefts and motor thefts during my time here. They don't target just foreigners. Infact more locals fall pray. If you ask me I say they all can only blame themselves for being careless. Word of advice, never ever use your mobile along the street with the traffic behind you. If you must walk to a building with your back against the wall and don't pace.

I think the fact that I'm rarely out late means maybe I miss a lot of the nonsense that goes on.
I have heard stories of massed ranks of motorbikes but, touch wood, I've never come across them.
On reflection I have heard of two bag snatches on Khanh Hoi Street itself, so sorry for misleading anyone.
As Hue 1964 advises: be careful, common sense goes a long way!

Halfway wrote:

Someone wrote:

"Quan 4 has a dubious safety reputation - after all it is a dockland are. The through traffic is staggering, the noise is high, pollution high, and on weekend motorcycle race course."

Yes it has a reputation, possibly from just after the American War. I have lived in C/C Khanh Hoi 360c Ben Van Don Q4 for 6 years now. I live here, I have my dentist here, my favourite restaurants are here. I feel extremely safe and comfortable here.

I have NEVER witnessed any crime here nor heard of any problems around here.

Heresay from a decade ago is not valid today. ...

The police also state the area has a high crime rate, and they should know. Even though Q4 is small, it still has a few good places but overall there are more problems than other districts.

There are over 11,000 taxis in the city and most need parking for the night. Not one of the majors has cab parking in Q4 because of the high vandalism/theft they suffer and they use night watchmen to guard their vehicles.

I am talking today, not immediately post American War.

Khan Hoi, for people who don't know he area, is one of two main connector roads to Q7 from/to Q1. The motorcycle racing occurs Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights/mornings.

Possibly you don't notice the racing because of the overall high noise level of Khan Hoi.

That you have never witnessed any crime is fortunate. I personally caught some guy trying to break into our office and he continued, knowing I was there, until I poked him hard with a  piece of pipe in his face.

Mind you, living on Ben Van Don is well away from the action with a sewage canal between you and Q1 and behind a predominantly residential area. No wonder you think Q4 is OK!

There are permanent undercover police hanging around Tan Vinh and Hoang Dieu looking for street thieves - and they are busy. On busy Tan Ving I have seen two people arrested on different occasions for trying to steal motorcycles.

There are many areas in Q4 that suffer from regular flooding - up to about 20-30 centimetres - although the Peoples Committee, at lest their employees, is working hard elevating some roads.

Air quality in Q4 is some of the most polluted in the city (I mean the city not just downtown) from motorcycle exhaust, dust and from the sewage canals that surround the island of Q4.

Ordinarily we wash our filters on the air treatment unit once a week - in Q4 it was weekly. Even then the dust within the (modern) building was very high.

Unless you have your own wheels, public transport is not good, not even taxi's like the few bridges that link Q1 and Q4 as they are so crowded.

For a Foreigner the choice between lower rent and safety persuades me that there are better areas.

Just a word of advice for newbies in HCM. Snatch theft is prevalent in any non-developed country. Just be vigilent 100% of the time. If you become a victim blame yourself for making yourself an easy target.

And be also aware, I wasn't, that snatching can also happen while you drive. They took my bracelet while I was driving back to q.7 (in q.4) during rush hour after work. There was so much traffic I barely had time to realise what had happened. I wear gloves now!

(Hue1964: It´s not too clear, but I was obviously quoting you on my previous reply)

Note to readers
I think I speak for all us who love the country when I say we are not wanting to scare you off but rather to dress an act in a manner that will not make you a victim.

I have only had one thing stolen from me in 20 years - a snatch theft of a bag containing a T-shirt.

If you walk, walk as if you know where you are going; you are safer walking against the crowd as anyone following you will stand out; if you feel unsafe - walk in to a shop or restaurant.

Vietnamese are not 'touchy-feely' people to strangers - PICK POCKETS ARE.

If you feel you are being targeted, spin around as it is hard for them to get a hand in your pockets.

As an example: I was on Hai Ba Trung Street late at night, andb a female approached me with her hands out. A typical pick-pocket ploy. Her 'pimp' driver was on his motorcycle nearby.

I said: "Dee, dee" (Go, go) but she came on, I pushed her away and she persisted. In the end I simply grabbed her blouse neckline midway between her breasts and pulled. Hard.

She ran off.

I wear a POV camera at all times, but I still would not let her touch me.

Dress smart, leave your bling, etc at your hotel.

If you want to make a cell call on the street, place a lamp post on the other side of your cell, so no one can snatch it.

JH I would seriously question your agenda posting on a forum.

Sewerage canal? More foul air than elsewhere? More flooding (utter nonsense)?

You're at it, big time!

You're selling something and it doesn't include District 4. More to the point it requires District 4 well out of the mix.

A POV camera at all times? Now it's getting laughable.

Hello, everyone

I would like to recommend my house for rent. It's at Nguyen Trai street, Dist1. It's close to De Tham, Pham Ngu Lao street. It takes 3 - 5 minutes to drive bike to Ben Thanh market. It's safe and quiet. 3 supermarkets nearby.
The house has 4 bedrooms with 4 baths. Furnished, wifi, Cable TV, Beds,Parking lot,a shared kitchen and big living room.

Double bedroom: $350/month not including electric
Single room   : $250/month.not including electric

Nice house. You should have a look.

If someone is interested in the house, please contact  me via email: phanthithanhhang@yahoo.com
I am the  landlord.

Thanks for your time,
Hang Phan

Hi Hang Phan,

Please post your advert in the Ho Chi Minh City classifieds > accommodation section. Thank you.