Seoul Eases Burdens for Households with Newborns and Reconstruction Projects... Improves Three On-Site Regulations

Support for Housing Stability for Households with Newborns

Guidelines Established for Cash Contributions

Improved Training for Reconstruction Association Executives

On July 15, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it would improve three regulations that citizens and businesses can tangibly feel at the field level. The improvements include support for housing stability for households with newborns and the establishment of guidelines related to cash contributions in development projects.

Seoul City Hall. The Asia Business Daily DB

The latest improvements include the following: ▲Easing of public rental housing relocation standards for households with newborns ▲Preparation of detailed guidelines for cash contribution ▲Improvement in the education method for executives of housing reconstruction associations.

Public Rental Housing Relocation Standards Eased for Households with Newborns... More Opportunities to Move to Larger Homes

The city will support the creation of a stable childcare environment by allowing households with newborns to move to larger public rental housing units suitable for raising children.

With the relaxation of this regulation, if the number of children increases due to marriage or childbirth while residing in public rental housing, residents will now be able to apply for relocation to a larger public rental housing unit, regardless of the size of their current residence.

The relocation system enables tenants of public rental housing to move to another public rental unit within the range of available supply if certain conditions are met.

Previously, under the Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation rental regulation guidelines, only households whose current residence was below the Ministry of Land's minimum housing standards (for a couple with one child: 36 square meters) were eligible to apply for relocation to a larger home. This drew criticism for not sufficiently reflecting the true conditions required for raising children.

Raising children often necessitates a larger space for childcare items and play areas; however, restrictions on relocation continued to prompt demands for improvement. In addition, following last year’s revision of the Enforcement Rules of the Special Act on Public Housing, there is now a legal basis allowing households living in public rental housing with children under two years of age (including unborn children) to apply for relocation to a larger unit.

The city plans to revise the enforcement regulations of the rental guideline in the second half of this year to remove the requirement related to "not meeting the minimum housing standard" and support housing stability for households with newborns.

Detailed Guidelines for Cash Contribution Introduced... Including Payment Timing and Installment Criteria

Detailed guidelines defining the timing and principles for installment payments of cash contributions (such as payments for installing public facilities) required in various development projects will be established. This is aimed at improving business predictability and administrative consistency.

Until now, cash contributions have been set case by case according to agreements for each project, with payment amount, method, and timing decided individually. However, since the legal deadline is broadly specified as "from commencement of construction until before user approval or final inspection," different projects have had different payment requirements, leading to equity concerns.

In particular, there was no unified standard for the number of installments or payment methods even though installment payments were allowed, making it difficult for both businesses and administrative agencies to plan and implement projects predictably.

Under the new detailed guidelines, installment payments will as a rule be made in "five equal installments." The initial payment will be 20% of the total at commencement of construction, and the remaining amount will be divided equally into four payments over the project period before final completion. Exceptions will only be permitted through consultation in cases of recognized project-specific circumstances.

With the adoption of these guidelines, businesses can develop more stable financial plans, and public officials will be able to handle work according to consistent criteria, reducing uncertainties and administrative burdens that arose during the consultation process.

Weeknight and Weekend Education Programs for Reconstruction Association Executives Introduced

To reduce the burden on redevelopment, reconstruction, and small-scale housing improvement association executives in fulfilling their legal duty to participate in mandatory education, the city will introduce night and weekend educational programs.

Currently, association executives are required to complete at least 12 hours of association operation and ethics education within 6 months of appointment. However, as these sessions have typically been organized as group classes during weekday business hours, non-full-time association executives who have other jobs have found it difficult to attend.

Accordingly, from the second half of this year, the city will launch new weeknight and weekend educational programs. For redevelopment and reconstruction projects, weekend sessions have already been implemented since June, and, considering demand and participation conditions, weeknight classes will be added in the second half of the year.

For small-scale housing improvement projects, the city is considering introducing weeknight and weekend education programs starting in the second half of the year to broaden opportunities for association executives to participate, reflecting demand and other conditions.

Cho Wanseok, Director of Regulatory Innovation for Seoul, said, "These regulatory improvements focus on creating tangible changes by proactively addressing inconveniences faced by citizens and businesses in the field. We will continue to listen to on-site feedback and strive to consistently improve unreasonable regulations, enhancing quality of life and urban competitiveness for all residents."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.