The number of recognized jeonse fraud victims is approaching a cumulative 40,000. The Jeonse Fraud Victim Support Committee approved 548 additional cases in its deliberations last month, bringing the cumulative total of recognized cases to 39,669. Purchases of damaged homes by the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) also expanded to 9,707 units as of the first half of the year.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) said on July 8 that the committee held three plenary sessions on June 10, 17 and 24, deliberating a total of 1,409 cases and finally recognizing 548 as jeonse fraud victims. Jeonse is a Korean lease system requiring a large lump-sum deposit instead of monthly rent.
Of the 548 approved cases, 505 were new applications and 43 were cases in which objections to previous decisions were accepted. The remaining 861 cases under review either failed to meet the requirements for victim recognition or were excluded from support. Specifically, 458 cases were rejected for failing to meet the requirements, and 207 cases were ruled ineligible because the tenants could recover their full deposits through guarantee insurance or priority repayment funds. Another 196 objections were dismissed as still failing to meet the requirements.
As a result, the cumulative number of jeonse fraud victims and related cases finally determined by the committee rose to 39,669. Decisions requesting cooperation for emergency suspension of auctions and public sales totaled 1,201. Tenants determined to be victims have received a total of 68,415 instances of support, including housing, financial and legal procedure assistance.
In terms of overall application processing, the committee has handled 66,142 cases to date. Of these, 39,669 cases, or 60.0%, were approved, while 15,085 cases, or 22.8%, were rejected for failing to meet the requirements. Exclusions accounted for 6,640 cases, or 10.0%, and dismissed objections totaled 4,748 cases, or 7.2%. Tenants who were not recognized as jeonse fraud victims, or who were recognized only under certain categories, may file objections under Article 15 of the Jeonse Fraud Victims Act. Even if an objection is dismissed, applicants can reapply for a new determination if circumstances change.
LH's purchases of jeonse fraud-damaged homes are also expanding. Purchases totaled 9,707 units as of the first half of the year. This marks a significant acceleration compared with 2024, when purchases for the entire year stood at just 90 units. In the first half of last year, LH purchased a monthly average of 163 units for a cumulative 977 units, rising to a monthly average of 655 units and a cumulative 3,932 units in the second half. In the first half of this year, purchases increased to a monthly average of 784 units and a cumulative 4,708 units.
MOLIT and LH are operating purchase review meetings to speed up the process of acquiring damaged homes. They are also running a fast-track system that unifies the preliminary consultation and purchase request procedures. The plan is to continue consulting with district courts on expediting auctions to support victims' housing stability. As of the end of last month, 23,019 preliminary consultation applications had been received, of which 15,612 were deemed eligible for purchase. Actual purchases amounted to 9,707 units.
By purchase method, the exercise of preferential purchase rights accounted for the vast majority at 9,637 units. Negotiated purchases totaled 32 units and trust purchases 38 units. By region, Seoul recorded the most purchases at 3,190 units, with notable results also in Gyeonggi at 1,553 units and Daejeon at 1,358 units.
A system for partially advancing auction surplus payments to victims of jointly collateralized properties will also take effect this month. Until now, auction surpluses for jointly collateralized damaged homes could only be calculated and paid after auctions and public sales of all collateralized properties were completed. Going forward, victims will be able to receive part of the auction surplus in advance when the auction or public sale of their individual damaged home is completed.
This system is a follow-up measure to the "Jeonse Fraud Victim Support Plan" announced on February 26 this year. It is intended to accelerate recovery for joint-collateral victims ahead of the minimum guarantee system for jeonse fraud victims and the advance payment-later settlement system for victims of unauthorized contracts such as trust fraud, both scheduled to take effect in November.
Tenants who have suffered jeonse fraud can apply for victim determination with the city or provincial government of their residence. Once determined to be a victim through committee resolution, they can receive detailed guidance on support in person or by phone through the Korea Housing & Urban Guarantee Corporation (HUG) Jeonse Damage Support Center and its branches.
