Signed 'Seongdong-style Win-Win Agreement' with 87 landlords participating in Seongdong-style Residential Environment Improvement Project, promising 5-year rent freeze and tenant residence guarantee... Recognition for contributors to rooftop room cooling kit support and senior fall prevention home repair projects, including Korea Habitat, honored for contributions to Seongdong-style Residential Environment Improvement Project
Seongdong-gu, Seoul (Mayor Jeong Wono) held a win-win agreement ceremony and a commendation ceremony for meritorious persons for the 2024 Seongdong-type Housing Environment Improvement Project on October 7, in celebration of World Habitat Day.
‘World Habitat Day’ is an international commemorative day designated by the United Nations (UN) to guarantee housing rights, observed on the first Monday of October. Seongdong-gu, after conducting the nation’s first full survey of semi-basement homes in 2022, launched the Seongdong-type Housing Environment Improvement Project. Since last year, the district has held commemorative events for ‘World Habitat Day,’ including awarding commendations to residents and organizations who contributed to the housing environment improvement project.
In particular, this year’s commemorative event featured the signing of a win-win agreement with landlords participating in the Seongdong-type Housing Environment Improvement Project, marking a nationwide first. A total of 87 landlord households, excluding owner-occupied and free rental properties, participated in the win-win agreement.
The main points of the win-win agreement include guaranteeing a 5-year residence period for current tenants and freezing rent during that period.
To prevent unfavorable treatment of tenants after the completion of the housing environment improvement project, the district enacted the ‘Seongdong-gu Ordinance on the Improvement and Support of Risky Residences’ in November 2023, the first of its kind nationwide, which explicitly includes provisions related to the win-win agreement.
This year’s commendation recipients include 14 residents from the Welfare and Safety Council who led on-site visits to 460 rooftop rooms to identify households eligible for the rooftop room cooling package support project; 20 individuals including care workers, life support workers, and social workers who contributed to identifying participants for senior fall prevention home repairs; and Korea Habitat, the partner institution for the Seongdong-type Housing Environment Improvement Project from 2023 to 2024.
Since 2023, the district has been promoting the housing environment improvement project targeting homes with health and safety risks such as semi-basements and rooftops, currently supporting about 600 households.
Choi Youngbun (65), a landlord participating in the 2024 Seongdong-type Housing Environment Improvement Project, expressed her thoughts at the win-win agreement ceremony, saying, “Thank you for carefully attending to areas that could not be repaired before, such as removing thresholds so that the elderly residents can live safely. I hope the elderly can continue to live comfortably for a long time.”
Jeong Wono, Mayor of Seongdong-gu, said, “Thanks to the sincere interest and devoted participation of residents who know our neighborhood best, the housing standards in Seongdong-gu are improving,” and added, “We will continue to maintain interest and efforts to make Seongdong a better place to live for both tenants and landlords.”
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