President Lee Responds to Controversy Over "No Real Estate Policy" Remarks
"Fundamental Solution Lies in Achieving Balanced Regional Development"
The Office of the President addressed the controversy surrounding President Lee Jaemyung's remarks that there is "no real estate policy," clarifying that "measures to stabilize prices are already in place" and emphasizing that the issue must be fundamentally resolved through long-term balanced national development. The so-called '10·15 Real Estate Measures' announced on October 15 were described as an emergency measure to curb the concentration in the Seoul metropolitan area, and the administration reiterated that the fundamental solution lies in balanced regional development and expanding supply.
Ha Junkyung, Chief Presidential Secretary for Economic Growth, responded to a question about the intent behind President Lee's remarks at a town hall meeting in Chungnam on December 5, during a press briefing on the "Six-Month Performance of the Administration" held at the presidential office in Yongsan on December 7. He said, "Frankly, please understand that the president meant real estate is an extremely challenging sector," and added, "He was emphasizing that it is not a problem that can be easily solved with one-off policies." This response came after the president's comment at the Chungnam town hall, "To be honest, there is no policy for real estate," drew criticism from the opposition party as "the height of irresponsibility," and even some within the ruling party expressed concerns that it could send the wrong signal to the market.
Chief Secretary Ha explained, "When we first took office and looked at the market, we saw that supply, such as new construction starts, had decreased, but demand had surged due to deregulation and concentrated policy financing, while the concentration of population and jobs in the Seoul metropolitan area was also severe." He continued, "With these structural factors combined, it was such a difficult issue that we wondered how to even formulate a policy." He added, "Ultimately, the president's point is that the real estate problems in the metropolitan area can only be fundamentally resolved through balanced regional development."
Regarding the '10·15 Real Estate Measures' announced on October 15, he described them as "measures intended to apply a bit of a brake, since the concentration in certain areas had become too pronounced." Under the 10·15 measures, the government designated all of Seoul and 12 areas in Gyeonggi Province as land transaction permit zones and tightened loan conditions, such as lowering the loan-to-value (LTV) ratio for speculative zones to 40 percent.
Chief Secretary Ha stated, "At the same time, we are also working to significantly expand housing supply," adding, "We are holding one or two review meetings each week to resolve obstacles such as conflicts of interest or delays in permits and approvals related to supply." He also said, "We are constantly monitoring market conditions to ensure that demand does not become excessively concentrated again, and we are prepared to introduce additional measures if necessary." He continued, "More fundamentally, we are pursuing policies that clearly favor the provinces, aiming to reduce the concentration in the metropolitan area itself."
Kang Hoonshik, Chief Presidential Secretary, also stated at the same event, "The Office of the President and the government have already prepared all necessary policy measures to stabilize real estate prices," and reiterated, "What the president meant at the town hall meeting was not that there are no short-term measures, but that real estate issues must be viewed from the perspective of balanced national development over the long term."
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