Palm River is the riverside residential phase of the 30.2ha Palm City township in Nam Rach Chiec, Ho Chi Minh City, developed by HuongViet Properties: 4 towers, 620 apartments, river frontage on three sides, an unusually low density of 4–6 units per floor — and just 5 minutes from the newly broken-ground 70,000-seat Rach Chiec National Sports Complex. Here is my full insider review: location, masterplan, developer, layouts, amenities and payment terms.
Palm River quick facts
| Location | Nam Rach Chiec, Binh Trung ward (former District 2), Thu Duc City |
| Developer | Nam Rach Chiec Co., Ltd · Development: HuongViet Properties |
| Scale | 4 towers · 620 apartments · 71 officetels · 13 shophouses |
| Unit types | Studio → Penthouse (33 – 300+ sqm) |
| Density | 4–6 units/floor · 4–5 lifts/tower · 1 car space/unit |
| Launch price | From VND 168M/sqm NSA (VAT incl.) ≈ US$6,400/sqm |
| Payment | Standard ~27 months · Special 30% until handover · Loans up to 75% |
| Highlight | River on 3 sides · next to the 70,000-seat sports hub |
What makes the Palm River location special?
Location is the number one reason this project is on my watchlist for foreign clients. Palm River sits inside an already-operating township with three sides embraced by the river (about 2.7km of riverbank), fronting the parallel road of the HCMC – Long Thanh – Dau Giay Expressway.
| Destination | Travel time |
|---|---|
| Binh Trung metro station | 1 min |
| An Phu interchange | 3 mins |
| Rach Chiec Sports Complex | 5 mins |
| Thu Thiem railway station | 5 mins |
| Lotte Mall / Thiso Mall | 8–10 mins |
| 8 international schools (TAS, AIS, BIS, ISHCMC…) | 1–12 mins |
| District 1 CBD | 12 mins |
| Tan Son Nhat / Long Thanh airport | 25 / 30 mins |
More important than today’s map are tomorrow’s lines: the Thu Thiem – Long Thanh light rail (expected 2030) and the North–South High-Speed Railway (expected 2033) both stop within minutes. Buyers today are effectively buying ahead of two layers of infrastructure not yet priced in.
The Rach Chiec Sports Hub: a game-changing neighbor
On 15 January 2026, HCMC broke ground on the Rach Chiec National Sports Complex — over VND 145 trillion in investment, anchored by a 70,000-seat stadium with a retractable roof, masterplanned by Populous (the world’s leading stadium architects) and delivered with Sun Group under a public-private partnership, with the city pushing to compress delivery to around five years.
The ambition goes beyond the National Sports Games (held right here in Nov–Dec 2026): the complex is designed for continental-scale events such as the SEA Games and ASIAD. In my assessment, this will become Vietnam’s future international sports and events hub — and Palm River is the closest major residential project to it.
What happened around sports hubs elsewhere?
- Singapore Sports Hub (Kallang): since opening in 2014, the 55,000-seat national stadium on Kallang Basin has anchored a wave of regeneration — waterfront residences around Kallang now rank among the most sought-after addresses outside the core CBD.
- Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park (Stratford, London): after the 2012 Olympics, Stratford transformed from industrial land into East London’s new growth pole, with local home values outpacing the city average for years.
- The common thread: property gains come not from the stadium itself but from the ecosystem it pulls in — mass transit, retail, hotels, event footfall. Rach Chiec is being masterplanned to exactly that formula.
The Palm City masterplan: where does Palm River sit?
Palm City is a 30.2-hectare riverside township in Nam Rach Chiec, adjacent to the Thu Thiem International Financial Centre, masterplanned around 6 residential precincts (Palm Rise, Palm Landmark, Palm Heights, Palm River, Palm Eden…) plus a shopping mall, Grade A+ offices, an international school system, an international hospital and a landmark tower.
Within that picture, Palm River holds the eastern riverside position — the precinct with the fullest water frontage and the closest to the sports infrastructure axis. Earlier phases of Palm City (Palm Heights, Palm Garden, Palm Residence) are handed over with a real, living community — buyers here are not betting on a township that exists only on paper.
The developer: HuongViet Properties
The project’s legal owner is Nam Rach Chiec Co., Ltd, with HuongViet Properties as the development manager. Per its 2026 capability profile, HuongViet runs a large multi-asset portfolio:
- High-rise residential: 11 projects under development · 2,882,500 sqm GFA · 32,000 units
- Township residential: 4 projects · 570 ha · 23,900 products
- Commercial: 4 projects · 286,000 sqm GFA — including a WiredScore Platinum certified tower
- Industrial: 3 projects · 690 ha
Delivery quality at Palm River is further underwritten by an international consultant lineup: architecture by DPA (Singapore), landscape by LJ-Group (Singapore), interiors by Dark-Horse (Australia), and the project targets EDGE green building certification.
Scale and density: the number that matters most
- 4 residential towers + commercial podium · 620 apartments, 71 officetels, 13 shophouses
- Unit sizes from 33sqm to over 300sqm: Studio, 1BR, 2BR, 3BR, Duplex, Penthouse
- Rare density for HCMC: 4–6 units per floor, 4–5 lifts per tower, 1 car space per apartment
- Direct connection to the riverside promenade
Most comparable HCMC projects run 8–12 units per floor. A 4–6 unit floor plate raises the developer’s cost per unit — and it is precisely what protects long-term value and daily living quality.
Floor plans and layouts: what the drawings tell you
Current sales materials publish typical floor plans for Tower 3 (floors 4–19, 21–26) and Tower 4 (floors 5–19):
| Unit type | GSA (sqm) | NSA (sqm) |
|---|---|---|
| Corner 2BR | 84.9 | 75.8 |
| 2BR | 85.9 | 76.9 |
| 2BR Premium | 120.2–121.9 | 110.9–111.7 |
| Corner 3BR | 125.3 | 115.3 |
| 3BR | 126.1 | 115.2 |
| 3BR Premium | 157.0 | 144.0 |
Three things stand out to my professional eye: (1) net-to-gross efficiency around 89–92% — among the better ratios in this market; (2) a high share of corner units thanks to the small floor plate, meaning most homes get 2–3 open aspects toward the river or skyline; (3) smart-home systems and premium kitchen appliances included in the standard handover spec.
68 amenities: a resort inside the city
- Outdoor: 70m lap pool, resort-style Kids’ Aqua Pool, pickleball court, BBQ pavilion, jacuzzi, grandstand, riverside promenade, pet playground, outdoor leisure bungalows
- Indoor: Sky Onsen with skyline views, Golf Simulation room, fitness, home theater, private karaoke lounge, family wellness center
- Podium level 2: River View Lounge, café terrace, outdoor F&B, tree-shaded lawn
The Sky Onsen and Golf Simulation room are rare finds in this segment — clearly aimed at buyers used to Singapore, Korean and Japanese living standards.
Palm River launch pricing
Official first-phase launch price (2026): VND 168 million per sqm of net area (NSA), VAT included — roughly US$6,400/sqm at current exchange rates, before phase-specific sales policies. Quick conversion by unit type: 2BR 75.8sqm NSA ≈ VND 12.7 billion · 2BR Premium 110.9sqm ≈ VND 18.6 billion · 3BR 115.2sqm ≈ VND 19.4 billion · 3BR Premium 144sqm ≈ VND 24.2 billion. Unit-level pricing varies by floor and view — request the official price list here.
Payment schedule: 27-month spread, or keep 70% until handover
- Standard plan (~27 months): VND 100M booking → 5% deposit agreement → 5% at SPA signing (10% total at signing) → 5–10% installments every 3 months → 25% at handover → 5% at pink book
- Special plan: pay only 30% until handover (100M + 5% + 5% + 10% + 10%) → 65% at handover → 5% at pink book — ideal for buyers who want to preserve cash flow
- Bank financing: loans up to 75% with a 24-month principal-and-interest grace period
For foreign buyers I usually point to the special plan: keeping 70% of your capital until handover reduces construction-timeline risk and gives flexibility for international transfer planning. Note: policies apply per sales phase — always confirm at transaction time.
The scale model, up close
A few photos I took directly at the project launch — the fastest way to feel the true proportions, river setbacks and density of Palm River:
Chris’s view — who should buy Palm River?
Having gone through the project documents and cross-checked the masterplan, I place Palm River in the “buy along the masterplan, hold long-term” bucket — exactly the value-investing philosophy I follow. Three buyer profiles fit best:
- Expat families buying to live: 8 international schools within 12 minutes, a green compound environment and best-in-class low density
- Long-term infrastructure investors: buying ahead of three catalysts — the sports hub (~5 years), light rail 2030, high-speed rail 2033
- Buy-to-let investors: the An Phu – Thao Dien expat tenant pool is already here, with sports-hub staff and event demand to come
Two things to monitor before committing: actual progress of the sports complex (the contract allows 8 years, the target is 5 — land clearance is the key variable) and the foreign ownership quota of each tower — I always verify remaining quota through actual booking data before my clients place a deposit.
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