United Future Party Announces Pledge to Ease Remodeling and Reconstruction Regulations in Seoul and First-Generation New Towns

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The United Future Party announced on the 2nd that it will ease remodeling and reconstruction regulations in Seoul and the first-generation new towns to increase apartment supply in areas where people want to live.

The party's "2020 Hope Pledge Development Group with the People" presented an apartment pledge based on this content on the 2nd.

First, to expand the supply of mid-to-high-rise apartments in Seoul and the first-generation new towns, which have been neglected due to aging, remodeling and reconstruction regulations will be comprehensively improved. In addition, redevelopment and reconstruction regulations will be significantly eased in urban station areas or regions with good residential environments where demand for residence is high, expanding the supply of quality apartments.

However, to minimize side effects and ensure that development profits are not limited to individuals, policy alternatives will also be proposed. The Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) system will be introduced into district unit plans, allowing additional floor area ratios in high-demand station areas to be purchased from low-rise residential areas to promote reconstruction, and the costs of transferring development rights will be reinvested in improving the living environment of low-rise residential areas.

For redevelopment and reconstruction projects, long-term low-interest loans will be supported through the Urban Housing Fund and commercial bank interest support to increase the resettlement rate of original residents. To establish specific plans and legislate, an internal "Apartment Housing Policy Organization" involving experts from various fields will be formed immediately after the general election.

Tax burdens on apartment owners will also be reduced. In particular, to correct the phenomenon where the property tax on residential real estate held for living purposes is higher than that on commercial properties due to the high realization rate of official apartment prices, the party plans to adjust the pace of official apartment price realization to match the speed of non-residential property price realization. For areas facing severe economic downturns or disasters, such as special disaster management zones, property tax will be temporarily reduced.

For new apartment sales of national housing size (85㎡ or less) in speculative overheating zones and subscription adjustment zones such as Seoul, a lottery system will be implemented for 50% of the units, and the policy loan limit for newlywed couples' monthly rent deposits will be raised to a maximum of 300 million KRW. To eradicate corruption in apartment management fees, residents representing at least one-tenth of the occupants will be able to request local government audits of the apartment management entity and residents' representative meetings. Regarding noise between floors, a post-completion certification system will be introduced to measure soundproofing performance after completion, and the results will be considered as additional criteria for defect judgments.

The United Future Party stated, "The Moon Jae-in administration's real estate policy focused solely on regulation is, in a word, a series of obstinate attempts to fight against the market," adding, "By pushing through market intervention policies centered on excessive regulation 20 times, it has caused confusion and price surges, and balloon effects have appeared across the country."

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