Ruling Party's 'Rocky Maintenance' on Real Estate: Guarding Against 'Do as I Say, Not as I Do' & 'Moon Administration Déjà Vu'

Jeong & Kim Restrain Comments on Real Estate Post Oct. 15 Measures... Vice Minister Apologizes Publicly for Remarks

Defending Against Opposition's 'Kicking Away the Ladder' Attacks, Supply Measures Being Developed... "Scraping Together Even Vacant Land"

Leader Jeong Cheong-rae Speaking on Judicial Reform at Supreme Council Meeting (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Hwang Kwang-mo = Democratic Party Leader Jeong Cheong-rae speaks about the reaction to the party's judicial reform plan at a Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 22nd. 2025.10.22 hkmpooh@yna.co.kr

The ruling party is on high alert amid public unease following the announcement of the government's ultra-stringent real estate transaction regulations, the Oct. 15 measures.

This is because if public opinion solidifies in a negative direction regarding the real estate issue, which could cause significant repercussions depending on the policy's success or failure, the party could lose its grip on the political agenda and face headwinds in next year's local elections.

Skepticism about the difficulty of controlling housing prices is already circulating in the market, and with cases of some ruling party members holding expensive homes being discussed, leading to 'do as I say, not as I do' controversies, the Democratic Party appears to be monitoring public sentiment even more keenly.

The party's top leaders, Leader Jeong Cheong-rae and Floor Leader Kim Byung-ki, made no mention of real estate issues at the Supreme Council meeting on the 22nd.

Leader Jeong has not made any specific comments on real estate issues in party meetings or on social media (SNS) for a week since the government announced its measures on the 15th.

On the 16th, Floor Leader Kim defended the government's measures at a party meeting, stating, "Is it right to let people buy houses with hundreds of millions or billions of won in debt?"

However, he was immediately counter-attacked by the opposition with accusations of hypocrisy, in light of his ownership of an expensive apartment in Songpa District, a redevelopment target. Since then, Floor Leader Kim has refrained from public remarks on real estate issues.

Floor Leader Kim Byung-ki Speaking at Supreme Council Meeting (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Hwang Kwang-mo = Democratic Party Floor Leader Kim Byung-ki speaks at a Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 22nd. 2025.10.22 hkmpooh@yna.co.kr

The Democratic Party is also struggling to prevent "slips of the tongue" by officials from the party, government, and presidential office involved in designing real estate policies.

This is because policy missteps that seem out of touch with the market's reality have emerged, while genuine buyers are expressing dissatisfaction due to the widespread regulations, such as loan restrictions, limiting their opportunities to purchase homes.

In particular, Vice Minister Lee Sang-kyung of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's remark on a real estate YouTube channel after the government announced its measures, regarding the impact on genuine buyers, "They are stressed because they want to buy now. They can buy when the market stabilizes and housing prices fall," was deemed to have exceeded the party's tolerance level.

The fact that Vice Minister Lee purchased an expensive apartment in Bundang, Gyeonggi Province, last year only poured fuel on the flames of public anger.

Supreme Council Member Han Jun-ho publicly apologized at the party's Supreme Council meeting today, stating, "As a Supreme Council member and a member of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, I apologize to the public for the concern caused by Vice Minister Lee's inappropriate remarks."

Land Transaction Permit Zone Effective Today (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Lee Jae-hee = An apartment complex seen from Namsan in Seoul on the 20th. As per the government's Oct. 15 real estate measures, the land transaction permit system is implemented from today in all areas of Seoul and 12 regions in Gyeonggi Province, including Gwacheon and Bundang. 2025.10.20 scape@yna.co.kr

The Democratic Party's sensitivity to real estate issues stems from concerns that it is directly linked to the sentiments of swing voters in the Seoul metropolitan area, the biggest battleground for next year's local elections.

There is a considerable consensus within and outside the party that the failure of the Moon Jae-in administration to secure a second term was largely due to the failure of its real estate policies. It is diagnosed that the complacent perception of high-ranking officials in the Blue House and the government, who were out of touch with public sentiment, led to a change in government, despite 28 real estate policy announcements failing to stabilize housing prices.

In a phone call with Yonhap News, a first-term lawmaker expressed concern about the attention drawn to the fact that high-ranking government officials, such as Vice Minister Lee and Financial Supervisory Service Governor Lee Chan-jin, own expensive apartments, stating, "It's a bad sign. If we get trapped in the 'do as I say, not as I do' frame, it will be a 'Moon administration déjà vu.'"

First, the Democratic Party is actively building a defense against the opposition's criticism that the government's measures are "kicking away the ladder" for low- and middle-income individuals and young people.

Following the Supreme Council meeting, Senior Spokesperson Park Soo-hyun stated, "We have maintained the current loan policies for homes under 1.5 billion won, and we analyze that these measures only affect some high-priced homes. The loan-to-value ratio (LTV) for newlyweds and first-time homebuyers remains at the current 70%."

He added, "Allowing speculation is what kicks away the ladder of housing security. The People Power Party should not incite fear among the public."

Democratic Party Policy Committee Chair Han Jeong-ae Announces Members of Housing Market Stabilization Task Force (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Ryu Young-seok = Democratic Party Policy Committee Chair Han Jeong-ae holds a press conference to announce the members of the Housing Market Stabilization Task Force and discuss the 'Oct. 15' measures at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 21st. 2025.10.21 ondol@yna.co.kr

Amid these concerns, the Democratic Party is working hard to find a breakthrough by announcing comprehensive supply measures by the end of the year.

There are significant opinions within and outside the party that for the regulation-centered Oct. 15 measures to be effective, they must be coupled with large-scale supply measures.

Within the party, some say, "The situation is so desperate that we need to come up with supply measures by scraping together even vacant land in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province."

During a press briefing today, Deputy Floor Leader for Operations Moon Jin-seok explained, "We are considering vacant land from closed schools, downtown driving test centers, and the Umyeon Mountain green belt area discussed by the previous administration. If there is an institution of 5,000 pyeong in the downtown area, selling this land to the public is also possible. All land where houses can be built is under consideration."

Given the upcoming local elections, they are currently drawing a line on real estate tax reform measures that could provoke public opinion, such as raising property taxes.

However, some within the party still argue that tax adjustments are unavoidable for fundamental housing price stabilization.

In an MBC radio interview, lawmaker Jin Sung-joon responded to a question asking whether the government should proceed with tax reform before the local elections if the 'Oct. 15 measures are ineffective, stating, "I believe that failing to control housing prices is a greater risk factor for the election." Yonhap News