A public rental housing located in Gyeonggi Province. (Yonhap)
SEJONG, Jan. 8 (Korea Bizwire) – The South Korean government has revised its regulations to prevent individuals who own high-value cars, such as those from Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz, from residing in public rental housing.
This move aims to curb the trend of so-called ‘fake low-income’ individuals occupying housing meant for those in genuine need.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the revised ‘Public Housing Business Processing Guidelines’ came into effect on January 5.
Previously, public housing tenants could renew their contracts even if they exceeded income and asset criteria after moving in, as part of a policy to support asset formation for tenants.
However, with the new regulations, contract renewal for those who exceed income and asset limits is now restricted to only once.
The revised guidelines exclude the value of cars from the possible asset limit that can be exceeded. This change addresses instances where tenants purchased expensive imported cars after moving in and continued to live in rental housing.
The selection criteria for public housing tenants (as of 2023) include being a household without a home, having total assets less than KRW 255 million (“permanent” public rental housing) or KRW 361 million (“national” public rental housing), and owning a car valued at or below KRW 36.83 million.
Under the new rules, tenants wishing to renew their contracts can surpass the income and asset criteria, but the value of their car must not exceed the stipulated amount.
During last year’s National Assembly audit, issues were raised about public housing tenants owning BMWs valued at KRW 97.94 million (model iX xDrive 50), as well as other imported vehicles from carmakers such as Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari, and Maserati.
The revised regulations will apply to public housing for which tenant recruitment notices are posted after April 5. This initiative reflects the government’s commitment to ensuring fair access to public housing and preventing exploitation of the system.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
