After June 27 Loan Regulations, Newlyweds’ Jeonse Loans Plunge, Hitting Low-Income Households Hardest

[The Financial News] Since the government implemented the "June 27 Loan Regulations," policy jeonse loans for newlyweds have dropped sharply. The decline has been particularly steep among low-income newlyweds, indicating that the burden of the policy is concentrated on vulnerable groups.
According to data that Representative Lee Jong-wook of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee of the National Assembly from the People Power Party (PPP) received from the Korea Housing & Urban Guarantee Corporation (HUG) on the 13th, the total amount of Newlywed Support Jeonse Deposit Loans executed over the past eight months, from July 2025 to February 2026, was 1.02 trillion won. This is down 1.2787 trillion won, or 55.6%, from 2.2987 trillion won in the same period a year earlier.
By income bracket, the drop was especially severe among low-income households. Newlywed borrowers with annual income of 20 million won or less took out 51.7 billion won in loans, an 80.5% decrease from 264.9 billion won a year earlier, the largest decline among all income groups.
In contrast, other income brackets with annual income above 20 million won saw their loan volumes fall by only about 50–54%. This shows that the contraction in lending has hit low-income newlyweds much harder.
Average loan sizes also decreased. The average jeonse loan amount per newlywed borrower fell from 152.53 million won to 131.17 million won, a drop of 21.36 million won, or 14%. For newlyweds earning 20 million won or less a year, the average loan over the most recent eight months was 90.22 million won, down 57.76 million won, or 39%, from 147.98 million won a year earlier.

High-value loan approvals have also plunged. Among newlyweds earning 20 million won or less a year, the number of loans of 200 million won or more approved fell to 35 cases (7.6%), down sharply from 565 cases (33.5%) a year earlier.
This trend is attributed to tighter loan regulations on top of rising jeonse prices and a shrinking supply of jeonse properties.
Under the June 27 Loan Regulations announced last year, the government lowered the maximum Newlywed Support Jeonse Deposit Loan limit in the Seoul Capital Area from 300 million won to 250 million won. It also tightened credit screening by reducing the jeonse loan guarantee ratio in the Seoul Capital Area and other regulated areas from 90% to 80%.
With jeonse prices climbing while loan limits are cut, some analysts say newlyweds who cannot raise large lump-sum deposits are being pushed into the monthly rental market.
Representative Lee Jong-wook said, "Low-income newlyweds are taking the hardest hit as loan regulations pile on top of rising jeonse prices and higher housing costs." He added, "To protect the housing ladder for ordinary people and young adults, the government must review the effectiveness of the jeonse loan system and prepare supplementary measures for low-income newlyweds."

en1302@fnnews.com Jang In-seo Reporter