This year, housing construction in the Seoul metropolitan area has reached only 37% of its annual target, and the government anticipates it will be difficult to meet the year-end goal. The government projects that the year-end construction volume will be between 218,000 and 235,000 units, falling short of the initial target of 268,000 units by 33,000 to 50,000 units.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the total housing construction target for the Seoul metropolitan area this year is 268,000 units. However, as of the second week of October, actual construction has exceeded 99,000 units. The government plans to focus on public housing, new purchases, and private redevelopment projects to raise the total to between 218,000 and 235,000 units, which would represent 81% to 88% of the annual goal.
There remains a significant amount of work to be done in various sectors. Of the annual target of 62,000 public housing units, only 16,200 have begun construction. For new purchases, 13,000 units have started out of a target of 42,000, and in private redevelopment projects, only 17,000 units have commenced from a goal of 72,000.
The government has explained that there are structural factors leading to concentrated construction in the fourth quarter. A ministry official stated, "Public housing tends to be concentrated at the end of the year," noting that site preparation and housing construction often occur simultaneously, resulting in a backlog of public housing projects in the latter half of the year.
The government also believes that the start of private redevelopment projects has been delayed this year. The official remarked, "Some years see a lot of construction in the first quarter, while others see it in the second quarter. This year, both redevelopment and public housing projects have been concentrated in the second half, but we believe we can still achieve 218,000 to 235,000 units by year-end."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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