Lee Jaemyung Accelerates Real Estate Normalization Policy Team Overhaul... Excludes Multiple-Home Public Officials

Comprehensive Review of Real Estate Holdings by Policy Officials in the Ministry of Land, Economy, and Financial Services

Separate Standards to Prevent Conflicts of Interest... Possible Application to Working-Level Officials Below Division Chief

The Blue House and the government are accelerating efforts to reshape the "Real Estate Normalization" policy team with the aim of fundamentally preventing conflicts of interest. The Blue House, along with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of Planning and Budget, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, the Financial Services Commission, and other relevant ministries, plans to identify the real estate holdings—including housing—of public officials responsible for real estate policy. After establishing specific criteria, they intend to exclude those officials from related work. As a result, it is expected that, after the end of the grace period for heavier capital gains taxes on multi-home owners on May 9, newly appointed officials will sequentially announce follow-up real estate measures that they have designed.

Yonhap News Agency

According to the Blue House and relevant ministries on March 30, each agency is currently examining the real estate holdings of officials in charge of real estate and housing policy, and is reviewing both the standards for exclusion from work and the timing of their implementation. A Blue House official stated, "We are currently assessing the real estate holdings, including housing, of policy officials responsible for real estate and housing," adding, "After the survey, we will take steps to exclude them from relevant duties." Another Blue House official explained, "The detailed guidelines will be established at a later stage," and added, "As the President's directive has already been conveyed to each ministry, both ministry-level self-inspections and the Blue House's own standards are being developed in parallel."

This move is a follow-up to President Lee's directive to exclude multi-home owners, non-resident owners of high-priced homes, and those with excessive real estate holdings from the entire process of real estate and housing policy—from discussion and drafting to reporting and approval. President Lee disclosed this directive via social networking services (SNS) on March 22, emphasizing, "Escaping the 'Republic of Real Estate' is one of the core pillars for Korea's great transformation. In real estate or housing policy, not even a 0.1% defect or loophole can be tolerated." Until now, only officials at the director general level or higher had been excluded from related work, but with President Lee's latest directive, there is speculation that lower-level working-level officials may also be subject to exclusion.

The Blue House is expected to base its criteria on related laws such as the Public Service Ethics Act. The act stipulates that the state and local governments must strive to prevent situations in which a public official’s work conflicts with financial interests, making fair execution of duties difficult. It also requires designated officials to report any changes in assets annually.

Further, the practical grounds for exclusion from work will be based on the Conflict of Interest Prevention Act for Public Officials. This law requires public officials engaging in duties such as granting permissions, supervision, investigations, contracts, or tax imposition to report any private interests with relevant parties within 14 days of becoming aware of such interests and to request recusal. Upon receiving such a report, the head of the relevant agency must take one of several actions: temporary suspension of duties, appointment of a deputy, reassignment of duties, or transfer. Regarding real estate, if the official or their family owns or purchases real estate within a development project area handled by the agency, they must report this within 14 days as well.

However, the current Conflict of Interest Prevention Act mainly targets "real estate development duties" and "private interests with related parties," so the broad exclusion of multi-home owners from policy roles, as in this case, will require a separate set of internal standards. In fact, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission is also working to strengthen the system, having announced a legislative amendment to clarify that, once a conflict of interest report is filed, the official's work must be suspended until the agency head takes action.

With President Lee taking a hardline stance by excluding multi-home public officials from even the discussion stage of real estate policy, Blue House aides have begun actively selling off their properties. According to the "2026 Regular Public Official Asset Disclosure Status" recently released by the Government Public Officials Ethics Committee, 10 out of 47 Blue House aides were found to own multiple homes. President Lee, who owns a single home, put his jointly owned apartment in Bundang-gu up for sale with his spouse at a price lower than market value in January. Meanwhile, Blue House spokesperson Kang Yoojung recently sold an apartment in Giheung-gu, Yongin-si at a price significantly below market value. Personnel Secretary Cho Sungjoo sold a mixed-use building in Sejong City, and First Aide Kim Hyunji sold an apartment in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province. Social Affairs Secretary Moon Jinyoung disposed of a single-family house in Busan owned by his spouse.

Lee Sunghoon, Secretary for Land and Transport Policy at the Blue House, who is responsible for land and transport policy, is reportedly in the process of selling his owned properties—including an apartment in Sejong City, a house in Daechi-dong, Gangnam-gu, and an apartment in Dogok-dong, Gangnam-gu. The two Gangnam-gu properties have already been pre-contracted, and if all three are sold, he will become a non-homeowner. Kim Sangho, head of Chunchugwan (the Blue House press center), is also selling his properties to resolve multi-home ownership. A ruling party source said, "With the President selling his only home and signaling a strong will for real estate normalization, aides could not just sit by. For working-level officials, being excluded from related work effectively means the end of their career as aides; how could they not take action?"

Some observers expect that, once the measures by the Blue House and related ministries are completed, a series of follow-up policies for real estate normalization will be announced. This is likely to take place after May 9, when the grace period for heavier capital gains tax on multi-home owners expires. Policies under consideration include: restrictions on extending the maturity of mortgage loans for multi-home owners; termination of the capital gains tax grace period for registered rental housing; and reduction of the special long-term ownership deduction.

Strengthening the property holding tax, which was described as a last resort and not an immediate option, is also drawing intense attention. President Lee shared a report on X (formerly Twitter) comparing holding taxes in major cities such as New York in the United States, Tokyo in Japan, and Shanghai in China, commenting, "I was curious too. How do property holding taxes in major developed cities compare with ours?" This has led the market to interpret it as a suggestion that the holding tax may be strengthened.

With support for real estate policy exceeding 50%, President Lee's remarks are gaining momentum. At a cabinet meeting on March 26, President Lee discussed taxation, regulation, and finance, emphasizing, "Prepare with absolute thoroughness, not even leaving 0.1% of a gap. There is no need for any political consideration." In a recent assessment of major policies nine months into the Lee Jae-myung administration, 51% of respondents said real estate policy was "being handled well," while 27% said it was "being handled poorly" (Korea Gallup survey of 1,000 adults nationwide from March 24 to 26). This is the first time since 2013 that the positive evaluation of real estate policy has exceeded 50%.

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