"County and District Vacant House Maintenance Plan Public Inspection Must Include Former Governor's Opinion"

Gyeonggi Province has distributed a revised version of the "Vacant House Maintenance Guidelines" to cities and counties, which includes provisions for mayors and county heads to seek the governor's opinion before establishing a vacant house maintenance plan and conducting public inspection by residents.

The main revisions require mayors and county heads to obtain the governor's opinion after establishing the vacant house maintenance plan and before conducting public inspection by residents, and to encourage vacant house owners to disclose information during vacant house surveys.

Gyeonggi Province explained that seeking the governor's opinion helps mayors and county heads create more detailed plans when establishing vacant house maintenance plans, and residents can also access plans that reflect the governor's opinions.

Gyeonggi Provincial Government

Encouraging vacant house owners to disclose information can serve as a method to promote the sale or lease of vacant houses.

Kim Tae-su, Director of the Urban Regeneration Division of Gyeonggi Province, stated, "With this guideline revision, we will support mayors and county heads in establishing substantial vacant house maintenance plans, and through this, efficiently promote the 2025 Gyeonggi Province vacant house maintenance project to actively renovate neglected vacant houses in urban areas."

Meanwhile, Gyeonggi Province was selected in July last year for the vacant house maintenance subsidy project announced by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, securing 30 million KRW in national funds. Since 2021, the vacant house maintenance support project directly promoted by Gyeonggi Province has supported the maintenance of a total of 294 vacant houses over the past four years. This year, 31 vacant houses will be renovated into spaces for local residents, such as village rest areas and public parking lots.

Gyeonggi Province is conducting a pilot project for vacant house maintenance in the Gyeonggi Province style, which involves directly purchasing vacant houses, demolishing them, and constructing public facilities needed by local residents in two locations: Dongducheon and Pyeongtaek. On December 2 last year, the Dongducheon Child Care Center opened.