Investigation Requested for 29 Individuals Including Sales Agencies Related to Jeonse Fraud
#. Agency A posted 1,181 advertisements for new villa sales on their self-operated blog from 2021 to the present. However, about 70% of these, totaling 819 cases, were identified as suspicious illegal ads simultaneously promoting sales and jeonse (long-term lease). Additionally, 'Kim Mo, from Agency B in Gyeonggi-do,' who was listed alongside brokerage phrases in the ads, was found to be unqualified and not a licensed real estate agent.
Cases of Nonexistent False Listing Advertisements / Image provided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport
On the 29th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced that it had detected a total of 201 illegal advertisements posted by habitual violators on online platforms for housing sales and jeonse brokerage. Regarding jeonse fraud, 29 unqualified individuals, including sales agencies, who posted housing sales and jeonse brokerage ads online were referred to the police for investigation.
This investigation is part of a special crackdown on advertising activities related to 'bait fake listings' in housing, conducted jointly with the National Police Agency, and will continue until the end of May. It targets businesses that habitually post illegal ads, such as failing to delete ads after contracts for sales or jeonse have been concluded or advertising important information about brokerage properties inaccurately.
This month, 2,017 businesses, including licensed real estate offices that had been caught posting two or more illegal ads on online platforms last year, were selected for investigation. The Ministry of Land explained that the National Police Agency promptly provided related data to facilitate smooth investigations into the three major illegal activities involving housing (illegal advertising, fraud, and other acts disrupting the housing market order).
The investigation revealed that among habitual violators, 118 businesses accounting for 5.9% still posted a total of 201 illegal ads on online platforms even after the special crackdown began. Among these illegal ads, 163 cases (81.8%) involved unfair labeling and advertising types, 20 cases (10.0%) involved failure to state mandatory information, and 18 cases (9.0%) involved violations related to the advertising entity.
The Ministry plans to ensure that local governments without exception impose administrative sanctions on licensed real estate agents caught in this investigation. Until now, the Ministry has continuously monitored brokerage property labeling and advertising on online platforms in cooperation with the Korea Real Estate Board and the Korea Internet Advertising Foundation. Last year, it detected a total of 15,007 suspicious illegal ads and notified the relevant local governments, of which 8,170 received administrative sanctions such as fines. Suspicious ads were mainly concentrated on villas (68.8%) and one-room units (22.8%) where young people and low-income households reside. Among commercial facilities, officetels, classified as quasi-residential, accounted for 76.8%.
The Ministry also monitored unqualified online labeling and advertising related to new villas that could potentially lead to jeonse fraud, together with the Real Estate Advertising Market Surveillance Center.
Based on this, they prioritized investigating ads suspected of misleading consumers and identified 10 sales agencies and 29 related individuals who posted about 4,900 illegal ads, referring them to the police this month. The monitoring results were also reported to the relevant local governments, which are currently taking administrative actions under the Licensed Real Estate Agents Act. Sales agencies not referred for investigation this time will be sequentially reported for investigation.
Sales agencies are not licensed real estate agents under the Licensed Real Estate Agents Act and therefore cannot advertise rental contracts besides sales. However, among the total 8,649 ads posted online by these 10 sales agencies, illegal suspicious ads simultaneously indicating 'sales' and 'jeonse' accounted for 4,931 cases, or 57% of the total.
Won Hee-ryong, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, stated, "Housing is equivalent to the entire property for young people and low-income households. To prevent unjust harm caused by bait listings, we will concentrate all efforts on cracking down on bait fake listings together with the National Police Agency during the special crackdown period, and will continue to monitor illegal online brokerage property labeling and advertising activities thereafter."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
