For 300 Young People...
Easing the Burden of Housing Costs
Gwangju City announced on the 28th that it will implement the “2025 Customized Housing Lease Deposit Interest Support Program for Youth,” which provides interest support for housing lease deposits to young people without homes, and will begin recruiting participants from March 1.
This program aims to alleviate the housing cost burden for young people and create a stable living environment by supporting interest on lease deposit loans.
The city will provide up to 2 million KRW per year in loan interest support for two years (up to four years if extended). In addition, Korea Housing Finance Corporation will guarantee 100% of the loan, and Gwangju Bank will offer housing lease deposit loans of up to 100 million KRW at an annual interest rate of 2.5%.
Especially from this year, the city has made it possible to receive interest support regardless of contract period by distinguishing between new and renewed lease contracts. Starting March 1, 150 renewed lease contract applicants (in five rounds, 30 per round) will be recruited, and from March 17, 150 new lease contract applicants will be recruited.
For renewed lease contracts, applications will be accepted online through the “Gwangju Youth Integrated Platform” in five rounds, each with a two-month application period, with the first round starting on March 1. For new lease contracts, applications will be accepted online through the “Gwangju Youth Integrated Platform” from March 17 to 26.
Eligibility is limited to youth aged 19 to 39 residing in Gwangju as of the announcement date, who do not own a home. Applicants must also meet the following income criteria: for university (graduate) students and job seekers with no income, parental annual income must be 70 million KRW or less; for employees (business owners), personal annual income must be 45 million KRW or less; and for married couples, combined annual income must be 60 million KRW or less.
However, those who own a home, receive housing benefits, live in Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) rental housing, have received Bogeumjari Jeonse Fund loans, loans for young employees of small and medium-sized enterprises, or other government (public) housing support programs, as well as those who have previously received support from the customized youth lease deposit interest support program, are not eligible to apply.
The loan limit is up to 90% of the lease deposit, with a maximum of 100 million KRW. Of the 2.5% interest rate, Gwangju City will support 2%, and the remaining 0.5% must be paid by the applicant. The loan period is two years, with the possibility of a one-time extension for up to two additional years.
Eligible housing includes rental homes and residential officetels with a lease deposit of 200 million KRW or less, either in jeonse or monthly rent format. Multi-household dwellings are excluded. The city will select recipients based on a scoring system, prioritizing those whose income is at or below 150% of the median income, to ensure support goes to youth in real need.
The results will be posted on the Gwangju Youth Integrated Platform and notified via text message. For more details, refer to the announcement on the Gwangju Youth Integrated Platform.
Kwon Yunsuk, Director of Youth Policy, said, “We hope this will provide some help to young people struggling with housing costs,” and added, “We will continue to promote various youth housing support policies to help young people establish a foundation for housing independence and settle in Gwangju.”
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