Korea Joongang Daily
Korea JoongAng Daily

As moving season nears, rental listings drop despite — or because of — housing stability policies

With the spring moving season approaching, Seoul’s rental market for monthly and lump-sum deposit leases is freezing over at a rapid pace, a trend some experts attribute to limits on the ownership of multiple homes.

2026-02-20

Lease and rental shortage: Housing market or house of cards? (KOR)

The housing market is telling a harsh story: shortages of jeonse and monthly rentals persist, rents keep climbing, and the strain on ordinary households is deepening.

2026-02-20

Lease and rental shortage: Housing market or house of cards?

The housing market is telling a harsh story: shortages of jeonse and monthly rentals persist, rents keep climbing, and the strain on ordinary households is deepening.

2026-02-20

Lump-sum deposit listings decrease, monthly rent climbs as housing crisis continues

Following tighter loan rules introduced last year and the expansion of land transaction permit zones that require local government approval for certain property sales, housing lump-sum deposit listings in Seoul have rapidly declined.

2026-01-31

Long-term housing deposits in Seoul jump due to new regulations and supply issues, rents also up

Jeonse (long-term housing rental deposit) prices in Seoul are climbing to record highs amid a worsening imbalance in the rental market, which experts say has been exacerbated by government regulations and dwindling housing supply.

2025-11-27

Young man survives year living in car after jeonse scam, selected for public housing

A man in his 20s who had been living in his car with a cat for over a year after falling victim to a jeonse (lump sum) housing deposit scam has been selected for a public rental housing program — a story that has drawn attention online.

2025-11-02

Do as I say, not as I buy: Why Korea’s real estate policymakers are in hot water

Senior policymakers shaping Korea’s real estate policies have come under intense criticism for using the very property acquisition tactics their regulations were meant to curb.

2025-11-02

Gov't announces real estate clampdown, regulates all of Seoul

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced a sweeping real estate clampdown, expanding regulation zones across all districts of Seoul and 12 areas in Gyeonggi while also designating them as land transaction permit zones.

2025-10-15

Soaring real estate prices tie BOK's hands on rate

Korea’s central bank warned that household lending could spike sharply through the end of the third quarter, as real estate prices accelerate in Seoul and its suburbs — a red flag that may delay any move to cut interest rates.

2025-07-01

Korean borrowers caught off guard as banks freeze mobile loan services

A sudden clampdown on online lending has left borrowers scrambling, as Korea's major banks freeze mobile loan services in a bid to comply with the government’s tougher debt control measures.

2025-06-30