Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Ku Yun-cheol announced plans to ease loan regulations for young people, newlyweds, and low-income individuals without homes. The government will also introduce measures to increase housing supply, focusing on non-apartment units, which have shorter supply timelines.
In a phone interview on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus,' Ku acknowledged the need to relax loan regulations, stating, "I empathize with the need to protect low-income and genuine homebuyers, such as young people and newlyweds."
He added, "We are considering targeted support to alleviate difficulties," indicating that customized financial assistance plans are in the works.
Ku also previewed additional housing supply measures and financial policies, saying, "We aim to increase housing supply as quickly as possible, and since apartment construction takes longer, we will focus on increasing the supply of non-apartment housing."
He emphasized that the recently announced real estate tax reform plan is designed to reduce the burden on individuals owning one home for personal residence.
"For homes valued under 3 billion won, we have significantly reduced the tax burden," Ku explained. "If someone buys a house for 3 billion won and lives there for about ten years, we have lowered both the holding tax and the capital gains tax during that period."
Regarding the increased tax burden for homes valued between 4 billion and 5 billion won, he noted that this is a result of adjustments to deductions and tax rates. While the government has not set a separate threshold for high-value homes, it is viewed as normalizing the tax burden starting from that price range.
The government will temporarily lower the capital gains tax rate for multiple homeowners from 2027 to 2028. For those with two homes in designated adjustment areas, the basic tax rate will increase by 5 percentage points in 2027 and 10 percentage points in 2028, reverting to the current 20 percentage points in 2029. For those with three or more homes, the rates will be adjusted by 10 and 15 percentage points, respectively, before returning to 30 percentage points in 2029.
Ku clarified that this measure is a temporary easing of tax rates, not a suspension of the increased tax application. He stated, "As the burden of holding taxes increases, we have reflected the public's request for a gradual adjustment period for these individuals."
Regarding regulations on single-stock leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs), he noted that after raising the basic deposit requirement to 30 million won on July 31, the concentration phenomenon has eased. The government plans to continue monitoring market conditions before deciding on further actions.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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