Ministry of Land and Seoul City to Fully Promote Public-Led Street Housing Redevelopment Project

[Asia Economy Reporter Inho Yoo] The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, together with the Seoul Metropolitan Government, will conduct a joint public contest for the Street Housing Maintenance Project from the 12th until the end of this month.

Based on institutional improvements to revitalize public participation in the Street Housing Maintenance Project, such as amendments to enforcement ordinances, the Ministry and Seoul will carry out a joint contest to identify specific project sites, aiming to expand housing in downtown Seoul and regenerate aging residential areas.

The contest will be conducted in two stages according to the project progress status of the relevant area. The first stage targets districts where a union has already been established to promote the Street Housing Maintenance Project or where residents' opinions are being collected to establish such a union.

If a letter of intent is submitted to the public project implementers LH and SH by the end of this month, one-on-one customized (small-scale) briefing sessions will be held over two months until April to provide detailed information and support preliminary project feasibility analysis. Subsequently, applications will be accepted from May 11 to 21. From June to August, after resident consultations and evaluations, the final public participation Street Housing Maintenance Project sites will be confirmed.

The second stage contest will target areas that wish to newly promote the Street Housing Maintenance Project. A briefing session will be held at the end of May.

The Ministry is actively promoting the Street Housing Maintenance Project to expand housing and renovate aging residential areas. Unlike large-scale redevelopment and reconstruction projects, the Street Housing Maintenance Project has simplified procedures allowing for rapid project implementation, and project financing loans can be supported through the Housing and Urban Fund, leading to its activation.

In fact, the number of unions increased from only 15 in 2016 to 47 in 2017, 64 in 2018, and 111 in 2019. Especially in Seoul, where 55 unions have been established, residents' opinions are being collected in 48 districts to promote the Street Housing Maintenance Project.

Earlier, on December 16 last year, the government announced institutional improvements to revitalize the Street Housing Maintenance Project to expand housing supply in downtown Seoul.

Accordingly, on the 10th, the amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Special Act on the Maintenance of Vacant Houses and Small-scale Housing, which expands the project implementation area limit from 10,000㎡ to 20,000㎡ when public interest requirements are met, passed the Cabinet meeting and is scheduled to be enforced on the 17th.

If 20% or more of the total number of households or total floor area is supplied as public rental housing, construction up to the legal maximum floor area ratio under the National Land Planning Act is possible, and floor restrictions are also relaxed. In Seoul’s second-class general residential areas, the maximum number of floors increases from 7 to 15.

Project risk factors can also be significantly reduced through stable project financing, selection of reliable contractors and responsible completion, and public purchase commitments to resolve unsold housing risks. While unions can independently obtain loans up to 50% of the total project cost, this can be expanded up to 90% if public participation and supply of 20% or more public rental housing are ensured.

Relocation loan amounts are also supported up to 70% of the pre-move assets or the average regional jeonse (long-term deposit lease) price.

A Ministry official said, “We expect the public participation type Street Housing Maintenance Project to be revitalized and housing supply in Seoul to expand,” adding, “We will continuously review obstacles to promoting the Street Housing Maintenance Project and pursue institutional improvements.”

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