President Lee vows to keep pledge to end “real estate speculation republic”
Version 2: Further coverage added operational detail to the same statement: the president said he receives weekly housing-permit reports from the prime minister, permits are up about 50 percent year-on-year, and state housing supplier LH was told to commit to buying unsold units, while Newsis reported he posted 11 times on social media that day; Kukmin Ilbo also carried the 86-week price-rise figure previously reported by Dong-A Ilbo.
In short
President Lee Jae-myung said on Oct. 5 in a post on X that his government will keep its promise to escape the “real estate speculation republic,” saying the country cannot be made to face a “lost 30 years” from real-estate bomb-passing even if it is hard now. He blamed short-term price instability mainly on a sharp fall in housing permits centered on Seoul from 2022 to 2025, and promised more supply, public long-term rental housing for young people and the middle class, and lending and tax reform. Dong-A Ilbo and Kukmin Ilbo reported Seoul apartment prices have risen for 86 consecutive weeks, and Hankook Ilbo reported he receives weekly permit reports from the prime minister and that permits are up about 50 percent from a year earlier.
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President Lee Jae-myung said on Oct. 5 that his government will keep its promise to escape what he called the “real estate speculation republic,” writing on X that “even if it is hard right now, South Korea cannot be made to face a ‘lost 30 years’ at the end of real-estate bomb-passing.” The pledge was reported by Kukmin Ilbo, Dong-A Ilbo, Yonhap, Seoul Shinmun, Chosun Ilbo, Maeil Business, SBS News, Hankook Ilbo and Newsis. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]
The president attributed short-term housing price instability mainly to a sharp fall in permits centered on Seoul between 2022 and 2025, which he said would cut housing supply with a lag. The mid- and long-term causes, he said, were concentration in the capital region, excessive lending that encourages housing speculation and an unfair tax system. Hankook Ilbo presented this as an argument that the recent price rise stems from a decline in permits during the previous Yoon Suk Yeol administration. [ 2 , 3 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
On supply, he said permits and construction starts had increased sharply recently and that new land development and the conversion of existing sites and buildings to residential use were speeding up, so supply would rise substantially soon. Yonhap reported he promised to supply public long-term rental housing for young people and the middle class early and in large quantities using excess tax revenue. On demand and distribution, he pointed to relocating administrative agencies and public enterprises out of the capital region and to regional development projects, and said household debt adjustment at what he called a world-leading level and tax reform consistent with tax fairness would follow. He added that Korea has a high share of real estate assets and heavy household debt, and asked that the flow of funds into productive finance and international benchmark rate trends be watched closely. [ 3 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
Hankook Ilbo added further detail, reporting that the president said he receives weekly reports on housing permits from Prime Minister Han Sung-sook, that permits are up about 50 percent from a year earlier and that some builders hesitate to break ground for fear of unsold units. He said he instructed the state housing supplier, the Korea Land and Housing Corporation, to give purchase commitments for unsold units to stimulate construction activity, the outlet reported. Hankook Ilbo also said the government is pursuing a tax overhaul that raises the holding burden on ultra-high-priced homes and on single-home owners who do not live in the property, alongside a plan to supply 1.19 million public homes. [ 8 ]
Dong-A Ilbo reported that Seoul apartment prices had risen for 86 consecutive weeks, surpassing the longest stretch under the Moon Jae-in government, and that the president shared a media report saying listings in Seoul’s three Gangnam districts had increased by 10,000 in a year. Kukmin Ilbo also carried the 86-week figure in its headline, while the Gangnam listings figure appears only in Dong-A Ilbo’s account. [ 1 , 2 ]
Newsis reported that the president posted 11 times on social media in a single day. Hankook Ilbo reported he said each democratic government had tried to curb real estate speculation without achieving its goals, and that one reason was that reforms were not pushed through to the end in the face of resistance; he called suppressing speculation and stabilizing prices a national task that is very difficult but not impossible, a line Seoul Shinmun also carried. [ 4 , 8 , 9 ]
Why it matters
The public recommitment suggests the government intends to hold its housing-market stance rather than soften it, which matters for owners, buyers and renters in the Seoul metropolitan area and for household debt and lending rules. The remarks also set supply expansion, public rental housing and tax reform as the government’s stated themes. The documents report no market or political reaction, so the immediate consequences are not yet visible.
Key facts
- President Lee Jae-myung said on Oct. 5 in a post on X that his government would keep its promise to escape the “real estate speculation republic.” [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]
- He said South Korea could not be made to face a “lost 30 years” at the end of real-estate bomb-passing even if it is hard now. [ 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He cited a sharp fall in permits centered on Seoul between 2022 and 2025 as the biggest short-term cause of housing price instability, and capital-region concentration, excessive lending that encourages speculation and an unfair tax system as mid- and long-term causes. [ 2 , 3 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He said permits and construction starts had increased sharply recently and that supply would rise substantially soon. [ 2 , 3 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He promised to supply public long-term rental housing for young people and the middle class early and in large quantities using excess tax revenue, according to Yonhap and other outlets. [ 3 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- Dong-A Ilbo reported Seoul apartment prices had risen for 86 consecutive weeks, surpassing the longest stretch under the Moon Jae-in government; Kukmin Ilbo also carried the 86-week figure. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Hankook Ilbo reported the president receives weekly housing-permit reports from Prime Minister Han Sung-sook, that permits are up about 50 percent from a year earlier, and that he told the state housing supplier LH to give builders purchase commitments for unsold units. [ 8 ]
- Newsis reported the president posted 11 times on social media in a single day. [ 9 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- President Lee Jae-myung said on Oct. 5 in a post on X that his government would keep its promise to escape the “real estate speculation republic.” [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]
- He said the country could not be made to face a “lost 30 years” from real-estate bomb-passing even if it is hard now. [ 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He attributed short-term housing price instability mainly to a sharp fall in permits centered on Seoul between 2022 and 2025, and named capital-region concentration, excessive lending and an unfair tax system as mid- and long-term causes. [ 2 , 3 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He said permits and construction starts had increased sharply recently and that supply would rise substantially soon. [ 2 , 3 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- He promised public long-term rental housing for young people and the middle class using excess tax revenue, and pointed to relocating administrative agencies and public enterprises out of the capital region along with household debt adjustment and tax reform. [ 3 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- Seoul apartment prices had risen for 86 consecutive weeks, according to two outlets’ accounts. [ 1 , 2 ]
Still unclear
- Whether the government will introduce new measures, legislation or a timetable The documents report a restatement of policy direction only; no new steps or dates are specified.
- Reaction from opposition parties, regulators or market participants None of the documents report any response to the post.
- The president’s 11 social media posts in one day Only Newsis reports the count, and its article text does not detail all of the posts.
- The 10,000 increase in listings in Seoul’s three Gangnam districts over a year This appears only in Dong-A Ilbo’s account, which says the president shared a media report with that figure; no other document carries it.
- The exact time the president posted on X The documents give the date, Oct. 5, but not the hour.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Kukmin Ilbo publishes the first report in this set, its headline linking 86 weeks of price rises to the president’s pledge. [ 1 ]
- Dong-A Ilbo publishes its report on the X post, citing 86 consecutive weeks of Seoul apartment price rises and a 10,000 increase in Gangnam listings over a year. [ 2 ]
- Yonhap publishes the fullest text of the post, including pledges on public rental housing and balanced development. [ 3 ]
- Seoul Shinmun carries the president’s line that the situation is difficult but not impossible. [ 4 ]
- Chosun Ilbo reports the president reaffirmed that the policy stance would be pushed without wavering. [ 5 ]
- Maeil Business reports the pledge and the president’s diagnosis of supply and demand causes. [ 6 ]
- SBS News carries the post and the president’s explanation of causes and planned measures. [ 7 ]
- Hankook Ilbo adds that the president receives weekly permit reports from the prime minister, that permits are up about 50 percent year-on-year and that LH was told to commit to buying unsold units. [ 8 ]
- Newsis publishes a roundup reporting the president made 11 social media posts in a single day. [ 9 ]