The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 3rd that it has published a 'Registered Private Rental Housing Operations Manual' for private rental housing businesses and tenants. This manual reflects the Special Act on Private Rental Housing, which was amended in June of this year.
Private rental housing refers to dwellings owned for rental purposes by a rental business and registered through local districts in accordance with the Special Act on Private Rental Housing.
Currently, there are 97,233 private rental businesses providing 415,460 dwellings in Seoul. This accounts for approximately 11% of the total housing (3.879 million units) in the city and 20% of all rental households. The types include ▲ apartments (44.2%) ▲ multi-family dwellings (22.4%) ▲ officetels (14.6%) ▲ multi-households (8.6%).
The Seoul Metropolitan Government has organized consistent standards for private rental businesses in this operations manual. Previously, administrative penalties for violations of rental business obligations varied by local district. Furthermore, there were no clear regulations for the succession of rental business status in the event of inheritance.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government included 185 questions and answers in the manual to present the benchmarks for interpreting laws and regulations. It introduced actual administrative cases and instances of inquiries and criticisms from the Board of Audit and Inspection that occurred in local districts from 2023 to 2024.
Choi Jin-seok, head of the Housing Office of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, noted, 'I expect this manual will reduce confusion in interpreting laws and enhance citizens' trust in the system,' adding, 'We will strive to activate public support for private rental housing to help alleviate citizens' concerns about monthly rent and contribute to housing stability.'