Impacts of recent housing policies on the rental housing market in Korea

Abstract

This research is concerned with the effects of housing policy on rental housing market in Korea, in particular, the informal housing finance mechanism known as the <i>chonse</i>. In spite of many studies on <i>chonse</i> rental housing market, the relationship between government intervention in the housing market and <i>chonse</i> price has not been fully investigated. Most studies emphasize a role of <i>chonse</i> as an informal source of housing finance and none of them pay attention to the relationship between <i>chonse</i> price and government housing policies such as price control for new dwellings and rent regulation. Without a proper housing finance system in Korea, <i>chonse</i> deposit plays an important role in household tenure choice decision. Yet, many studies on <i>chonse</i> rental housings do not show clearly how it works. Furthermore, the interaction of price control and household tenure choice decision has never been a subject of study in Korea. The purpose of my study is, therefore, to contribute toward filling a gap in current knowledge about Korean housing market and to increase understanding of policy impacts on rental housing market in Korea