Foreign homeowners asked to designate caretakers

By Yi Whan-woo

Foreign nationals who buy a home in Korea will be asked to officially designate a caretaker for the house and report to the Seoul Metropolitan Government if they do not plan to live here, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on Tuesday.

It said the measure is part of efforts to control speculative real estate investments by foreign nationals. Real estate speculation has come into the spotlight in recent years as property prices have soared in Korea, particularly in Seoul.

The ministry said it had difficulty in making contact with foreign home owners who do not stay in Korea and have not provided their overseas addresses and relevant contact information. It tried to send survey documents via mail to some foreign nationals who are suspected of land speculation but could not gather the sought data because their homes were empty.

“We believe the measure will help us to prevent land speculation by collecting information we need in a timely manner,” the ministry said.

Property transactions by foreigners account for less than one percent of the national total annually.

Nevertheless, the number of transactions has increased to reach around 8,500 per year on average in 2020 and 2021 compared to about 7,000 deals between 2017 and 2019.

There also have been outcries from Korean would-be home buyers that there are relatively lax restrictions on property transactions for foreign nationals.