Seoul City Expands Scope and Eases Regulations for Autonomous Housing Maintenance Projects

[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] The Seoul Metropolitan Government will expand the scope of the small-scale housing maintenance project called 'Jayeol Jutaek Jeongbi Saeop' (Autonomous Housing Maintenance Project) and relax its conditions and regulations. The plan aims to improve the residential environment of aging low-rise residential areas while revitalizing housing supply.

Seoul announced on the 26th that the amendment to the 'Seoul Metropolitan Ordinance on Vacant Houses and Small-scale Housing Maintenance' reflecting these details has been promulgated.

The Autonomous Housing Maintenance Project is a project where owners of aging single-family and multi-family houses form a resident consensus body through unanimous agreement and renovate or construct houses by themselves.

The scope of the Autonomous Housing Maintenance Project, which was previously limited to single-family and multi-family houses, now includes row houses and vacant lots. Seoul stated, "Small-scale row houses, which previously lacked business feasibility, are expected to improve the residential environment of low-rise residential areas by renovating them together with adjacent aging houses."

Additionally, building regulations such as open space standards within the site will be relaxed in preservation areas within redevelopment promotion districts under the 'Special Act on Urban Redevelopment Promotion' and historical and cultural environment preservation areas under the 'Cultural Heritage Protection Act,' making project implementation easier. Previously, only housing performance improvement support zones could receive such regulatory relaxations.

The implementation procedure will also be simplified. When the number of existing houses eligible for autonomous housing maintenance exceeds 20 households (less than 36 households), the mandatory review process by the district architectural committee will be omitted.

Meanwhile, there are currently a total of 30 Autonomous Housing Maintenance Project sites in Seoul. Five sites have been completed, five are under construction, one has received project implementation approval, three are under integrated review, and sixteen have formed resident consensus bodies and reported their zones.

Kang Maenghun, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Urban Regeneration Office, said, "We expect that the ordinance amendment will activate small-scale maintenance projects in residential areas, improving the residential environment of aging low-rise residential areas while increasing housing supply. We will promptly implement follow-up measures after the ordinance amendment and work closely with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to ensure the smooth progress of small-scale housing maintenance projects and do our best to supply housing."