The Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) is simplifying its procedures to expedite the acquisition of new construction rental units in the Seoul metropolitan area. The aim is to expand the supply of rental housing by allowing applications with only a simplified business plan, without the need for detailed design drawings.
On August 25, LH announced the introduction of the 'Simplified New Construction Purchase Application and Preliminary Site Review Project' to secure new construction rental units utilizing privately held land.
This initiative is designed to reduce the time and administrative burden for individuals or corporate entities interested in participating in the new construction purchase agreement but lacking experience. Previously, potential applicants faced costs related to preparing design drawings before determining their eligibility to participate, which created a barrier to entry.
The new approach allows applicants to submit a simplified business plan without the need for design drawings. Land in various regions can be applied for collectively online through the LH website. If the preliminary site review is passed, the existing document review process will be expedited, and the site-related items will receive full marks in subsequent purchase reviews.
Eligibility for application includes individuals or corporations seeking to develop sites capable of constructing 500 or more units in the metropolitan area. In regulated areas, applications can be made for sites with the potential for 200 or more units, and multiple sites can be combined for application.
Eligible sites include vacant land resulting from the consolidation of office buildings, the relocation or closure of supermarkets and factories, financial management sites utilizing trusts, REITs, and funds, as well as urban vacant land owned by individuals or associations. However, properties that have already been submitted in the past three years are excluded. LH has also added requirements for land ownership or consent for appraisal to enhance the effectiveness of the project.
The simplified business plan should be no more than five A4 pages and should focus on site-related factors such as accessibility to public transportation, educational conditions, access to amenities, and residential environment.
LH will establish a separate 'Preliminary Site Review Committee' to assess the suitability of the proposed sites based on the business plans. Properties approved by the committee will be exempt from the existing document review process and will receive full marks for site-related items in subsequent purchase reviews.
A fast-track process will also be implemented to ensure that the quantities applied for in this project can be contracted within the year. Properties that pass the preliminary site review must supplement their design drawings within one month to maintain the effectiveness of the preliminary review.
Details can be found on the LH Cheongyak Plus website, and applications will be accepted online until the 15th of next month.
To promote the project and encourage applications, LH will hold project briefings and one-on-one consultations. The project briefing will take place on the 1st of next month at the LH Southern Gyeonggi Regional Headquarters auditorium in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. One-on-one consultations will be available by reservation until the 14th of next month.
As the government emphasizes the expansion of public rental supply in prime urban locations, LH's procedural simplification can be seen as part of an effort to quickly convert privately held vacant land into rental housing units.
Cho Kyung-sook, head of LH's Housing Welfare Division, stated, “We have significantly lowered the barriers to participation in the project to supply quality rental housing more quickly in prime urban locations. By actively utilizing excellent land held by the private sector, we aim to reduce the burden on developers and expedite the supply of housing for public stability.”
* This article has been translated by AI.
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