President Yoon Suk Yeol vowed Monday to accelerate urban redevelopment and reconstruction projects to correct what he described as the previous administration’s housing policy failures and to supply people with the houses they want.

Yoon made the remark during a meeting reviewing urban housing policies, saying “now is the golden time to normalize the housing market” after prices of apartments in Seoul shot up by 99.6 percent in the May 2017-April 2022 period under former President Moon Jae-in.

“Despite the government’s efforts, recent housing supply conditions are tough due to high interest rates and increased construction costs,” he said, noting the need to completely remove mistaken housing regulations and take active steps to revive housing supply.

“We must supply the houses people want and where they want them at a high speed. First, we will sharply increase the speed of redevelopment and reconstruction, which is the key to urban housing supply,” he said.

Yoon also promised to quickly move ahead with
the government’s “New Village” projects, which aim to renovate old houses into modern dwellings.

Source: Yonhap News Agency