Oh Se-hoon, the mayor of Seoul, stated on the 11th that in response to the rising house prices mainly in Seongdong-gu and Mapo-gu following the reassignment of the land transaction permit zone in Gangnam Districts 3 and Yongsan, "This is a market situation that needs to be monitored with considerable tension."
On the same day, Mayor Oh attended a regular meeting in the Seoul City Council held in Jung-gu and in response to a question from Councilor Kim Dong-wook (Gangnam 5th District, People Power Party), he said, "Seongdong-gu is seeing house prices rise at a somewhat rapid rate, so we are closely watching the situation."
He continued, "At the time of the reassignment of the land transaction permit zone, we left room for several autonomous districts, including Seongdong-gu and Mapo-gu, to observe for about six months and to determine whether any actions were necessary." He added, "It is advisable not to use the land transaction permit system, but it can be employed if the market is in an emergency situation."
Mayor Oh added, "It is not yet a situation that warrants designation, but we need to take a closer look."
The Seoul city government designated all apartments in Seocho, Gangnam, Songpa districts, and Yongsan as land transaction permit zones as of March 24. The duration is six months until September 30, after which a decision will be made on extension or解除.
Mayor Oh noted that there is a need to consider responses to the recent increase in foreign purchase of domestic real estate.
He pointed out, "Statistics clearly indicate that there are many purchases from the United States and China, but there are no prominent signs of high-priced real estate speculation entering, so further study is needed." He added, "In implementing economic policies, we must prioritize the people."
He stated, "If the trend of real estate prices shows an abnormal spike and the foreign acquisition of real estate is analyzed to have some impact, it is clear that appropriate measures should be taken."
Mayor Oh mentioned, "Although legislative solutions are being sought at the national level, it will take considerable time, so we are studying what can be done at the Seoul city level." He suggested, "One example could be implementing the land transaction permit system targeting foreigners."
Additionally, he mentioned, "There is a need to benchmark the cases of Australia and Canada, which have implemented systems that significantly restrict foreign real estate acquisition." He cautioned, "However, it may become a diplomatic issue, so it should be introduced cautiously and based on reciprocity."