Geochang County Achieves Nation's First Successful Transaction Through 'Vacant House Bank'

A New Turning Point for Nationwide Vacant House Transactions
Through the Rural Vacant House Bank Revitalization Support Project

Geochang County in South Gyeongsang Province announced on September 4 that it has successfully completed a vacant house transaction through the "Rural Vacant House Bank Revitalization Support Project," marking the first such achievement in the nation.

This success was made possible through close cooperation between Geochang County and local licensed real estate agents, and it is expected to serve as a new turning point for revitalizing vacant house transactions nationwide in the future.

The "Rural Vacant House Bank Revitalization Support Project" operates by registering information on vacant houses secured by the local government on private real estate platforms (such as Naver Real Estate, Danggeun Market, Disco, and the Geochang County website) and on return-to-farming and rural migration support platforms (such as Greendaero), enabling actual transactions to take place with the involvement of licensed real estate agents.

A panoramic view of Geochang County Office.

The vacant house that was successfully sold this time is a detached house located in Geochang-eup. It had been left unattended for a long period, but through the Vacant House Bank, information about the property was provided to potential buyers, and with the active brokerage efforts of Geochang County and licensed real estate agents, the sale was successfully completed.

In May, Geochang County designated five local real estate agencies as partner brokers through an open recruitment process. In June, the county sent text messages to owners of vacant houses within the area to inform them about the transaction consent process, thereby implementing a systematic preparation procedure.

County Governor Koo Inmo stated, "This first-ever transaction nationwide demonstrates that Geochang County is taking the lead in addressing the issue of vacant houses in rural areas," adding, "We will continue to expand the project so that more vacant houses can be connected with genuine buyers, thereby contributing to the revitalization of the local community."

Meanwhile, the county emphasized that the key to this project is the active consent and interest of vacant house owners in transactions, and announced plans to explore various additional measures to address the issue of vacant houses in rural areas beyond the Vacant House Bank.