Cheong Wa Dae grows quiet on real estate as policy announcement nears

Cheong Wa Dae appears to be closely monitoring real estate price trends. President Lee Jae Myung issued a string of housing-related statements beginning in late January but has refrained from further remarks on the subject since his first-anniversary press conference on June 8. Some analysts say Lee is maintaining a cautious stance until a concrete policy announcement is made.

According to political circles Friday, Cheong Wa Dae reviews real estate market conditions every morning in internal meetings. With the government working on supply measures and tax reform proposals, the prevailing mood is to hold back on public comment until the July announcement. In the meantime, Chief Policy Secretary Kim Yong-beom has been carrying the messaging, emphasizing the need to expand housing supply.

Lee has taken an assertive stance on real estate issues this year — preemptively raising the question of ending the capital gains tax surcharge deferral for multi-home owners and voicing criticism of non-resident single-home owners. He has also repeatedly declared that breaking free from what he called a "real estate speculation republic" is the only path forward.

At the June 8 first-anniversary press conference, Lee offered a self-assessment of his housing record. "If I had not verbally intervened since January to hold down prices, they would have surged enormously," he said. "I think I have done a reasonably good job of holding back upward pressure. Across all of Seoul, I have always taken heat for real estate policy — about 20 percent said I was doing well and about 60 percent said I was not — but on real estate policy, I am getting an evaluation of about 50 percent saying I am doing well."

Turning to current market conditions, Lee signaled additional supply measures. "Supply dropped sharply over the three years from 2022 to 2024 — by nearly half," he said. "So I think we need to move faster, whether on new construction, land development, reconstruction or redevelopment." He also hinted at strengthening property holding taxes, saying it would be appropriate to impose "a holding burden on par with what advanced Western countries require."

Since then, Lee has shifted his public messaging away from real estate toward political issues, stock market normalization and livelihood and youth-focused themes. The shift is widely read as a strategic decision to focus on crafting a substantive policy package rather than risk confusing markets with piecemeal statements at a time when the real estate market remains volatile.

Political commentator Park Sang-byeong said messaging is not what matters for real estate policy. "It is time to act," he said, adding that Lee is holding back in order to announce measures in July.

Park added that rising prices have led the president to acknowledge the situation is not acceptable. "The era of a president managing the market through words is already over," he said.