Entrepreneur solves residential problems

By Kim Bo-eun

Toad Housing CEO Kim Mi-jung

When Toad Housing launched in 2010, Seoul had an estimated 80,000 empty houses.

The houses were mainly 40- to 50-year-old buildings which were abandoned because the owners failed to sell them and remodeling costs were too pricy.

The empty houses were contributing to crime rates.

“The houses either needed to be removed or remodeled,” Toad Housing CEO Kim Mi-jung said.

Meanwhile, young people in Seoul faced soaring rental fees, which forced them into housing in dire conditions _ such as tiny studio rooms.

Toad Housing’s idea was to remodel the old houses to provide young people with affordable homes.

After the Seoul Metropolitan Government initiated related policies, Toad Housing was able to carry out its project with government support.

The first remodeled house opened in 2014 in Jeungsan-dong, northwestern Seoul, and Toad Housing now has 10 such houses. It is in the process of opening its 11th home.

The monthly rents for rooms in these houses range from 200,000 won to 400,000 won, which is 60 to 70 percent of market rates.

With Toad Housing as the middleman, the landlord and tenant sign six-year contracts, which spare the tenants the fear and burden of rent hikes every two years, which is the norm.

Tenants must spend 30 percent or more of their income on housing to qualify.

Currently, around 100 people live in Toad Housing’s homes.

The social enterprise assumes the expenses of remodeling, and covers the costs as well as generates profit from managing the deposits tenants pay.

The business model also helps keep aging communities vibrant.

“People in their 70s and 80s reside in old neighborhoods with empty houses, and the neighborhoods end up being wiped out,” Kim said. “They need young people to move in, to keep it alive.”

The company’s name comes from an old song in a childhood play _ the lyrics are “Toad, toad I will give you an old house, give me a new one.”

Kim majored in architecture, spending two decades in construction design and another decade in development.

While working for development projects, she witnessed residents being kicked out of their neighborhoods and profits going to construction firms. This prompted her to write about the stories of residents in redevelopment projects and ultimately to launch Toad Housing.

“The work I do now is tough, but I no longer have the sense of emptiness I felt at my previous job,” Kim said.

“It is fulfilling that I can put to good use what I have learnt _ my wish is that young people will live happily in the homes we provide.”