Apartments seen from Namsan in Seoul (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Dec. 4 (Korea Bizwire) — Tax authorities said Thursday they will investigate more than 2,000 cases involving the transfer of high-value properties in upscale areas of Seoul over suspected tax evasion, amid tighter government regulations on real estate lending.
A total of 2,077 property-transfer cases in the districts of Gangnam, Mapo, Yongsan and Seongsu in Seoul will be audited, the National Tax Service (NTS) said. The cases involve real estate gifts for which the statutory gift tax filing deadline passed between January and July of this year.
“Among wealthy individuals, there has been a sharp rise in gifting high-value homes instead of selling them as a way to avoid regulations and bypass lending restrictions,” the NTS said.
The agency also said demand for owning a single, high-value home has increased as stricter lending rules make it harder to secure mortgages.
Investigators will examine schemes used to evade taxes during the acquisition and transfer of apartments, including cases where children take out nominal loans to purchase homes while secretly receiving cash from their parents.
Apartment prices in Seoul have climbed sharply in recent months, especially in the four districts along the Han River. The surge has fueled speculative buying and driven prices higher, posing a policy challenge for the new administration of President Lee Jae Myung.
(Yonhap)
