The government is seeking measures to support homeowners in voluntarily demolishing vacant houses that are difficult to utilize. It is also considering improving the system to allow local governments to demolish houses that need to be torn down by their authority.
Measures to increase the utilization of vacant houses will also be established. The local governments will examine improvement plans for the system to either demolish or remodel vacant houses, and will consider providing incentives such as easing floor area ratios for private developers who renovate vacant houses.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 9th that it will hold a meeting titled 'Meeting to Promote the Maintenance of Vacant Houses' on the afternoon of the 10th at the Government Sejong Center to discuss solutions for the vacant house problem, which is deteriorating the residential environment in local governments.
At this meeting, plans for system improvements to resolve abandoned vacant houses in urban areas will be shared, and concerns of local government officials responsible for vacant house-related tasks will be heard.
The ministry discusses plans to efficiently execute various administrative and financial supports to enable voluntary demolition of vacant houses that are difficult to utilize. It reviews ways to simplify the demolition process and support demolition costs. Furthermore, opinions will also be gathered on system improvements for transaction support, including rentals and sales of vacant houses through a 'vacant house platform.'
In terms of public safety and urban aesthetics, discussions will also be held on ways to enhance the effectiveness of the current system in making it easier to carry out compulsory demolitions for houses that need to be demolished. As of last year, the percentage of local governments that had implemented compulsory demolitions was only 5.5%. The percentage of local governments that had imposed enforcement fines was also just 2.7%.
The ministry also plans to discuss measures to enhance the maintenance of vacant houses. Currently, local governments are identifying the number of vacant houses and establishing maintenance plans through periodic surveys conducted every five years. However, the percentage that actually leads to the maintenance of vacant houses is only 34.5%.
Accordingly, the ministry will share local governments’ realistic analyses of the causes or locational characteristics of vacant buildings to improve their utilization. It will also consider necessary aspects for supporting changes in usage and allowing mixed-use applications to revitalize surrounding areas. Additionally, as part of residential environment improvement projects, the ministry will discuss the process of converting vacant houses into parking lots or facilities for young entrepreneurs through urban regeneration projects and the Sharing Village initiative, and explore ways to connect these projects more effectively to the maintenance of vacant houses.
The ministry is also determined to identify incentives such as easing floor area ratios and building coverage ratios to support private developers in pursuing development projects in areas with a high proportion of vacant houses.
The ministry plans to push for legislative amendments regarding the maintenance of increasing numbers of vacant houses and empty buildings by consolidating these system improvement measures. In particular, a comprehensive management system will be established concerning the responsibilities of the national government, local governments, and property owners for managing vacant houses. Plans to clarify the criteria for compulsory demolition and the targets and amounts for enforcement fines will also be established.
Jeong Woo-jin, an urban policy director at the ministry, noted that 'abandoned vacant houses and empty buildings hinder urban vitality, but if tailored maintenance is conducted according to the causes and locations, they can be utilized as key resources for enhancing regional potential.' He added that the tasks identified during this meeting would be reflected in the 'Plan to Promote the Maintenance of Empty Buildings,' which will be announced in the first half of this year after thorough review by experts, and that the ministry will continue to strengthen cooperation with local governments to ensure this plan leads to practical maintenance of vacant houses.
Meanwhile, the ministry has been operating a 'Vacant Building Response Team' within the urban policy directorate since January of this year to review maintenance and utilization plans for vacant houses and empty buildings from the perspective of urban space restructuring.