10 Real Estate Agents and Others Involved in Jeonse Fraud in Seoul Booked

Seoul City announced on the 24th that, together with 25 autonomous districts, it detected 72 cases of illegal activities and booked 10 people through inspections and monitoring of real estate brokerage offices in the first quarter.

The joint investigation targeted licensed real estate agents in areas with high jeonse price ratios from January to March, uncovering illegal activities such as certificate lending, violations in contract writing, and failure to report employees.

Four cases of prohibited acts violations and unqualified advertisements were referred for investigation under the 'zero tolerance principle.' Eleven cases, including contract writing violations and failure to report employees, received business suspension orders, and 18 cases, such as violations in property display advertisements and improper confirmation explanations, were fined.

In particular, as a result of investigating reports of 'Kkangtong Jeonse' (empty-can jeonse) damage, a total of 10 people?6 licensed real estate agents and 4 brokerage assistants?were criminally booked for violating the Licensed Real Estate Agents Act.

Jeonse fraud victims hold a press conference on the 18th in front of the Presidential Office in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, urging the establishment of measures to address jeonse fraud damage. Photo by Dongju Yoon doso7@

According to the Seoul City Center for Reporting Crimes Affecting People's Livelihoods, there were many cases where prices of newly built villas, whose market prices are difficult to ascertain, were inflated to induce jeonse contracts. The city explained that it was confirmed that brokers and assistants knowingly participated in illegal activities, aiming for performance-based compensation despite the high risk of Kkangtong Jeonse.

Victims were concentrated among young people with little contract experience, such as university freshmen and job seekers.

Additionally, Seoul City will continue the special inspection of suspicious licensed real estate agents involved in jeonse fraud, conducted jointly with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, until the 31st of next month.

To prevent jeonse fraud, a 'Real Estate Contract Experience' service will also be launched in a virtual space. It will be unveiled in the third quarter through 'Metaverse Seoul.'

The Seoul City Jeonse and Monthly Rent Comprehensive Support Center provides consultation services for licensed real estate agents. These can be accessed by phone or in person.

Real estate crimes or damage cases can be reported via the smartphone app (Seoul Smart Complaint Report), the Seoul City website (Center for Reporting Crimes Affecting People's Livelihoods), or the 120 Dasan Call Center.

Cho Nam-jun, Director of the Seoul City Urban Planning Bureau, said, "Through inspections, we were able to identify organized damage cases involving operators," adding, "We will establish a transparent real estate transaction order by thoroughly inspecting and cracking down on illegal brokerage activities."

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