Gyeonggi Province Catches 48 False Reporters of Real Estate Transactions with Reduced Prices

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park Noh-hun] People who filed false reports on real estate transactions, including reporting transaction prices below actual amounts, were caught in a special investigation by Gyeonggi Province and faced administrative fines totaling 350 million won.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 26th that during a special investigation from April to July, it examined 3,503 suspected false reporting cases in real estate transactions across 31 cities and counties in the province, caught 48 false reporters, and imposed administrative fines of 350 million won.

The province investigated 3,503 cases including suspected underreporting of actual transaction prices such as up-down contracts, false reporting of contract dates, transactions between related parties (relatives), and cases where source of funds verification was required due to suspected gifts in fund acquisition plans for real estate transactions of 300 million won or higher.

As a result, the province caught a total of 48 violators: 3 who executed "down contracts" (dual contracts with lower prices written in the contract to reduce capital gains tax), 13 who executed "up contracts" with amounts higher than actual transaction prices, and 32 who delayed reporting or falsely reported contract dates or failed to submit documents. The province imposed administrative fines of 56 million won on the 3 down-contract violators, 170 million won on the 13 up-contract violators, and 119 million won on the remaining 32 violators.

Additionally, the province reported 155 cases to the National Tax Service where real estate buyers and sellers were confirmed to be related parties such as family or relatives, or reported transactions at unreasonable prices compared to market rates, and requested tax investigations to determine whether there were illegal acts such as capital gains tax evasion. By type: ▲77 cases of related-party transactions ▲14 cases of suspected transaction prices ▲46 cases where transaction amounts could not be verified ▲14 cases of asset swaps ▲4 other cases.

In this special investigation, the province also examined unfair practices by licensed real estate agents and caught 15 cases including excessive brokerage commissions and omissions in property inspection reports. The licensed real estate agents involved are scheduled for prosecution and administrative measures.

According to major cases caught, seller A in Suwon reported that he sold land subscription rights in Homaesil-dong to buyer C for 410 million won, the subscription amount, through the brokerage of licensed agent B. The investigation revealed that the transaction was actually made for 520 million won, including a premium of 110 million won, and administrative fines of 56 million won were imposed on the seller, buyer, and licensed agent.

Seller D in Gwangju reported a transaction of townhouses in Opo-eup with buyer E for 350 million won, but an investigation found the actual transaction amount was 310 million won, showing that 40 million won was reported higher than actual. The province imposed administrative fines of 18.6 million won on the seller and buyer.

Seller F and buyer G in Gwangmyeong entered into a purchase-sale contract for an apartment in Chulsan-dong for 380 million won and reported it as actual transaction. However, the investigation revealed that the two are mother and daughter, and the case was reported to the National Tax Service on suspicion of gift tax evasion.

Currently, the province is conducting additional investigations on the remaining 1,151 cases, excluding 2,168 cases that were closed as having no violations, beyond the cases caught in this investigation, and plans to impose administrative fines and request tax investigations as results are obtained.

Hong Ji-sun, Director of Urban Housing at Gyeonggi Province, said, "In the second half of the year, we plan to conduct special investigations into suspected false reports on real estate transactions to establish fair and transparent transaction order."