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Seoul mayor rips real estate measures, says he wasn't consulted on changes

Published: 20 Oct. 2025, 16:05

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon answers questions from lawmakers during a parliamentary audit of the Seoul Metropolitan Government by the National Assembly’s Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee at Seoul City Hall in central Seoul on Oct. 20. [YONHAP]

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon on Monday criticized the Lee Jae Myung administration's Oct. 15 real estate measures as “excessive” and claimed the city received no prior consultation regarding the expansion of land transaction permit zones.

Oh made the remarks during a parliamentary audit of the Seoul Metropolitan Government by the National Assembly’s Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee at Seoul City Hall in central Seoul.

During the session, Rep. Kim Hee-jung of the People Power Party asked whether the central government had held any working-level discussions with Seoul on the expansion of the land transaction permit system.

The government on Wednesday designated all of Seoul and 12 areas in Gyeonggi as regulated zones and land transaction permit areas, imposing stricter rules on property sales and requiring prior government approval for land transactions in designated areas.

Oh said the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport contacted the city only shortly before the announcement.

“The ministry sent a written request for feedback on the speculative and adjusted zones two days before the announcement,” he said. “But regarding the land transaction permit zones, they reached out just before the announcement. The city sent a letter stating it was cautious about the measures but that none of its opinions were reflected.

“We wanted to offer input if there had been sufficient discussion in advance.”

Oh argued the central government effectively bypassed the city.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon delivers a briefing during a parliamentary audit of the Seoul Metropolitan Government by the National Assembly’s Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee at Seoul City Hall in central Seoul on Oct. 20. [NEWS1]

“It was, in essence, a one-sided notification,” he said.

The Land Ministry also attended the audit session. Kim Gyu-chul, director-general for housing and land at the ministry, acknowledged that the Seoul city government did not agree with designating the entire city as a land transaction permit zone.

“The Oct. 15 measures aim to preemptively stabilize the market and block speculative spillover effects seen during the Moon Jae-in administration,” Kim said. “We regret the ongoing rise in real estate prices.”

Oh warned that continued application of such policies could hurt the housing market.

“This announcement will likely make it more difficult to buy, sell and secure lease properties,” he said.

He also expressed concern over the government’s property tax policy.

“Raising the holding tax may lead to an unintended increase in housing prices,” he said. “The policy must be approached with caution.”
Oh also argued that the new measures could slow redevelopment projects in Seoul.

“The new regulations contain elements that could hinder the implementation of long-awaited redevelopment zones,” he said. “They could trigger a credit crunch and significantly delay project timelines.”

Lawmakers also raised concerns about the so-called Han River Bus. The city began operating the bus service between Magok in western Seoul and Jamsil in southern Seoul on Sept. 18, but suspended passenger boarding on Sept. 29 and switched to non-passenger trial runs.

Red. Cheon Jun-ho of the Democratic Party (DP) asked whether the city approved regular operations without addressing safety concerns identified during the pilot phase.

Oh responded, “We received reports that there were no safety issues,” adding, “This is not a suspension. We are operating the service without passengers.”

Another DP lawmaker, Lee Geon-tae, questioned the Seoul Housing & Urban Development Corporation (SH) over an 87.6 billion won ($61.7 million) loan to the Hangang Bus project without collateral. He said the move may have violated the Local Public Enterprises Act and constituted breach of duty.

A Hangang Bus pulls into Magok Pier in Gangseo District, western Seoul on Sept. 29. [YONHAP]

Oh said SH had set up safeguards despite the lack of collateral.

“We included structural measures in the investor agreement to prevent Ecruz, the second-largest shareholder, from taking profits without bearing financial responsibility,” he said.

The Hangang Bus project is a joint venture established with a 51-to-49 share split between SH and Ecruz. He defended the project’s financial viability.

“We gained confidence that this is not a deficit project,” Oh said. “The service is on track to turn a profit much faster than initially expected.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY MOON HEE-CHUL [[email protected]]