'New Wine in New Wineskins' Starting Next Month, Subscription on 'Cheongyakhom'... Three-Month Relay

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] Apartment subscription services, which had been suspended due to the transfer of tasks between institutions, will resume starting next month. With the full implementation of the price ceiling system for housing sales imminent, a fierce subscription relay lasting three months is expected following a one-month break.

Until last year, various housing subscription services were handled by the Korea Financial Telecommunications & Clearings Institute, making 'Apartment To You' synonymous with subscription sites. However, from the 3rd of next month, related services will be conducted through the Korea Real Estate Board's 'Subscription Home.' This follows the promulgation of the new Housing Act amendment on the 21st, which includes these changes.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport decided to transfer the system operation to the public institution, the Korea Real Estate Board, considering the public nature of the subscription system, and has been preparing for the transfer since August last year.

◆ What's new with Subscription Home and what changes to expect= The biggest difference arising from the change of the responsible institution is that various subscription qualifications such as household member information, period of being without a home, and subscription savings account duration can be checked all at once before applying for a subscription.

Under the previous subscription system, applicants had to calculate and input various information related to subscription qualifications and points themselves. This process sometimes led to errors in entering information, resulting in cancellations after winning.

This convenience improvement was also the reason for the delay in the subscription system transfer initially scheduled for October last year. To access financial information such as subscription savings accounts, it was essential to amend related laws to allow the non-financial institution, the Korea Real Estate Board, to handle such information, but the related procedures were delayed in the National Assembly. A Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport official stated, "We expect a reduction in cases of cancellations due to applicants' input errors and the inconvenience of applicants having to individually verify subscription qualification information will be resolved."

Various subscription-related tasks, which had not been fully unified, will also be consolidated into 'Subscription Home.' Currently, about 22% of all holders have subscription accounts with KB Kookmin Bank, and these applicants have experienced inconvenience by having to apply for subscriptions through 'KB Kookmin Bank Housing Subscription' and check winning results on Apartment To You. However, from now on, both application and winning confirmation will be possible through Subscription Home. The Ministry plans to unify special supply for employees of institutions relocated to Sejong City and innovation cities, currently managed by the Korea Housing Association, into Subscription Home as well.

Additionally, the number of screen transitions during the subscription application process, which was previously 10 steps, will be drastically reduced to 5 steps, and a responsive web service will be applied to enhance convenience for mobile users. Furthermore, information on existing apartments near subscription complexes, market prices, prices of recently supplied complexes, and subscription competition rates will be provided through a GIS-based service to assist applicants' decision-making.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport plans to strengthen the public function of subscription services through this transfer, while enhancing measures to prevent fraudulent subscriptions and enabling policy formulation in response to changing circumstances by reinforcing continuous monitoring and on-site inspections.

◆ 'New wine in new bottles' Subscription relay starting in February= Ahead of the full implementation of the price ceiling system for private land, urgent redevelopment projects are gearing up for a subscription relay in line with the start of Subscription Home operations.

According to Real Estate 114 on the 27th, the total number of apartment units scheduled for supply nationwide from February to April is 81,592, with 17,797 units planned for Seoul.

In Seoul, projects such as the Dunchon Jugong Reconstruction in Gangdong-gu (4,786 general supply units), Heukseok 3 District Xi in Dongjak-gu (370 general units), and Hillstate Sewoon in Jung-gu (899 units) plan to hold subscriptions by April to avoid the price ceiling system. The integrated reconstruction of Sinbanpo 3rd and Gyeongnam Apartments in Seocho-gu (356 general units) and Hoban Summit Mokdong in Yangcheon-gu (240 general units), initially expected to be sold as a whole, are also reportedly adjusting their subscription schedules to avoid the price ceiling regulations.