Seoul 66 Cases · Gyeonggi 27 Cases · Incheon 15 Cases
53 Cases Referred for Investigation... Second Special Inspection Also Conducted
#. Broker A and homeowner B conspired to lure tenants and receive high jeonse deposits, then transfer ownership to the nominal landlord C. This was to evade debt and embezzle the deposit. Meanwhile, tenant D was introduced to the house by A through a real estate app in November 2020. The contract was drafted by certified realtor E under A's direction. Although E claimed to have only drafted the contract, two more similar cases were confirmed, leading the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to request a police investigation into E and A for lending their names and brokerage office names. This case was uncovered in Michuhol-gu, Incheon.
On the 30th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced that from February 27 to May 19, a special inspection of 242 certified realtors suspected of involvement in jeonse fraud in the Seoul metropolitan area revealed 108 violations by 99 individuals (41%). By region, there were 66 cases in Seoul, 27 in Gyeonggi, and 15 in Incheon.
This inspection targeted certified realtors who brokered two or more lease contracts for properties owned by malicious landlords among the 8,242 jeonse deposit return guarantee incidents reported by the Housing and Urban Guarantee Corporation (HUG). About 150 officials from the Ministry, local governments, and the Korea Association of Realtors focused on investigating violations of the Certified Realtors Act during the brokerage process of lease contracts.
The Ministry stated that out of the 108 violations, 53 were referred to the police for investigation according to relevant laws. Administrative actions are underway for the remaining 55 cases, including one license cancellation, 28 business suspensions, and 26 fines.
Major violations included sellers and certified realtors conspiring to sign lease contracts before the buyer's ownership registration after a sales contract, with the intent to embezzle deposits. There were also cases where unqualified individuals such as brokerage assistants or intermediaries conducted brokerage activities and paid certified realtors a certain amount as compensation for drafting contracts.
Minister Won Hee-ryong of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said, "We are expanding the scope of suspicious jeonse fraud transaction inspections and extending the inspection area from the metropolitan area to nationwide with the second special inspection underway. We plan to take measures against certified realtors involved in illegal activities according to relevant laws."
The second special inspection, which began on the 22nd of this month, will continue until the end of July. It targets over 3,700 certified realtors who have brokered transactions involving properties owned by malicious landlords with even one HUG guarantee incident or abnormal transactions (2,091 cases) selected by the Real Estate Consumer Protection Planning Group.
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