Former President Moon Says "Real Estate Is My Most Painful Regret... Conservative Media Almost Chanted 'Fail, Fail' Like a Ritual"

Pyeongsan Bookstore TV Conversation

"Cannot Help but Acknowledge the Failure of Real Estate Policy"... "No Room for Excuses"

Also Points Out that "Conservative Media Coverage Undermined Policy Effectiveness"

"The News of the Stock Index Breaking Through 5000 Felt Truly Good"

Directly Challenges the Conventional Belief that "Conservatives Are Good at the Economy While Progressives Are Not"

Former President Moon Jaein said in relation to the Moon Jaein administration's real estate policy, "Real estate is my most painful finger," adding, "At least when it comes to real estate policy, I cannot help but admit that it was a failure." However, he also expressed deep regret, saying that some conservative media outlets had branded the government's measures as "policies that were bound to fail the very next day they were announced," thereby heightening market anxiety, and that "at times, it almost felt like they were performing some kind of ritual, chanting 'fail, fail'."

Former President Moon Jaein delivers a commemorative address at Camp Greaves in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on the 19th during the ceremony marking the 7th anniversary of the September 19 Pyongyang Joint Declaration inter-Korean military agreement and the opening of the 2025 Korean Peninsula Peace Week. 2025.9.19 Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers

Former President Moon presented this view in Season 2 of the YouTube talk show "Pyeongsan Bookstore TV," released on the 13th, in a conversation with former Blue House protocol secretary Tak Hyunmin over issues such as the economy, real estate, and the minimum wage debate. Using economic books recommended by Moon as a medium, the conversation broadened into an assessment of economic performance under democratic administrations and the problem of media framing in news coverage.

Regarding the real estate issue first, former President Moon said, "In international comparison, Korea is not among the countries where prices rose the most," but he nonetheless acknowledged responsibility, saying, "That does not exempt us from accountability." He analyzed that after the 2008 financial crisis, quantitative easing by various countries and the massive liquidity supplied during the COVID-19 phase meant that "liquidity was excessively abundant around the world," and as that money flowed into real estate, "real estate prices rose sharply in every country." He added, however, that "for those in charge of government policy, it is their job to overcome even such circumstances and stabilize real estate prices," and concluded, "There is no room for excuses for having failed to do so."

Former President Moon also lamented that conservative media coverage at the time undermined the effectiveness of the policies. "Whether real estate policy succeeds or not ultimately depends on market confidence," he said. "If (the media) treated the measures as timely and appropriate, and as likely to be effective, then the public could trust the government's policy and decide, 'Now is not the time to buy; let's wait for supply to come on line'." He continued, "However, (some media outlets) framed the policies as doomed to fail as soon as they were announced, thereby stoking market anxiety." Calling this a "frame," Moon warned that similar patterns of coverage could be repeated around the real estate policies of the Lee Jaemyung administration.

When the topic of the Lee Jaemyung administration's breaking of the "KOSPI 5000" threshold came up, he said, "The news of the stock index breaking through 5000 felt truly good." He noted, "The KOSPI broke through 2000 during the Roh Moo-hyun administration, and it broke through 3000 during the Moon Jaein administration," adding, "Now that it has broken through 5000, I feel very pleased." He also remarked, "These days, stock investment seems almost like an act of patriotism," referring to the shift in social perceptions of domestic stock investment, and revealed that he still holds the materials, parts, and equipment (so-called "Sobu-jang")-related funds he purchased while in office.

In this context, former President Moon also directly challenged the conventional belief that "conservatives are good at managing the economy while progressives are not." He said, "They keep imposing the frame that conservatives are good at the economy and security, while progressives may know about social welfare but are poor at the economy and security," and stressed, "But that is simply not true. It was under the Kim Daejung administration that per capita national income surpassed 10,000 dollars, under the Roh Moo-hyun administration that it surpassed 20,000 dollars, and under the Moon Jaein administration that it surpassed 30,000 dollars."

He went on, "In 2021, the final year of the Moon Jaein administration, it recorded around 37,500 dollars, but under the Yoon Sukyeol administration it kept falling and for three consecutive years failed to surpass that record," arguing, "If you look at various indicators, you can quickly see that the economy actually performs much better under democratic governments." He also diagnosed, "As democracy advances, democracy and the economy move forward together."

The conversation also touched on Japan's export controls against Korea. Recalling 2019, when Japan imposed export controls on key semiconductor materials, former President Moon said, "Conservative media and the opposition parties claimed, 'Problems arose because our government failed in diplomacy; we must quickly apologize to Japan and bow our heads'."

He continued, "We instead turned that moment into an opportunity to achieve independence in materials, parts, and equipment, and resolved the situation without any problems through localization and diversification of export destinations," adding, "Dependence on Japan and our trade deficit with Japan both decreased." Former President Moon also pointed out, "Those who criticized us back then have neither later admitted they were mistaken nor apologized."

The debate at the time over the minimum wage was also discussed. Former President Moon noted that there had been criticisms such as "Jobs decreased because of the minimum wage, and the minimum wage policy failed," and "The intention was good, but the increase was too steep, causing major side effects," and then presented statistics. He said, "The number of wage jobs directly related to the minimum wage increased from 315,000 in the first quarter of 2018 to 359,000 in the fourth quarter, with an annual average increase of about 290,000 in 2018," and added, "In 2019, the increase was even larger, with the total number of employed people rising by more than 300,000 year-on-year and the employment rate reaching an all-time high."

He further stated, "In 2018, the overall income growth rate for wage workers was 7.5 percent year-on-year, the largest increase since 2004," and said that distribution indicators such as the Gini coefficient, relative poverty rate, and income quintile share ratio also improved significantly. Nevertheless, he pointed out that there had been ideological opposition, grounded in neoliberal ideology, which insisted that the minimum wage would inevitably harm employment and damage the economy.

Toward the end of the conversation, former President Moon extended New Year's greetings, saying, "I wish all the people a Happy New Year and good health." He then added, "These days, the Lee Jaemyung administration is overcoming the regressions of the past Yoon Sukyeol administration and showing many hopeful developments, and I am delighted about this together with the people," and appealed, "Please join forces for the success of the Lee Jaemyung administration." Meanwhile, former President Moon said that the English edition of his memoir is scheduled to be translated and published in the United States in early March, and that he is considering a visit to the United States to coincide with the publication date.