Renting an apartment in central Ho Chi Minh City: the real total cost each month

The rent in a listing is usually not the amount you actually pay each month. Management fees, electricity, water, parking and internet can add anywhere from a few hundred thousand to a few million VND, depending on the building and your usage. Before placing a deposit, ask clearly whether each item is included in the rent or charged separately.

1. Rent

This is the largest item and usually the only figure shown in a listing. For example, three Léman Luxury apartments (117 Nguyen Dinh Chieu, former District 3) consigned to HPR, all 75 m², have prices updated on 20 October 2026:

Unit	Rent
1 bedroom, 75 m², furnished	28 million VND/month
2 bedrooms, 75 m², fully furnished	32 million VND/month
2 bedrooms, 75 m², fully furnished	33 million VND/month

For all three units, the management fee, utilities and deposit terms are still being confirmed with the owners. When you view a unit, ask directly: does this price include the management fee?

2. Management fee

The management fee (the price of building management and operation services) is charged per m² per month. In Ho Chi Minh City, the price range for apartment buildings with lifts is 1,800–7,000 VND/m²/month. This range is mandatory for apartment buildings that are public assets. Commercial apartment buildings only use it as a reference when the parties cannot agree; most high-end buildings already have their own fee set in the sale and purchase agreement or decided by the residents' conference, which may be higher than the range.

The range does not include parking, electricity, water, TV, internet, fire insurance or VAT, so these are still charged separately. The owner usually pays the management fee, but some leases pass it on to the tenant.

3. Electricity: tiered pricing, the more you use the more it costs

Residential electricity is currently charged in 6 tiers (applicable from 10 May 2025, excluding VAT):

Tier	Monthly usage	Price (VND/kWh)
1	0–50 kWh	1,984
2	51–100 kWh	2,050
3	101–200 kWh	2,380
4	201–300 kWh	2,998
5	301–400 kWh	3,350
6	from 401 kWh	3,460

Apartments that run air conditioning a lot usually fall into tiers 5–6. Questions to ask:

• Whose name is the unit's own electricity meter in? If the EVN bill is in the owner's name, the owner can declare the number of tenants so the allowance is calculated per person. Without a full declaration, all usage may be charged at a single fixed tier-2 rate.
• Does the owner charge by the bill or at a price they set? Some places charge a fixed price per kWh, and some buildings apply a rate different from the residential tariff. Ask to see the unit's monthly EVN bills and write the calculation method into the contract.

4. Water

Household water in Ho Chi Minh City is charged against an allowance of 4 m³/person/month: 6,700 VND/m³ within the allowance, 12,900 VND/m³ for the next 2 m³ and 14,400 VND/m³ for the rest (excluding 5% VAT). The bill adds a drainage and wastewater treatment fee equal to 30% of the water charge. The allowance is tied to personal identification numbers and the place of residence, so register your temporary residence to be charged correctly. For 2 people, water usually costs only about 100 thousand VND a month.

5. Parking and internet

Motorbike and car parking fees are published by each building and charged separately, outside the management fee. Cars in central buildings usually need a monthly card and spaces may run out, so ask the management board whether a space is available before signing. Internet: in many units the owner has already installed it; ask which plan it is, who pays and whether the account can be transferred.

6. Deposit and advance rent

The law does not fix how many months' deposit a home rental requires; the deposit and the number of months paid in advance are agreed by the two parties in the contract. When the contract has been performed, the deposit is returned or offset against payment obligations. Ask in advance: how many months' deposit, whether rent is paid monthly or quarterly, and in which cases the deposit is deducted. See also the article on checking an apartment rental contract.

7. Tax: tenants usually do not pay

Tax on rental housing is the owner's obligation. From 2026, individuals with total rental revenue of 1 billion VND a year or less do not pay VAT or personal income tax (details: the owner's paperwork and tax when renting out). The exception: a contract may state that the tenant declares and pays the tax on the owner's behalf. Read this clause carefully, because the tax will then be deducted from the rent or added to your costs.

Example: total monthly cost of a 2-bedroom, 75 m² unit

A reference example, based on a 2-bedroom, 75 m² Léman Luxury unit renting for 32 million VND/month, with 2 occupants. Each line states its assumption; replace it with the real figures for the unit you are viewing.

Item	Assumption	Amount / month
Rent	Per the consignment listing, updated 20 October 2026	32,000,000 VND
Management fee	7,000 VND/m² (the ceiling of the Ho Chi Minh City range) × 75 m²; drop this line if the rent already includes it	525,000 VND
Electricity	400 kWh/month, 6-tier residential tariff, excluding VAT	about 1,070,000 VND
Water	10 m³ (2 people), including VAT and the drainage fee	about 110,000 VND
Parking	Per the building's fee schedule	ask the management board
Internet	Per the provider's plan, may already be paid by the owner	ask the owner
Total (excluding parking and internet)		about 33.7 million VND

So in this example the items beyond the rent add about 1.7 million VND, or 5% of the rent. If the building's management fee is above the range, you use more air conditioning or you park a car, this amount will rise. In the first month you also pay the deposit and any advance rent as agreed.

If you are renting long term and thinking of buying in 1–3 years, compare the total cost of renting with a monthly instalment using the home-buying cash-flow tool. Other units for rent: /thue/.

This article is for reference only and does not replace legal or financial advice for each specific case.

1. Does the rent include the management fee? If not, how many VND per m², and on which floor area?
2. Is electricity charged by the EVN bill or at a price set by the owner? Ask to see the unit's bills for the last 2–3 months.
3. Is water charged at the household allowance rate? Will the owner help register your temporary residence so the allowance applies?
4. How much is motorbike and car parking; does the building still have car spaces?
5. Are internet and TV installed, and who pays for them?
6. How many months' deposit, how often is rent paid, when is the deposit returned and in which cases is it deducted?
7. Who bears the rental tax; does the contract have a clause for the tenant to declare and pay it on the owner's behalf?
8. Write every answer into the contract and the handover record (including the electricity and water meter readings on the day you move in).

Sources in Vietnamese; titles kept in the original, with a short English translation in brackets.

• Luật Việt Nam — Bảng giá điện sinh hoạt mới nhất (Quyết định 1279/QĐ-BCT, áp dụng từ 10/5/2025) (Latest residential electricity tariff, Decision 1279/QĐ-BCT, effective 10 May 2025), 12 May 2025.
• Tạp chí Luật sư Việt Nam — Cách tính tiền điện sinh hoạt của người thuê nhà từ 02/12/2025 (How tenants' residential electricity is calculated from 2 December 2025), 5 December 2025 (Circular 60/2025/TT-BCT).
• Luật Việt Nam — 6 quy định về giá bán điện khách hàng cần biết từ 02/12/2025 (6 electricity pricing rules customers should know from 2 December 2025) (Circular 60/2025/TT-BCT).
• Znews — Giá điện sinh hoạt giảm còn 5 bậc, cao nhất gần 4.000 đồng/kWh (Residential electricity reduced to 5 tiers, highest nearly 4,000 VND/kWh), 31 May 2025 (Decision 14/2025/QĐ-TTg).
• Sài Gòn Giải Phóng — Đơn giá nước sinh hoạt: Hộ gia đình tính theo định mức (Household water prices: households are charged by allowance), 27 March 2025.
• VnEconomy — TP.HCM: Phí quản lý chung cư tối đa 7.000 đồng/m2/tháng (Ho Chi Minh City: apartment management fee up to 7,000 VND/m²/month), 29 October 2024 (Decision 86/2024/QĐ-UBND of 21 October 2024 of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee).
• Thời báo Tài chính Việt Nam — Doanh thu cho thuê bất động sản dưới 1 tỷ đồng/năm, cá nhân không phải nộp thuế (Individuals with property rental revenue under 1 billion VND/year do not pay tax), 12 June 2026 (Decree 141/2026/NĐ-CP amending Decree 68/2026/NĐ-CP).
• Báo Pháp luật Việt Nam — Không trả lại tiền đặt cọc nhà có vi phạm pháp luật không? (Is it unlawful not to return a housing deposit?), 22 February 2017 (Article 328 of the 2015 Civil Code).
• HPR — consignment listings for Léman Luxury apartments for rent (codes KG2610-04, KG2610-05, KG2610-06), updated 20 October 2026.