Officials involved in speculation under review for profit recovery and reemployment ban

Measures to eradicate and prevent the recently raised suspicion over real estate speculation by the members of the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) will be announced early next week. Along with the preventive measures, the government will reveal candidates for the second public redevelopment and the first urban project in accordance with the previously announced housing supply measures.

Minister of Economy and Finance and ex officio Deputy Prime Minister Hong Nam-ki discussed measures regarding the LH issue and follow-up measures for housing supply plans at a ministerial meeting to examine the real estate market at the Central Government Complex on Friday. “Measures to eradicate and prevent real estate speculation regarding the LH issue will be announced early next week before the end of March,” he said. “Much more rigorous standards and accountability will be applied to government public officials who are supposed to set an example, including government officials and employees of public institutions.”

The government is considering measures to expand the scope of public officials subject to property registration and mandate them to report in advance when making real estate transactions. Plans to recover three to five times of illegal gains obtained by public officials involved in real estate speculation utilizing undisclosed information and ban their reemployment in the real estate sector are also under review. Other measures to block real estate speculation by strengthening conditions for land compensation and farmland acquisition will be also put forward.

　

The government plans to expedite housing supply measures along with the speculation prevention plans. Candidates for the second public redevelopment in accordance with the May 6th measures announced last year and candidates for the first urban project included in the February 4th measures will also be revealed next week. “Apart from the LH issue, we will advance housing supply with smooth follow-up measures for supply plans,” Minister Hong said, reconfirm‎ing the determination to push ahead with the existing supply plans based on the judgment that instability in the real estate market will increase if the existing real estate policies are affected by the LH issue.

“Real estate price increases are continuing to slow down,” he said. “Positive signs are observed as more houses for sale are available in the market and the prices of deposit-based leases are on the decline in desired locations, such as Gangnam.”


Ae-Jin Ju jaj@donga.com