Seoul City Conducts Full Survey of 200,000 Semi-basement Households... Assisting Relocation to Rental Housing

Securing Over 230,000 Units Through 20 Years of Aging Public Rental Reconstruction
Bonus Points Awarded in Contests Like Sintong Planning and Moa Town
New 200,000 KRW Monthly Voucher Established... Support for Relocation to Ground Floors

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyemin] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it will secure more than 230,000 households over the next 20 years through the reconstruction of aging public rental housing to support the relocation of semi-basement households.

On the 15th, Seoul stated, "It is expected that more than 230,000 households will be secured through the reconstruction of aging public rental housing. If the supply of rental housing increases further through redevelopment projects promoted by the city, such as rapid integrated planning redevelopment and Moa Housing, it will be possible to fully absorb 200,000 semi-basement households."

Earlier, Seoul had announced plans to gradually eliminate existing semi-basement housing over a grace period of 10 to 20 years following flood damage. In response to concerns raised by some, including Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Won Hee-ryong, who criticized the plan for focusing on demolition without relocation plans, the city disclosed this additional plan.

Seoul will conduct a "comprehensive survey of semi-basement housing" to accurately identify the locations of approximately 200,000 semi-basement households in the city, assess flood risks, determine vulnerable groups, and gather information on rent and ownership status to establish a comprehensive roadmap. Since this is a long-term policy, the city will also expand current housing benefits, introduce specific vouchers for semi-basement residents, and implement deposit support programs for monthly rent.

First, Seoul plans to secure sufficient public rental housing by promoting the reconstruction of aging public rental housing in the long term. Within the next 20 years, 258 complexes with about 118,000 households of aging public rental housing will reach the 30-year reconstruction threshold. By increasing the floor area ratio, the city plans to supply more than 230,000 households, approximately double the existing number. Additionally, about 8,000 households are being secured as public rental housing annually, including 5,000 purchased rental units and 3,000 units from public contributions in redevelopment projects.

The city will also reduce semi-basement housing through redevelopment and other maintenance projects. Since last year, about 13,000 semi-basement households have been included in redevelopment zones through rapid integrated planning redevelopment and Moa Town selection. A Seoul city official said, "Considering future selected zones, more than 8,000 semi-basement households will be included in redevelopment targets annually and will disappear."

Furthermore, the city is considering prioritizing areas densely populated with semi-basement housing that have a history of flooding when selecting public redevelopment and Moa Town projects currently underway or planned. For rapid integrated planning redevelopment, the city will also consider awarding extra points to candidate sites that are habitual flood zones or at risk of flooding. The second candidate sites for public redevelopment will be selected by the end of this month, and the second call for candidates for rapid integrated planning redevelopment is upcoming. The Moa Housing project is currently accepting applications until early next month.

In particular, Seoul will expedite relocation support for households among semi-basement residents that include vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities, the elderly, and children who have difficulty evacuating quickly during floods. First, a new voucher will be introduced to subsidize monthly rent by 200,000 KRW for up to two years when households currently living in semi-basements move to above-ground floors. The city also plans to cooperate with the government to expand the eligibility and amount of the "housing benefit," which is provided to low-income households earning 46% or less of the median income.

Additionally, Seoul will expand support amounts and targets for deposit support policies for vulnerable groups, such as "long-term safe housing" and "existing housing rental deposits." Through government consultations, the support target will be increased from the current 10,500 households to 20,000 households. The city will also begin supporting public rental housing moves focused on vulnerable groups who have difficulty evacuating quickly during floods. Seoul said, "Since 2020, we have supplied 2,610 households through housing upgrade support projects, but now we plan to focus and expand support specifically for semi-basement households."

Meanwhile, Seoul plans to prepare graded countermeasures using flood trace maps that can verify past flood histories in regions. In addition, the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation (SH) will purchase underground and semi-basement houses and convert them into non-residential uses such as community storage or local community facilities to prevent semi-basements from being used as residences. For semi-basement house owners classified as homeowners who are not eligible for public rental housing, SH will also purchase the houses to provide opportunities for public rental housing occupancy.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon emphasized, "In addition to short-term measures such as flood prevention facilities, we will pursue fundamental measures to move semi-basement households to above-ground floors," adding, "Through continuous cooperation with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, we will support the relocation of citizens who have difficulty responding to emergencies such as floods and fires to public rental housing."