Government cracks down on noisy apartment buildings

Industry

Published: 11 Dec. 2023, 17:54

Government cracks down on noisy apartment buildings

MInister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong announces policies to tackle inter-floor noise in Korea on Monday. [YONHAP]

The Korean government won't authorize construction of houses that will not meet inter-floor noise standards, taking a hard-line approach to a chronic issue that has been plaguing the country's apartment-centered residential environment.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced Monday that it won't issue approval to houses that don't meet the in-between floor noise standard of 49 decibels or below, which is equivalent to the noise of a “quiet office.”

The policy is a step up from the previous policy that the government announced in August. At that time, the Land Ministry said it would monitor noise levels after apartment construction had finished. But this measure had a loophole: Once the apartments were complete, there was no way to coerce builders to amend their construction, even if noise levels didn't meet the stated standards.

"[The latest measure] will disallow supply of houses that fail to satisfy the inter-floor noise standards,” Land Minister Won Hee-ryong said Monday in a release.

“Paradigm on policies regarding in-between floor noise will focus on people from now on.”

If the houses don't meet the noise level standards, approvals will not be given to finish the construction, prohibiting residents to move in.

Financial cost derived from the delay in authorization should be shouldered by the builders.

The government will also expand the portion of inspected houses from the current 2 percent to 5 percent in order to enhance the credibility of inspections.

Concerning already-built houses, the Land Ministry will fortify the financial support given to builders in case supplementary constructions are required. Until now, the government has lent out up to 3 million won ($2,275) for supplementary floor construction, but it plans to fully cover the cost of houses for low-income households with children as early as 2025.

Houses constructed by the state-run Land and Housing Corporation (LH) will have to abide by the standard of 37 decibels or below for inter-floor noise. The minimum thickness of floor slabs has also increased from 21 centimeters to 25 centimeters.

Inter-floor noise has been a chronic issues in Korea, as a large portion of the country's population lives in multifamily apartment buildings. Conflicts derived from in-between floor noise have led to brutal violence between neighbors and even murder.

The number of violent crimes involving floor noise rose from 11 cases in 2016 to 110 in 2021, according to the Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice.

BY JIN EUN-SOO [jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr]