30% of 청 Property Disclosure Targets Own a 'Smart Single Home' in Gangnam 3 Districts

Analysis of 2021 Regular Asset Change Reports... 36% of National Assembly Members Refuse to Disclose Direct Lineal Ascendants and Descendants' Assets

[Asia Economy reporters Ryu Jeong-min and Naju-seok] It has been found that 30% of the individuals subject to property disclosure at the Blue House own a so-called prime apartment in Seoul’s “Gangnam 3 Districts (Gangnam-gu, Seocho-gu, Songpa-gu).”

According to an analysis by Asia Economy on the Blue House (Secretariat, National Security Office, Security Office) ‘2021 Regular Property Change Report’ published in the Republic of Korea Government Gazette on the 25th, 17 out of 56 disclosed individuals (30.4%) each owned one apartment in the Gangnam 3 Districts. In particular, the publicly announced apartment prices as of December 31 last year, which serve as the basis for the disclosed assets, showed a difference of around 1 billion KRW compared to actual market prices.

Cho Yong-woo, Secretary for National Records, reported his apartment in Hyundai 1st Complex, Gaepo-dong, Gangnam-gu, with an exclusive area of 128.64㎡, at 1.6865 billion KRW, but the same-sized Hyundai 1st Complex apartment was sold for 2.7 billion KRW in February this year.

The view of the Blue House from Namsan, Seoul. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Lee Nam-gu, Secretary for Public Service Discipline, reported his Dong-A Apartment in Jamwon-dong, Seocho-gu, with an area of 84.91㎡, at 1.44 billion KRW, but the same-sized Dong-A Apartment was sold for 2.38 billion KRW in March this year.

Do Jae-hyung, Secretary for Employment and Labor, reported his Samho Apartment in Bangbae-dong, Seocho-gu, with an area of 177.52㎡, at 1.345 billion KRW, but the same-sized Samho Apartment was sold for 2.35 billion KRW in January this year. Although reporting based on the publicly announced price is not illegal, it leads to an effect of underreporting actual assets, indicating a need for improvement.

Regarding the disclosure of assets of 300 members of the National Assembly released by the National Assembly Public Officials Ethics Committee, the refusal to disclose the assets of direct ascendants and descendants was a focal point of interest. Among the members of the National Assembly, 109 (36.3%) refused to disclose the assets of their parents or children for reasons such as independent livelihood. If direct ascendants or descendants of a member of the National Assembly are economically capable or not dependent, they may choose not to register their assets.

Lee Jeong-min, Director of the Ethics and Service Affairs Bureau at the Ministry of Personnel Management, explained, “In the case of direct descendants, they are required to have independent residence and registration for at least one year,” adding, “There is also opposition to abolishing the refusal-to-disclose system itself, citing constitutional prohibitions on excessive restrictions and infringements on privacy and freedom.”

Meanwhile, cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are excluded from the scope of public officials’ property disclosure, which has also become a subject of controversy. Cryptocurrencies are not included in the reporting requirements and are criticized as a means to conceal assets.

In this regard, Shin Young-dae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, plans to propose an amendment to the Public Officials Ethics Act to include cryptocurrency assets exceeding 10 million KRW in the property registration requirements.

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