Hwaseong City said Wednesday it has approved the conversion of "Byeongjeom Station Woonam First Vill Suite" in Jinan-dong, Byeongjeom-gu, from a residential hotel (saenghwal sukbak siseol) to an officetel.
The approved Byeongjeom Station Woonam First Vill Suite is a single building with five basement floors and 15 above-ground floors, comprising a total of 134 units, and was originally approved for use as a residential hotel. The building owner applied to the city for a change of use to operate the building as an officetel, and the city granted final approval after a review conducted in accordance with relevant laws and procedures.
The approval is a measure under the "Support Plan for Legal Use of Residential Hotels" announced by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) in October 2024. Residential hotels were introduced for lodging purposes, but as some facilities were used in effect for residential purposes, institutional confusion and public inconvenience have continued.
In response, the government proposed measures to enable residential hotels to be used legally, either through legitimate operation by filing as a lodging business or by changing use to an officetel or similar designation.
In line with this government policy, Hwaseong City has operated a Residential Hotel Support Center, providing consultation and consulting to building owners and stakeholders on lodging business filing procedures, the possibility of changing use, and administrative procedures overall.
The Byeongjeom Station Woonam First Vill Suite also proceeded with the conversion process based on this administrative support. Once the subsequent approval-for-use procedures are completed following this approval, the burden of administrative regulations such as corrective orders and the imposition of enforcement fines—which had been a concern regarding illegal residential use of existing residential hotels—is expected to be reduced.
"Because the residential hotel issue is directly tied to citizens' property rights, it is important to support a smooth transition to legal use within the scope permitted by law," said Jung Myung-jo, head of Hwaseong City's architecture division. "The city will strive to reduce public inconvenience and ensure the system takes root stably through consultation that considers on-site conditions and customized administration."
