President Lee Jae-myung says ‘real estate never loses’ myth is over

President Lee Jae-myung said on Tuesday that the notion that real estate prices never fall is no longer valid.
 
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Lee shared a report saying roughly half of real estate experts and licensed brokers expect home prices to decline, adding, “Real estate never loses? That myth is gone now.”
 
The report, citing the KB Financial Group Management Research Institute’s “KB Real Estate Report,” said expectations for price increases dropped sharply compared with a survey in January, while forecasts for declines rose.
 
Lee wrote that “everything in South Korea is returning to normal,” citing the removal of illegal facilities in valleys and what he called a recovery in the stock market. He said normalizing the housing market is “an unavoidable trend of the times” and “a core national task that must be carried out.”
 
Lee also shared media coverage alleging that poor progress in restoring areas damaged by wildfires was linked to unqualified firms, including paper companies, joining bids and authorities allowing what the report described as a “wildfire cartel.” Lee wrote, “Thank you for the report.”
 
He said he instructed the Cabinet to determine how such structural corruption and wrongdoing were left in place for a long period and to review fundamental countermeasures and accountability steps.
 
Separately, Lee on Monday pushed back against calls for fiscal tightening, sharing an analysis of International Monetary Fund data showing South Korea’s net debt ratio is far below the average for the Group of 20.
 
Sharing an article titled, “IMF: South Korea’s net debt ratio this year 10.3% … 79.3 percentage points below G20 average,” Lee posted a message titled, “To the strange people who sing the austerity song at every turn.”
 
Lee also cited an analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, which said that if funds raised through government bonds are invested in ways that lift growth and expand social productivity, potential growth and the future revenue base, the debt ratio can instead stabilize.
 
According to the institute’s review of the IMF Fiscal Monitor, South Korea’s general government net debt ratio is projected at 10.3% this year. That is 79.3 percentage points below the projected G20 average of 89.6%, and also well below the overall average of 80.1%.