Rent Reduced by 50% for Vulnerable Groups Facing COVID-19 Hardships

▲ Photo of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's 'COVID-19 Response Public Institution Heads Video Meeting' held on the afternoon of the 16th at Sejong Government Complex. (Provided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport)

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] Rent for rental housing for vulnerable groups struggling due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) will be reduced by 50%.

On the afternoon of the 16th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport held a 'COVID-19 Response Public Institution Heads Video Meeting' at the Sejong Government Complex with heads of six affiliated public institutions including Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), Incheon International Airport Corporation, Korea Airports Corporation, Korea Expressway Corporation, Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL), and SR, announcing such economic revitalization measures.

Through this meeting, the Ministry and its affiliated institutions decided on support measures for the aviation, railroad, and bus industries, as well as small business owners operating in airports, stations, rest areas, and rental housing commercial spaces who are suffering from the impact of COVID-19. In particular, additional measures were introduced for regions with concentrated COVID-19 confirmed cases such as Daegu and Gyeongbuk.

LH will allow tenants of 133,000 permanent rental housing units nationwide to defer rent payments for six months and pay in installments over one year. It will also actively support vulnerable groups in rental housing. If a tenant in rental housing is confirmed positive, the affected household will receive daily necessities worth approximately 300,000 KRW, including rice, bottled water, and hand sanitizer. Currently, 45 households among nationwide rental housing tenants have confirmed cases.

Additionally, the Housing and Urban Guarantee Corporation (HUG) will expand the discount rate on guarantee fees from the existing 3% to 5% for non-face-to-face applications for jeonse deposit return guarantees via internet and mobile starting from the 27th.

Rent reductions have been decided for the heavily affected Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions. LH will reduce rent by 50% for three months from next month to June for 85,000 public rental housing units in Daegu and Gyeongbuk, including permanent, national, happy, and purchased rental housing. The total rent reduction amount is expected to reach 12.5 billion KRW. HUG will also offer a 40% discount on guarantee fees for jeonse deposit return guarantees issued from the 27th for Daegu, Cheongdo and Gyeongsan cities in Gyeongbuk, and Bonghwa County, which were recently designated as special disaster areas.

LH plans to raise the advance payment limit for construction and service fees by 10 percentage points and simplify related procedures. Accordingly, the advance payment amount for construction costs ordered by LH in the first half of the year is expected to increase by 623.7 billion KRW from the existing 1.8844 trillion KRW to 2.5082 trillion KRW out of a total construction cost scale of 7 trillion KRW. In addition, when unavoidable construction stoppages occur due to confirmed cases, LH will promote schedule adjustments, exemption from delay penalties, and increased indirect costs.

14 billion KRW will be invested in quarantine measures. LH will provide masks worth about 10,000 KRW to 15,000 construction site workers and supply masks for management offices, shared hand sanitizers, disinfection in common areas, protective suits, and disinfectants for infection control to 1,067 rental housing complexes nationwide.

▲ Kim Hyun-mi, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, speaking at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's "COVID-19 Response Public Institution Heads Video Meeting" held at Sejong Government Complex on the afternoon of the 16th. (Provided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport)

Rail fares will also be significantly discounted. SR will expand the maximum possible discount on SRT fares operated by the company to 60%. In particular, all customers boarding or alighting at Dongdaegu, Gimcheon-Gumi, and Singyeongju stations will receive a uniform 10% fare discount. KORAIL will also launch a special 10,000 KRW fare product for customers boarding or alighting at KTX Dongdaegu Station.

Currently, KORAIL and SR are providing free train rides to medical volunteers related to COVID-19. KORAIL plans to provide these volunteers with free KTX first-class tickets as well.

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Hyun-mi stated, "We will closely monitor the spread of COVID-19 and its impact on industries and livelihoods, and in consultation with related ministries, prepare additional support measures." She also emphasized the swift implementation of various support measures for the land and transport industries, such as the 'Emergency Support Plan for the Aviation Industry' announced on the 17th of last month and the 'Comprehensive Livelihood and Economic Measures' announced on the 28th of the same month.

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