Seoul will supply 74,000 youth dwellings by 2030.
Oh Se-hoon, the Seoul mayor, announced youth housing stability measures with this content at the "Youth Home & Job Fair" held at the Seoul Gallery on the first basement floor of City Hall. Oh said, "For young people, a home should be the starting line for beginning the future. The city has redesigned youth housing policy from the ground up to protect that starting line," unveiling policies such as ▲ expanded supply of dwellings for youth ▲ expanded housing cost support ▲ stronger housing safety nets.
The city plans to supply 16,000 units near university districts by 2030. Oh said, "University districts have already shifted to a monthly rent-centered structure, and dorms are still lacking," adding, "We will expand the 'Seoul-style Seedling One-room' for freshmen and shared dwellings in university districts." The Seoul-style Seedling One-room provides up to 30 million won in interest-free deposits, and Seoul Housing & Communities Corporation (SH) and others sign semi-jeonse leases with landlords and then sublease to freshmen. Choi Jin-seok, head of the Seoul housing bureau, said, "We expect it will cut monthly rent by 100,000 won." Shared dwellings will be subdivided and supplied through public, quasi-public, and private models.
The city will also supply a total of 38,000 units of "Stepping-stone dwellings" that help stabilize housing and build assets, and youth-specialized dwellings. Stepping-stone dwellings are for young people at or below 50% of the median income, allowing them to live for up to 10 years at 10%–30% of market prices. Using city-owned land and SH sites, the city will also create "youth-specialized complexes," youth integrated hubs that combine workplaces, play spaces, and living spaces. In addition, it will provide Youth Growth Dwellings near workplaces for young workers in industrial clusters with incomes at or below 100% of the median.
To help young people with limited cash buy homes, the city will introduce the Seoul-style public ownership program "Baro Nae Jip." Baro Nae Jip is characterized by transferring ownership immediately upon payment of the down payment, with the balance payable through long-term installments of 20 years or more.
To revitalize the private rental market, the city will provide funds to youth dwelling builders at a fixed interest rate as low as 2.4% per year, with maturities up to 14 years. Through this, it plans to supply 5,000 construction-type private rental dwellings by 2030.
The city also devised support measures to reduce the burden of monthly rent and deposits. It will pilot the "Youth Companion Landlord Program," providing up to 200,000 won in brokerage fees and up to 1 million won in repair costs to landlords who freeze rent and deposit prices for youth jeonse and monthly rent contracts. It will also ease eligibility for youth monthly rent support by raising the combined income cap for married couples from 50 million won to 60 million won a year, and for job seekers' parents from 70 million won to 80 million won a year. It will pilot support of 80,000 won per month in maintenance fees for 1,500 people who were not selected for monthly rent support.
To prevent jeonse fraud, the city will expand the AI jeonse fraud risk report containing 12 types of landlord information from 1,000 to 3,000 cases a year, and a safety manager with a licensed real estate agent qualification will accompany tenants through on-site checks and contract signing. It will conduct constant crackdowns on real estate brokerages in areas at risk of jeonse fraud and expand the number of beneficiaries for the program that supports up to 400,000 won in premiums for jeonse deposit return guarantees.