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Lee Orders Rapid Push to Break South Korea's Housing Supply Cliff

The move signals a willingness to use tax, financing and regulatory powers to speed construction and shorten approval timelines.

Overview

  • President Lee convened a second government-wide housing meeting in four days on Friday to press ministers for practical plans to speed new housing delivery.
  • Lee told Prime Minister Han Seong-sook and relevant ministers to reexamine existing plans from the ground up and return within days with proposals to secure the maximum available supply.
  • The administration is vetting measures to cut the time from announcement to groundbreaking to less than half the current length by changing rules and running normally sequential procedures concurrently.
  • The acceleration drive follows this week’s property tax overhaul that shifts more burden to high-value and non-owner-occupied homes and will be paired with targeted financing and fiscal support.
  • The main opposition People Power Party has pushed for deregulation and revived private redevelopment and plans parliamentary action, while officials prepare site-specific tests such as Yongsan, Taereung and land near Gwacheon.