Real Estate Supervision Task Force to Launch on November 3... “Continuous Monitoring of Illegal Activities to Begin”

To prevent disruptive practices in the real estate market, the government will launch the Real Estate Supervision Task Force under the Prime Minister's Office on November 3. This task force will establish a comprehensive monitoring system to continuously oversee illegal real estate transactions, tax evasion, and violations of lending regulations.
At a joint briefing at the Government Complex Seoul on the 30th, Kim Yong-soo, Second Deputy Director of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, stated, “We will respond to market disruption with a zero-tolerance policy.” He added, “We will pursue and address violations to the end, establishing a sound trading order centered on genuine buyers.”
Kim emphasized, “Price rigging, false reporting, and fraudulent subscriptions are crimes that undermine market integrity and increase anxiety among genuine buyers.” He further noted, “Rental scams and speculative land schemes threaten the lives of young people and discourage their efforts to purchase homes.”
The Real Estate Supervision Task Force will operate as a permanent consultative body led by the Office for Government Policy Coordination, with participation from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT), Ministry of the Interior and Safety (MOIS), Financial Services Commission (FSC), National Tax Service (NTS), and Korean National Police Agency (KNPA). The task force will integrate investigation and enforcement results from each agency and facilitate real-time information sharing, including funding plans, loan data, and tax records.
The government plans to pursue legislative revisions in parallel so that the task force can serve as a precursor to a formal real estate supervisory agency.
Since the inauguration of the new administration, the government has clarified the roles of each ministry and strengthened enforcement efforts.
MOLIT is responsible for investigating suspicious transactions, including those involving foreigners. The FSC oversees violations of lending regulations and misuse of mortgage loans. The NTS focuses on illicit gifts and tax evasion, while the KNPA is in charge of the eight major illegal activities, including price rigging.
MOLIT has detected 2,696 suspicious transactions in Seoul’s housing market, including rental scams and speculative land schemes, and has reported them to relevant agencies. Of these, 35 cases have been referred for investigation.
Representative cases include purchasing high-priced homes by borrowing funds from parents or related parties without personal capital, or submitting a 'down contract' that reports a lower transaction price than the actual amount.
Kim Gyu-cheol, Director General for Housing and Land at MOLIT, stated, “We will expand the scope of investigations to 12 regions in Seoul and Gyeonggi, including areas of concern such as Dongtan and Guri, and complete investigations into 605 illegal transactions by foreigners by the end of the year.”
The FSC and the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) have been inspecting all financial institutions since July to check for the misuse of business loans.
Of 5,805 bank cases, 45 cases (KRW 11.9 billion) were found to have violated agreements by being diverted for home purchases. Of these, 25 cases (KRW 3.825 billion) have been recovered.
Typical examples include transferring KRW 400 million in business operating funds to a spouse’s account to purchase a home, or using KRW 100 million in small business development funds for home acquisition.
The government will restrict new business loans for up to five years for violators and, starting in January next year, will implement a system to block new loans through registration with Korea Credit Information Services (KCIS).
The NTS has designated all transactions involving homes worth over KRW 3 billion as subject to comprehensive verification and is strengthening tax audits on illicit gifts and tax evasion.
The NTS is focusing on cases of irregular gifts, such as using corporate funds to purchase apartments or parents repaying rental deposits on behalf of their children.
The NTS will share funding plans in real time with MOLIT and has established the Real Estate Tax Evasion Reporting Center to promptly respond to suspected tax evasion cases.
The KNPA has been conducting a special crackdown on illegal real estate activities from the 17th until March 15 of next year.
So far, 146 cases (268 individuals) have been investigated, with 64 referred for prosecution. The crackdown targets eight major illegal activities, including price rigging, false reporting, corruption in reconstruction and redevelopment, speculative land schemes, and name lending.
Kim stated, “We will ensure the smooth launch of the control tower for responding to illegal real estate activities and eradicate market disruptions.” He emphasized, “We will simultaneously pursue rapid housing supply and protection of genuine buyers to stabilize the market.”

spring@fnnews.com Lee Bo-mi Reporter