President Lee Jae-myung relayed the news that he sold his apartment in Bundang District, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, and sharply criticized a particular media outlet's reporting. He especially bristled at the outlet's emphasis on the phrase "25 billion won in capital gains," saying, "Why so malicious?"
According to political circles on the 27th, the president wrote on his X (formerly Twitter) that day, "There's a saying that a dog sees only one thing. 'As much as 2.5 billion won in capital gains,' so is there supposed to be some other illegal act?" while sharing the related media report.
The shared article gave a detailed look at the house the president put on the market. The apartment is Kumho Apartment, Yangji Maeul Complex 1, Sunae-dong, Bundang District, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, and it said the president bought it in 1998 for 366 million won. The current asking price is around 3.1–3.2 billion won.
At the same time, the president said he listed the apartment for 2.9 billion won, and that a buyer appeared and a preliminary contract was reached immediately after the presidential office Spokesperson disclosed the fact. The article ran with the headline, "Lee's Bundang home sold in less than an hour… bought for 360 million won, 2.5 billion won in capital gains alone."
The president said, "There's a saying that a dog sees only one thing. 'As much as 2.5 billion won in capital gains,' so is there even something else beyond that?" adding, "If someone argues it should be tolerated as freedom of the press, I would acknowledge that, but treating me like a real estate speculator is excessive."
The president also said, "After moving from one rental to another, it was the first and last home I bought in my life during the IMF crisis," and added, "It wasn't a house I bought to make money, but even though I was glad the price rose more than what I earned through work, how absurd is this—I felt like I had committed a crime."
He continued, "Just as I didn't buy it for money, I didn't sell it for money. As the official in overall charge of real estate policy, rather than creating grounds for political attacks over a housing issue, I sold it simply because I wanted to fulfill my responsibility as a public official who should set an example for everyone."