Rather than save up for a wedding, more and of them are choosing to sign mortgage contracts together, viewing home ownership as the true foundation for their future.
After just six months of dating, before even thinking about marriage, Ngoc Ly and Huy Hoang decided to sign a contract together to buy a 65-square-meter apartment on Tran Phu Street in Hanoi’s Ha Dong District for USD135,000 (VND3.3 billion).
“Many people ask why we bought a house together when we’re not married yet, but we think once you have a home, marriage can happen anytime,” Ly, 30, says.
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Huy Hoang (in the gray jacket) inspects an apartment under construction in Ha Dong, Hanoi, in May 2024. Photo courtesy of Hoang |
The architecture graduates and colleagues only began dating before Lunar New Year festival (Tet) 2024. After working for six years they had saved enough to make a joint purchase, hoping both to grow their money and to finally have a place of their own.
“When we sat down and calculated, we realized no matter how hard we work, it is almost impossible to catch up with housing prices,” Hoang says. “As people from other provinces, we’ve always dreamed of having our own place in Hanoi.”
In May 2024 they put down a deposit on the apartment in Ha Dong with joint ownership. A bank loan covered 60% of the property’s value. In Vung Tau, 26-year-olds Le Hoai and Thien Nhi made a similar decision.
The couple jointly bought a 30-square-meter house with two floors for VND2 billion. Their decision brought a chorus of disapproval: “Why not wait until after the wedding?” “What if you break up?”
“There were many doubts, but to me, buying a house defines the family picture after marriage, so it must come first,” Hoai says. To afford it, they sold a homestay in Da Lat and borrowed more from relatives. In June 2024 the two moved into the new house.
More and more young people are changing their priorities, choosing to buy a home first and marry later rather than follow the traditional path of getting married before settling down.
According to the Vietnam Association of Realtors Institute for Research and Evaluation (VARS IRE), buyers aged 25–35 are now involved in over 40% of all transactions, and even up to 70% in some housing projects.
Property website Batdongsan.com reported that 62% of searches for housing in 2024 came from people under 35. Instead of buying alone, many now choose to do so jointly.
On social media, many couples and friends share their stories of pooling money, viewing it as a way to share the burden and shorten the journey to home ownership. But this is not unique to Vietnam.
A 2024 survey by U.S. real estate company Opendoor found that 77% of first-time buyers purchased homes with someone other than a spouse or family member.
Truong Anh Tuan, head of the legal department at the Vietnam Real Estate Association, says: “In recent years more and more young people have been pooling money to buy property together, especially in major cities. “This reflects a shift in their perspective on ownership, which has become more flexible, pragmatic and open to risk-taking.”
He says when an unmarried couple buy a house they are considered co-owners since it is a civil relationship between individuals sharing investment capital, and it allows them to share equity, take joint loans and avoid certain legal issues married couples face. “There are clear advantages to early joint investment, especially when property prices keep rising.”
He advises couples to clearly agree on the details and says they can formalize the property as a joint marital asset if they marry.
Dr. La Linh Nga, director of the Center for Psychological and Educational Science Research and Application, says young people today approach love with greater practicality and independence.
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The couple Le Hoai and Thien Nhi, both aged 26, pictured inside a house in Vung Tau in 2024. Photo provided by the couple |
They plan carefully for each stage as they move from dating to marriage, then to securing housing and eventually having children, she says. “When home ownership in big cities is so hard, young people prefer to tackle the hardest challenge while they’re still young, strong and less tied down.”
They are well-informed, legally aware and view buying a home as a joint investment, and there is a clear way out if the relationship does not lead to marriage, she adds. But this trend is also an indictment of the harsh reality of home ownership dreams.
Data from VARS IRE shows that in the last five years apartment prices have risen by 88% in Hanoi, 70% in Da Nang and over 48% in Ho Chi Minh City while average incomes have grown in single digits. The situation calls for policies that make housing more affordable.
The government has launched programs like the “One Million Social Housing Units” and preferential credit packages to support young buyers.
Anticipating potential risks, Thien Nhi and Le Hoai have decided to marry in February 2026. “At first, it was a bold move that went beyond our financial limits, but now it feels like the best decision we ever made,” Hoai says.
For Ly and Hoang, co-buying was both an emotional commitment and the first step toward building a home together.
After moving in, marriage and family came sooner than expected. The couple expects to pay off their mortgage this year. “Our goal is to work harder and earn more, not just to live frugally,” Ly adds.
