"○○ billion won or more is the normal price," "National-pyeong (exclusive area of 84 square meters) should go for at least ○○ billion won or more."

A resident who repeatedly posted messages in an apartment complex group chat room in Seoul instructing others not to list apartment units below a certain price has been caught.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government's Judicial Police Service announced today (August 3) that it has referred a resident, identified as Person A, to prosecutors on charges of violating the Certified Public Realtors Act for leading apartment price collusion through a KakaoTalk open chat room.

Person A is accused of interfering with the business of real estate agents by repeatedly posting messages aimed at exerting unfair influence on market prices in the residents' open chat room between June and November of last year.

Under the Certified Public Realtors Act, anyone who interferes with the business of real estate agents by using guidebooks or online communities to induce people not to commission brokerage below a certain price with the intent to exert unfair influence on market prices is punishable by up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won.

Person A referred to real estate agents who advertised properties at lower prices than what A claimed as "caged real estate agencies" and accused the agents of trying to drive down prices.

Person A posted messages in the open chat room such as "It seems we are being swayed by the caged ones" and "We must not fall for the caged rhetoric."

In particular, Person A repeatedly claimed without reasonable grounds that properly advertised properties based on requests from sellers were false listings.

Person A referred to such properties as "items trying to bend downward" and portrayed them as abnormal transactions.

The city urged citizens to report illegal real estate activities or damages through its smartphone application or the Seoul Metropolitan Government website.

Those who report or tip off criminal acts along with decisive evidence can receive a reward of up to 200 million won in accordance with the Seoul Metropolitan Government Ordinance on the Protection and Support of Public Informants.

Lee Chang-seok, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Judicial Police Service, explained, "As apartment prices continue to rise due to housing supply shortages and jeonse market instability, collusion acts using online communities to artificially inflate housing prices taking advantage of this atmosphere continue to occur."

He emphasized, "Such price collusion acts distort real estate prices and threaten the sound real estate transaction order," adding that intensive investigations will continue going forward.

(Photo provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government, Yonhap News)