President Lee Jae-myung has placed ending real estate speculation at the top of his national agenda, announcing in a post on X on August 30 that his government would pursue financial reform, tax reform, and a large-scale expansion of housing supply simultaneously. “The people’s sovereignty government will, by any means necessary, break the ruinous cycle of real estate speculation,” Lee wrote, adding that the state would “mobilize all national capacity not only for financial and tax reform but also for expanding housing supply volumes and accelerating delivery.” On tax policy specifically, he said “unfair and unreasonable tax provisions that have been shown to encourage speculation must be corrected, if only for the sake of tax justice,” framing the goal as avoiding “another lost 30 years” for the next generation.
On supply, Lee pointed to a sharp fall in permitting and groundbreaking activity across Seoul and the wider metropolitan area over the past three years, and said he would delegate approval authority for developments of 500 units or fewer to district mayors to speed up project starts, with the prime minister reviewing progress daily. On financing, he pushed back against criticism that expanding lending contradicts efforts to cool speculation, describing higher loan limits for young people and genuine end-users as targeted “surgical support” rather than broad deregulation.
Lee also struck a cautionary note for investors, citing a projection that the Bank of Korea’s policy rate could reach 3.5% in the first quarter of next year, alongside rising loan delinquency and foreclosure figures. As a safeguard against a sharp price decline, the government plans to set up a system to preemptively purchase homes below a certain price threshold for public use. The announcement follows an earlier round of housing measures — easing the tax burden on non-resident owners while cracking down on high-value “company mansion” holdings — and signals that supply and financing reform, not just tax adjustments, are now part of the same policy push.
