A man in his 20s, identified as A, residing in an officetel in Gangseo District, Seoul, was planning to move out as his lease expired. The landlord returned only a portion of the deposit, claiming that the restoration expense amounted to 7 million won. However, A found out that the actual restoration expense was only 2 million won. A protested to the landlord that the restoration expense was excessive. The landlord responded by sending deposit records and a fact confirmation letter, asserting that the restoration expense was reasonable.
The government will establish guidelines to prevent landlords from excessively charging restoration expenses when tenants vacate. This initiative arises amid ongoing conflicts over maintenance and repair expenses during tenant evictions in the private rental housing market, with the government aiming to create appropriate standards for restoration scope and expense.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 11th, the ministry has started working on establishing standards for the scope of maintenance, preservation, and repair of private rental housing, as well as restoration criteria upon eviction. To this end, a research service titled 'Detailed standards for protecting tenants of private rental housing' has also been commissioned.
Conflicts over restoration between landlords and tenants often occur when the lease expires for rented homes. While restoring damaged areas such as wallpaper and flooring during the tenant's occupancy, discrepancies arise regarding the scope of restoration and associated expenses.
Last year, out of the 709 disputes filed with the Korea Real Estate Board and the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), 111 were related to maintenance and repair obligations, accounting for 15.6%. Disputes arising from maintenance obligations were the second most common type of dispute following deposit or housing return disputes.
Due to the absence of standards for restoration scope and expenses, some landlords have exploited their superior position to impose excessive restoration fees. Cases of unjustly charging restoration expenses have also been reported in some private rental housing that received public support such as tax benefits and funds.
Concerns about these issues were raised during last year's audit by the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee. Member of Parliament Kim Do-woo noted that in the case of Bueong, the rental housing repair expenses were unjustly charged at over 4 million won, stating, 'We must obtain the details of the amounts received by Bueong from tenants under the guise of repair costs and the actual amounts spent on repairs.'
However, there are currently no government-level guidelines regarding the scope and expenses for restoration. If the scope and method of expense calculation for restoration are not specified in the lease agreement, disputes arise. In such cases, the Korea Real Estate Board, Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), or local governments conduct mediation through dispute resolution committees based on existing court precedents. If mediation through the committee proves difficult, legal disputes may ensue.
Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Park Sang-woo stated during last year's audit, 'If excessive restoration expenses are charged for rental housing, we will create guideline-like instructions to allow for detailed standards to be followed in charging repair costs.'
As the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport prepares to establish guidelines related to the restoration of private rental housing, conflicts between landlords and tenants are expected to decrease. The guidelines will define the obligations and rights between landlords and tenants regarding the scope of maintenance, preservation, repair, and restoration upon eviction.
A Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport official stated, 'We are trying to create specific criteria regarding repairs to facilities upon eviction from private rental housing,' adding, 'The specific content of the guidelines will emerge after approximately a 10-month research period.'