Unrealistic or Ambiguous... Will Confusing Real Estate Policies for the General Election Be Overused?

On the 20th of last month, Jeong Dong-young, the leader of the Democratic Peace Party, announced a pledge at the National Assembly to supply one million apartments worth 100 million won each.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] Ahead of the April general elections, as each political party is flooding with real estate pledges, criticism has poured in regarding the direction and feasibility of these pledges.

On the morning of the 4th, at the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy in Jongno-gu, Seoul, a '21st General Election Housing Pledge Evaluation Roundtable' was held, hosted by the Housing Rights Network. On this day, the presenters pointed out the 'feasibility' of the populist policies of minor parties, while continuing criticism that the policy direction of major parties was unclear.

The most criticized pledge was that of the Party for Democracy and Peace. Lawyer Kim Dae-jin, who presented (from the Lawyers for a Democratic Society’s Committee on People's Economy), said about the Party for Democracy and Peace’s pledge to supply 1 million houses priced at 100 million won over 10 years, "It is questionable whether there has been a concrete review of its feasibility." He pointed out, "The main funding sources for supplying 1 million houses include the complete suspension of the Urban Regeneration New Deal project and the use of the low birthrate countermeasure budget," adding, "The urban regeneration project is also important as an alternative to redevelopment and reconstruction projects involving full demolition, comparable to new housing supply," and that the low birthrate countermeasure budget has already been allocated or is to be allocated to other projects, thus lacking feasibility.

Lawyer Kim further said, "The previously failed 'half-price apartment' policy will likely remain an election gimmick," and to dispel concerns, "Specific implementation plans regarding supply plans and funding must be presented."

He also commented on the Justice Party’s pledge to ban high-ranking public officials from owning more than one house, saying, "It can be considered meaningful," but noted that there are cases where owning two houses is unavoidable due to inheritance or parental support, and that considerations regarding conflicts of interest for those in charge of housing and real estate policies should also be made, thus requiring discussion on the specific scope.

Democratic Party of Korea leader Lee Hae-chan is delivering a greeting at the '2020 General Election Pledge Announcement' held at the National Assembly on the 29th of last month. From left to right: Jang Kyung-tae, Chair of the National Youth Committee; Park Joo-min, Supreme Council Member; Lee Hae-chan; Cho Jung-sik, Chair of the Policy Committee; Yoon Kwan-seok, Senior Deputy Chair of the Policy Committee.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Regarding the Democratic Party’s 'third pledge' to supply 100,000 customized houses for youth and newlyweds, criticism arose that the policy does not properly grasp the 'needs' of the target groups.

Jung Yong-chan, Planning Director of the Mindalpaengi Union, said, "Only public rental housing with low publicness, which places less financial burden on the public sector, is being mass-produced," and criticized, "In reality, urban development policies for economic stimulus are being promoted under the guise of 'youth marketing'." He argued, "The U.S. does not set rents below market prices but considers rent relative to the income of the policy target," emphasizing the need to increase actual 'affordability.'

Jung also strongly criticized the shared-income mortgage, saying, "It reminds me of the Park Geun-hye administration’s policy of 'buy a house with debt'," and stated that support for vulnerable groups who cannot own homes is being reduced.

Choi Eun-hyung, Director of the Korea Urban Research Institute, criticized the Liberty Korea Party’s general election pledges as 'inconsistent and unclear policies.' Choi analyzed, "It is ambiguous whether the policy goal is to 'suppress price increases' or to 'raise prices,'" and added, "It seems to be based on the perception that the rise in housing prices in Seoul and the metropolitan area is not a problem." He diagnosed that the Liberty Korea Party’s real estate policies "repeat crude factional logic," and called for overall policy supplementation and improvement beyond tailored measures for high-priced homeowners and specific groups or regions such as Seoul and first-generation new towns.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.