On the 23rd, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it would conduct a comprehensive investigation of 112 housing association project sites this year and found a total of 524 violations, leading to administrative guidance and other actions.
Currently, a total of 118 housing association projects are being pursued in Seoul. The city investigated six sites in the first half of this year and examined the remaining 112 sites in the second half.
The investigation revealed inappropriate disclosure of information regarding fund borrowing and contract signing, duplicate service contracts and excessive service fees, and improper use of operational expenses.
Violations also emerged in cases where major decisions were made without a general assembly resolution, where annual fund management plans and execution results were not submitted, where inappropriate trust management of funds was found, and where it was impossible to conduct on-site investigations due to communication breakdowns or project suspensions.
The city plans to file complaints for 86 cases related to improper membership contracts and non-submission of annual fund management plans, while it will impose fines for 38 cases involving major decisions made without a general assembly resolution and improper use of operational expenses.
Associations that were pointed out for the same issues as last year plan to take immediate administrative action in accordance with the relevant regulations, such as the dwellings Act, while those that are not will be given a certain grace period.
Among the 381 cases for which on-site investigations could not be conducted due to communication breakdowns or project suspensions, the city is planning to urge compliance for 19 cases, followed by administrative actions such as cancellation by the district mayor's authority and orders to hold dissolution general meetings.
The results of the investigation can be checked on the Maintenance Project Information Portal (cleanup.seoul.go.kr) and on the websites of individual districts for each project site.
Han Byeong-yong, head of the housing division at the Seoul Metropolitan Government, noted, "We will regularly investigate the status to ensure that housing associations do not proceed with projects in a blackout manner, causing harm to innocent members, and we will respond in principle."