Oh Se-hoon Criticizes Real Estate Policies in Foreign Media Interview... "Won't Give Up Even 1 cm of Yongsan Park"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said in an interview with Reuters regarding the government's mortgage regulations, "While it actually becomes easier for wealthy individuals with plenty of cash to buy homes, young people who lack immediate cash lose the very opportunity to buy their first home."

He pointed out that loan regulations deal a particularly heavy blow to young adults looking to purchase their first homes.

Mayor Oh cited the Lee Jae-myung administration's loan regulations and tax hikes as one of the causes of the housing shortage, arguing that policies restricting borrowing capacity have failed to curb housing demand and instead driven up rents.

Reuters reported that while President Lee recently stated in a press conference that housing approvals and construction starts have dropped to half of previous years' levels, placing some blame for the supply shortage on Seoul, Mayor Oh is criticizing the government's financial and tax policies.

Mayor Oh also reconfirmed his opposition to the current government's plan to supply housing on a portion of the Yongsan Park site.

Mayor Oh emphasized, "Differences of opinion surrounding Yongsan Park still remain. Under no circumstances can I agree to use this place as apartment land. We cannot give up even 1 cm of the park site for apartment construction."

He added that Seoul is a "city of water and mountains" surrounded by the Han River and four mountains, and while distant green spaces are easily visible, the green spaces people can directly enjoy in their daily lives are a different matter, noting, "The green space enjoyed by Seoul citizens is only a quarter of that enjoyed by London citizens."
(Photo: Captured from Reuters website, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.