Won Hee-ryong, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport: "We Will Break the Modern Housing Class System... Announce Youth Housing Support Measures Soon"

Held Youth Meeting by Visiting LH Corporate Growth Center as First On-Site Communication Step

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Min-young] Won Hee-ryong, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, announced that he will prioritize youth housing stability as the top policy goal and will soon announce the new government’s youth housing support measures, during his first on-site communication with young people since taking office.

Minister Won attended the youth meeting titled “Meeting with Youth, the Beginning of Housing Policy” held at the LH Corporate Growth Center in Pangyo 2nd Techno Valley, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do at 2 p.m. on the 24th, stating, “Our goal is to break the modern housing caste system.”

This event was organized to directly hear the voices of young people, the main stakeholders, before designing the new government’s youth housing support measures. About 20 young people, including university students, youth tenants of rental housing, young entrepreneurs, and youth housing activists, participated in the meeting.

In his opening remarks, Minister Won said, “The new government’s top policy goal is housing stability for young people, low-income earners, and the middle class,” adding, “Within 100 days of the new government’s launch, we will announce a housing supply roadmap and soon prepare and announce youth housing support measures that include the basic directions introduced today and suggestions from young people.”

Minister Won listened to various policy directions and expectations for the new government directly proposed by the young participants and explained the government’s youth housing policy direction.

First, he announced plans to supply 500,000 cost-price houses for young people, newlyweds, and first-time homebuyers. He said, “We will promptly supply 500,000 youth cost-price houses and first homes near subway stations, and start early pre-subscription for first homes near subway stations within this year.”

Specifically, a new youth housing model will be developed to enable young people with limited basic assets to secure their own homes in excellent locations such as near subway stations, with pre-subscription supply planned within this year. In terms of price, these homes will be offered at affordable prices lower than the current price ceiling system, and exclusive mortgage products will also be launched. Minister Won emphasized that supply plans will be carefully reviewed to ensure housing is provided in prime locations like Pangyo, including areas with convenient transit such as GTX transfer zones, and job- and enterprise-concentrated areas like the 3rd New Town self-sufficient sites.

Loan regulations for first-time homebuyers will also be eased. The government plans to relax the loan-to-value ratio (LTV) up to 80% for first-time homebuyers and expand the reflection of future income in the debt service ratio (DSR) calculation, among other loan regulation relaxations.

He also announced plans to expand youth subscription opportunities through reforming the subscription system. Until now, the subscription system has been mainly operated based on a point system, limiting the quota for youth and newlyweds. Therefore, the overall subscription system will be reformed, including increasing the lottery system ratio mainly for medium- and small-sized houses, to expand subscription opportunities for young people. Minister Won stressed, “We are planning supply so that priority opportunities go to the homeless youth and young adults,” and emphasized that the new government, financial authorities, and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will work together to prepare measures that can achieve realistic results.

The government also plans to form a ‘Youth Advisory Group’ by recruiting young people interested in land and transport policies. This advisory group, to be formed through a public contest in the second half of the year, will participate in policy formulation, execution, and evaluation to guarantee youth participation rights. Regarding this, Minister Won said, “We aim to create a policy decision-making structure that functions as a housing and asset plan within the life plans considered by the stakeholders themselves,” adding, “We are envisioning a youth governance system that can sustain policies even when administrations change.”

In response to a suggestion to diversify the floor plans of startup support housing provided by LH, Minister Won said, “The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and LH will not only quantitatively supply 2.5 million houses but also innovate content by reflecting the opinions of the youth generation,” adding, “We plan to actively incorporate ideas from young people.”

Regarding the issue of dormitory supply, which faces difficulties in additional construction due to opposition from neighboring building owners, Minister Won responded, “The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and Seoul City have regulatory authority,” adding, “We can provide support related to floor area ratio, taxes, and finance. We will study ways to connect the authority we have with resources to create supply methods welcomed by residents.”