While Discussing Safety, "Could You Ease Regulations on Multiple-Home Owners?" Industry Requests Made Before Minister [Real Estate AtoZ]

Kim Yoonduk Holds Closed-Door Meeting with Top 10 Construction CEOs
Consensus on "Safety as the Top Priority,"
But Cost and Timeline Issues Remain Unresolved
Industry Suggests Easing Regulations on Multiple-Home Owners Ahead of Supply Measu

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yoonduk held a closed-door meeting with CEOs from the construction industry to directly hear about on-site safety issues and industry challenges. The meeting, originally scheduled for 60 minutes, was extended to 90 minutes, resulting in discussions that went beyond a simple introductory meeting. Both the minister and industry leaders emphasized that safety is the top priority, but specific support measures were left for future discussions. With the upcoming announcement of new supply measures, the discussion even touched on the need to ease regulations on multiple-home owners in regional areas, drawing significant attention from the industry.

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Yoon-duk Kim (center) leaving the meeting room. Photo by Jung-yoon Lee.

On September 1, Minister Kim held a closed-door meeting at the National Land Development Exhibition Hall in Jeong-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul, inviting Han Seunggu, Chairman of the Construction Association of Korea, and CEOs from the top 10 construction companies based on construction capability evaluations. CEOs from major firms such as Samsung C&T, Hyundai Engineering & Construction, Daewoo Engineering & Construction, DL E&C, GS Engineering & Construction, Hyundai Engineering, POSCO E&C, Lotte Engineering & Construction, SK Ecoplant, and HDC Hyundai Development Company were present. Key officials from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, including Kim Heonjeong, Director of Housing Policy, and Nam Youngwoo, Director General of Construction Policy, also attended. Although he did not enter the meeting room, Kim Gyucheol, Director General for Housing and Land at the ministry, carefully monitored the discussions on site.

Immediately after the meeting, Chairman Han Seunggu stated, "The industry explained that ensuring safety inevitably leads to increased construction costs and longer construction periods, and requested support from both the government and the National Assembly." He added, "The industry also emphasized the need for continued discussions on how to address additional staffing and cost issues required for strengthened safety management, as well as how to alleviate pressure to shorten construction periods."

It was also confirmed that one of the suggestions raised during the meeting was to "ease regulations on multiple-home owners." This defied expectations that, as the first meeting between the minister and the industry, it would proceed smoothly without raising any particular concerns. The regional housing market is facing a serious downturn in transactions and prolonged unsold inventory. In particular, there have been ongoing concerns that regulations on multiple-home owners are blocking investment demand in regional areas, further freezing the market.

This is likely to become a major issue in future policy discussions, as it aligns with the government's stance on expanding housing supply. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport is expected to announce new supply measures soon. Minister Kim recently stated at a meeting of the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, "At the latest, we will announce real estate supply measures by early September."

The National Land Development Exhibition Hall where a meeting between Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Kim Yoonduk and CEOs of the top 10 construction companies was held. Photo by Oh Yugyo.

However, since the main focus of this meeting was to form a consensus on "making safety the top priority," no solutions were presented regarding the regulations on multiple-home owners. After the meeting, Minister Kim simply thanked the press and left without further comment. The CEOs also exited the meeting room without making any statements.

This meeting marked the minister's first official exchange with the private sector since taking office. An industry representative commented, "The minister signaled a hands-on approach to safety issues, going beyond a formal introduction," adding, "The most significant outcome was the minister's genuine effort to communicate." On August 29, Minister Kim also held a safety meeting at the Sejong Government Complex with public institutions such as Korea Expressway Corporation, Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH), and the Korea Infrastructure Safety and Technology Corporation.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.