"Do Not Repeat the Failed Path of the Moon Jaein Administration"
While Seoul Rose by 16.1%, Non-Metropolitan Areas Fell by 1.7%
Ahn Cheolsoo, a member of the People Power Party, urged the government to take action regarding the sharp rise in Seoul real estate prices, saying, "How long will the Chief Policy Officer, Senior Secretary for Economic Affairs, and Secretary for Land and Infrastructure at the Presidential Office just stand by and watch?" On the 25th, Ahn posted on his social networking service (SNS) under the title "Seoul Real Estate Market Ablaze, Government Watching Without Even a Firefighter," stating, "Every day, the housing burden for ordinary people is increasing, and the cost of home ownership for young people and newlyweds is soaring."
He continued, "Seoul is burning. All types of housing prices in Seoul?sales, jeonse, and monthly rent?are on fire," adding, "Apartment sales prices have seen the largest increase in six years and nine months, jeonse prices have risen for 19 consecutive months, and monthly rents are at their highest since the 2015 survey." He went on to say, "But there is no firefighter in sight. There is no plan on when or how to put out the fire," and criticized, "Who is actually responsible for housing policy in the Lee Jaemyung administration? They said they would use every possible measure, but for days there has been no word and no plan."
In particular, Ahn pointed out, "They rushed to appoint a Vice Minister of Economy and Finance to prepare a livelihood support fund for the President's election victory, but as of today, the positions of Minister and Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, responsible for real estate, remain vacant." He further criticized, "To make matters worse, the National Planning Committee says, 'It would be better not to create new towns as a measure to control real estate prices.' This is an admission of having no interest in supply measures, and it only adds fuel to the fire in the overheated market."
He also stated, "The Moon Jaein administration devastated the housing market by recklessly launching 28 rounds of real estate measures, and now the Lee Jaemyung administration seems intent on creating housing refugees by leaving the market to burn out completely." He emphasized, "If there is no clear solution, from today, the President should stay up all night with his aides to come up with real estate measures. Meetings with kimbap and dosirak should not just be for show, but for real work." Finally, Ahn said, "In July, the overheated Seoul market could spill over into Gyeonggi Province, so there is no time left. Do not test the patience of the people," and added, "Do not repeat the failed path of the Moon Jaein administration, where all citizens suffered and were dissatisfied because of housing."
Meanwhile, according to the 'Financial Stability Report for the First Half of 2025' published by the Bank of Korea on the same day, the metropolitan area rose by 9.6%, centered on Seoul (+16.1%), from January 2023 to April 2025, but the non-metropolitan areas actually declined by -1.7%. Photo by Dongmin Seo
Meanwhile, according to the 'Financial Stability Report for the First Half of 2025' published by the Bank of Korea on the same day, the metropolitan area rose by 9.6%, centered on Seoul (+16.1%), from January 2023 to April 2025, but the non-metropolitan areas actually declined by -1.7%. The Bank of Korea explained that this was due to increased expectations for housing price rises amid the interest rate cut cycle, which led to expanded housing purchase demand, particularly in the metropolitan area. The Bank also noted that structural factors such as interregional population movement and growth disparities are estimated to be key differentiators in regional housing markets.
Recently, the Seoul housing market has been judged to react even more sensitively to changing conditions. After the partial lifting of land transaction permit zones, Seoul housing prices recorded a weekly increase of 0.1% in just five weeks, and 0.2% in seven weeks, indicating a steep rise. Accordingly, the Bank of Korea pointed out that it is necessary to pay attention to the recent renewed risks of financial imbalance related to the Seoul housing market.
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