Single-person households reach 10 million in Korea

The number of single-person households nationwide exceeded 10 million for the first time in March 2024. According to the Ministry of Public Administration and Security's resident registration data, single-person households accounted for the highest proportion of all household types at 41.8%. This change is mainly due to a rapid shift in demography as Korea moves away from the traditional family model of parents and children due to low birth rates and an aging population. With single-person households becoming more common, the number of people per household was only 2.14.

Based on resident registration data, single-person households include weekend couples and those living in dormitories, reflecting the reality of single-person households more broadly than Statistics Korea's single-person household statistics. Despite the rapid increase in single-person households, the Korean social security system cannot keep up with the changes.

According to Statistics Korea, the average annual income of a single-person household is 30.1 million won, merely 44.5% of all households. 73% of basic living security beneficiaries are single-person households. With low income and limited assets, they dedicate a high proportion of income to monthly rent. As their housing situation is unstable, they give up on marriage and childbirth. Despite being economically unstable, however, they are excluded from traditional population and welfare policies designed primarily for couples who are married with children. Under the current system, larger families receive more benefits when applying for housing subscriptions, rental housing, and various cash allowances. Though such policies were introduced to address low birth rates, they ended up excluding poor single-person households from the social safety net. As these individuals postpone marriage and birth, the issue of low birth rates is continually repeated.

Approximately 13 million baby boomers are nearing senior age. Going forward, the growth of single-person households will be driven by the elderly. They are susceptible to financial difficulties in their later years after retirement and are even at risk of lonely death if they are separated from their families due to divorce or death. Advanced countries that entered super-aging society before Korea have expanded their elderly care systems and established a support system to maintain residential stability and communities.

The ratio of single-person households has more than doubled over the last 20 years. The number is expected to increase by an average of 70,000 every year. We need to view single-person households as a universal household type and revamp social policies accordingly. As single-person households comprise different age groups, we need to come up with customized policies for youth, middle-aged, and the elderly. Without expanding the social safety net for single-person households, low birth rates and lonely deaths will never be resolved.