Oh Se-hoon Criticizes Lee Administration's Pressure on Multiple-Home Owners: "Against Market Order... We Must Increase Supply" (Updated)

"Policies Must Incentivize Supply and Consider Market Order"
"They Stubbornly Added 2,000 More Units in Yongsan"
"There Is No Feasible Way to Secure Land for a School"

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon directly criticized President Lee Jae-myung and the central government, saying that the regulations on multiple-home owners being rolled out day after day are not sustainable, and insisting that "we must enable the supply of a large number of homes."

Yonhap News Agency

On the 10th, Mayor Oh held a New Year press conference at Seoul City Hall and, regarding the government’s repeated use of regulations on multiple-home owners as a tool for stabilizing housing prices, said this "runs counter to the essence of the market."

He argued, "The policies put forward by the government have an effect for about two to three months. It is physically possible, in one way or another, to pressure multiple-home owners by wielding legislative power, but is that sustainable?" He went on to point out, "This runs counter to the essence of the market."

Mayor Oh stated, "My long-held view is that simple multiple-home owners and rental business operators must be distinguished," and argued, "Real estate is a type of good. Supply must be sufficient, but if you suppress and shrink supply, it is not sustainable in the long run."

He added, "Developers who build housing are important, but there are clearly companies that seek profit by supplying those homes," and said, "A desirable long-term policy is to attract profit and motivation so that many homes can be supplied, and to thereby establish market order."

Regarding the central government’s plan to supply 10,000 housing units in the Yongsan International Business District, he said, "The Seoul Metropolitan Government sought a compromise point with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport at 8,000 units and decided to proceed with the procedures on that basis, but for some reason they stubbornly added 2,000 more units," expressing concern that this would push the project timeline back by two years.

Mayor Oh warned, "If this happens, project goals such as attracting the Asian headquarters of global companies that we originally discussed with the central government, or attracting Asian regional corporations of big tech companies, will move further out of reach," and stressed, "Speed is crucial if we are to revive the economy."

Mayor Oh also predicted that securing a site for an elementary school within the Yongsan International Business District will face difficulties. He pointed out, "The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has not been able to find a suitable site for building an additional school. It seems they intend to look for a site nearby if they cannot find land for a school within the Yongsan International Business District, but no location has any real feasibility."