PPP Criticizes Hint at Abolishing Special Long-Term Ownership Deduction: "Are You Trying to Make Even Single-Home Owners Criminals?"

On April 19, the People Power Party criticized President Lee Jaemyung for hinting at the abolition of the long-term ownership special deduction for real estate capital gains tax, asking, "Are you trying to turn even single-home owners into criminals?"

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Choi Boyoon, Chief Spokesperson of the People Power Party, issued a statement on the same day, saying, "Stripping away the promised deduction from citizens who have faithfully paid their taxes, trusting in the single-household, single-home policy that the state has encouraged for decades, is a direct challenge to the principle of protecting trust, which is fundamental to the rule of law."

Chief Spokesperson Choi added, "If you truly believe that abolishing the long-term ownership special deduction aligns with justice and common sense, then openly make it a campaign pledge in the upcoming local elections and let the people judge. There is no future for a society where owning a single home becomes a crime."

Previously, President Lee responded to the People Power Party’s opposition to abolishing the deduction, stating, "The long-term ownership special deduction for capital gains tax is a system that drastically reduces the tax simply because a property was held for a long time, regardless of whether it was occupied by the owner or not. If an honest worker earns over 1 billion won in a year, nearly half is paid in taxes, but in the case of unearned income from real estate speculation, even if it amounts to tens or hundreds of billions, the tax is heavily reduced just because it was held for a long period. This goes against justice and common sense."

Song Eonseok, Floor Leader of the People Power Party, also held a press conference on the same day, stating, "The long-term ownership special deduction is not a privilege but the minimum safeguard to prevent tax distortion. The proposal to abolish it shows a lack of understanding of both the market and tax law."

He continued, "There is no evidence to support the claim that abolishing the deduction and raising taxes will increase listings and stabilize the market. On the contrary, many experts are concerned that strengthening the capital gains tax will have a freezing effect on real estate, delaying sales, shrinking transactions, and increasing upward pressure on prices."

Kim Eunhye, Senior Deputy Policy Chief of the party, also commented on Facebook, "If a single-home owner is forced to forfeit their gains to the state the moment they sell, they will be driven out of the home they lived in for life and reduced to a permanent tenant," adding, "With fiscal mismanagement depleting state funds, the government is now imposing acquisition tax, property tax, capital gains tax, and inheritance tax under various pretexts. This is no different from street gangs extorting protection money in back alleys."

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