Oh Se-hoon: "Seoul Apartment Prices Rise for 86 Consecutive Weeks, Surpassing Moon Admin's Record"

▲ Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon criticized the government's real estate policy, stating, "Seoul apartment prices have risen for 86 consecutive weeks, surpassing even the longest record of 85 weeks set during the Moon Jae-in administration."

In a post on Facebook today (the 13th), Mayor Oh stated, "What is more serious is the intensity of the rise," adding, "The cumulative monthly apartment sales price growth rate in Seoul for the first year after a government's inauguration stands at 14.73% under the Lee Jae-myung administration, significantly exceeding the 11.68% of the Roh Moo-hyun administration and 9.41% of the Moon Jae-in administration."

He then explained, "Not only is the duration of the rise the longest ever, but even the speed of housing price increases in the early stages of taking power has surpassed past governments."

Mayor Oh particularly pointed out that the upward trend in apartment prices in areas excluding the so-called Gangnam district, such as Gangnam, Seocho, and Songpa districts, is unusual.

He noted, "While Seoul apartment sales prices rose by an average of 3.5% from June to August, Dongdaemun District rose by 5.8%, Geumcheon District by 5.4%, Dobong, Gangseo, and Gangdong districts by 4.7%, and Nowon District by 4.3%," pointing out that "the so-called 'catch-up' phenomenon is becoming distinct, centered around non-Gangnam areas and outer districts of Seoul."

He continued, "During the same period, while Seoul's jeonse (lump-sum housing deposit lease) prices rose by an average of 3.5%, Seongbuk District rose by 6.0%, Jungnang District by 5.5%, Nowon and Guro districts by 5.0%, Gangbuk District by 4.8%, and Seodaemun District by 4.7%," adding, "Even jeonse prices are significantly exceeding the Seoul average, centered around areas mainly sought after by ordinary citizens and the younger generation."

Mayor Oh criticized, "By suppressing demand through loan regulations, that demand was pushed out to mid-to-low-priced areas on the outskirts, ultimately driving up both the sales and jeonse prices in these regions," and added, "The government's real estate policy, consistent in its 'dogma of actual residence' and 'dogma of tax omnipotence,' has rather than stabilizing housing prices, merely raised the price baseline across all of Seoul step by step."

He stated, "Newlyweds and young people who tried to buy their first home on the outskirts of Seoul, where the price burden is lower, are facing frustration once again in front of a broken housing ladder," and added, "On the other side, retired generations who bought a single home through a lifetime of work are worried that they might have to leave the neighborhoods where they have lived for decades due to tax burdens."

Mayor Oh argued, "It is a major delusion if the government is running on false hopes by looking only at numbers showing that the price rise in some parts of Gangnam has subsided," and emphasized, "We must look together at whether young people do not have to leave Seoul pushed out by housing prices, whether families raising children can continue to live in the neighborhoods where they live, and whether retired parents do not have to leave the homes they have lived in all their lives because of taxes."

He stressed, "You cannot say you have stabilized housing prices while pushing people out of their homes," and emphasized, "The three-axis real estate policy stance of supply, loans, and taxes must be completely reexamined."

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