Kim Jin-ae: "Number of Comprehensive Real Estate Tax Payers Increased Over 10 Years, but Taxation Dropped by Half"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] Over the past decade, the number of people paying comprehensive real estate tax has increased, but the assessed tax amount has dropped to about half.

According to data on the number of taxpayers and assessed tax amounts for the comprehensive real estate tax from 2008 to 2018, submitted by the National Tax Service to Kim Jin-ae, a member of the Open Democratic Party, the number of taxpayers subject to the housing portion of the comprehensive real estate tax, including corporations, increased from 307,152 in 2008 to 393,243 in 2018. However, during the same period, the assessed tax amount decreased from 844.86 billion KRW to 443.19 billion KRW.

Rep. Kim interpreted this as a weakening of the tax burden on owners of high-priced homes and multiple homeowners due to the halving of the tax base and the introduction of tax credits following the reform of the comprehensive real estate tax.

Additionally, the number of people paying the comprehensive real estate tax was found to be less than 1% of the total population. As of 2018, the number of taxpayers subject to the housing portion of the comprehensive real estate tax (excluding corporations) was only 383,115, accounting for just 0.7% of the total population. Among them, the top 1% of taxpayers by tax payment amount, 3,831 people, paid 64.2 billion KRW, which is 18.1% of the total comprehensive real estate tax.

Rep. Kim stated, "The comprehensive real estate tax, introduced in 2005, was implemented during the Roh Moo-hyun administration to strengthen property holding taxes through progressive taxation on multiple homeowners, aiming to curb speculative demand and stabilize real estate prices. However, it lost its function after the 2008 reform." She emphasized, "In the current situation where speculation is rampant due to rising housing prices and development prospects disrupting the real estate market, taxation on wealthy asset holders must be strengthened to stabilize the market."