Democratic Party: "Speed, Tangible Progress, and Balance Key for Housing Supply... Permitting Authority Should Be Transferred to District Offices"

Real Estate Policy Meeting with Seoul Lawmakers and City Council Members on August 13

Discord Over Oh Se-hoon's Stance Highlighted: "Cooperation with Central Government Essential"

Proposal to Transfer Permitting Authority for 300 to 500 Units to Local Districts

The Democratic Party of Korea has announced that it will take the lead in accelerating real estate supply, using "speed, tangible progress, and balance" as its key priorities. There were also calls to delegate some of Seoul City's permitting authority to district offices in order to expedite housing supply.

Kim Youngbae, a lawmaker who is running for chairman of the Democratic Party Seoul City Branch, met with reporters on August 13 following the 'Democratic Party's Seoul National Assembly members and city council members' real estate policy response meeting', held at the annex building of the Seoul Metropolitan Council in Jung-gu, Seoul. He said, "If I were to sum up supply in three keywords, it would be speed, tangible progress, and balance."

He added, "In particular, speed is extremely important, and tangible progress is also crucial," and continued, "Balance should be prioritized as well. We need to take into consideration both apartments and non-apartments, as well as owners and non-owners."

On the 6th, the Democratic Party of Korea Seoul Metropolitan Chapter held a real estate policy meeting at the National Assembly Members' Office Building. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

To this end, participants stressed the need to resolve the discord between the central government and the Seoul Metropolitan Government over real estate policies. Kim Namkeun, a Democratic Party lawmaker, said, "For the government's measures to be properly implemented, Mayor Oh Se-hoon must cooperate," and added, "If the government tries to resolve housing issues through political strife, the National Assembly will intensify its role in monitoring and keeping checks on such attempts."

Democratic Party lawmaker Oh Ki-hyung commented, "In the short and medium term, the public sector needs to play a more active role in supply," and emphasized, "The public sector must help unlock current supply bottlenecks, and in this context, cooperation is required between the central government and Seoul City."

A proposal was also raised to delegate part of Seoul City's permitting authority to local district offices. Kim Youngbae explained, "There was a suggestion to revise the law so that some of the permitting authority currently held by Seoul City could be devolved to the districts to better match local demand," and continued, "For example, for permits involving 300 to 500 housing units, Seoul City often cites busy schedules and fails to respond. The request is to decentralize the current system by transferring these authorities to the districts."

Lawmaker Kim Namkeun noted, "Legislation related to real estate development has already passed, enabling the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to establish a 'Rapid Approvals Support Center'. If permitting issues are excessively delayed at the local government level, there could be a system where such matters are escalated to the Ministry for resolution."

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