Extreme Choices as Homes Go to Auction
Household Loans from 5 Major Banks Increase by 4.4 Trillion Won in One Month
On the 1st, a fire broke out in an apartment in Ulsan, resulting in the deaths of four family members. The front door had a tape with the phrase "Last Warning" written on it.
At around 7 p.m. on the 1st, the Ulsan Police Station received a report from a middle school in Ulsan stating that a student was not attending school. Police dispatched to the apartment where the student lived, but the student's father, Mr. A (in his 40s), refused to open the door and repeatedly said that his children were not inside the house.
With the cooperation of the fire rescue team, the door was opened, revealing that Mr. A's wife and two children, a middle school student and a high school student, were found dead. Mr. A was also found in cardiac arrest and was taken to the hospital but was pronounced dead. Police believe that Mr. A, having faced financial difficulties, likely killed his family and then took his own life.
The "Last Warning" sign on the front door appears to have been placed by the person who won the auction for Mr. A's house, and a similar note was attached above it.
According to MBC's investigation, Mr. A took out a mortgage loan in 2013 but failed to repay it, leading to the house being auctioned off. Even after the house was sold in September, Mr. A refused to vacate, prompting the new owner to demand eviction.
The police are investigating the exact circumstances of the incident and the causes of death through witness statements and autopsies.
The scale of household loans from the five major domestic banks has been increasing for seven consecutive months. As of the end of November, the outstanding household loans at the five major banks amounted to 690.3856 trillion won, an increase of more than 4.3737 trillion won from the previous month, marking the largest increase this year. Mortgage loans surged by nearly 5 trillion won.
The outstanding household loans exceeding 690 trillion won is the first time in 11 months since December last year. The increase of more than 4 trillion won in household loans in one month is the first since September 2021.
The rapid increase in mortgage loan balances has driven the surge in household loans. Last month, the mortgage loan balance was 526.2223 trillion won, increasing by 4.9958 trillion won in just one month. The monthly increase in mortgage loans is growing.
Financial authorities stated regarding household loans in the banking sector that "a gradual slowdown is continuing" and that "(banking sector) mortgage loans are mainly increasing due to policy fund loans for actual demand," cautioning against excessive concerns.
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