Referring to the government’s plan to slap a 10 percent tax on rental incomes of over VND100 million ($4,340), it said in a statement landlords are already taking decades to recoup their investment and the tax would only make the rental market less attractive.

HoREA said in Europe and the U.S. around 70 percent of people rent housing, while in Vietnam the majority prefers house ownership.

The 10 percent tax would make people less inclined to rent out houses, but this is something that should be encouraged so that young people would work wherever human resources are needed, it said.

A pilot program by HCMC to tighten implementation of existing regulations in collecting income tax from landlords has hurt both landlords and tenants since it has come amid a new wave of Covid-19, it added.