Gyeonggi Province Designates 27 Cities and Counties, 24.6㎢ of Land in Speculative Real Estate Areas as Land Transaction Approval Zones

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park No-hun] Starting the 28th, approximately 24.60㎢ of forest and agricultural land in 27 cities and counties throughout Gyeonggi Province will be designated as land transaction approval zones for a two-year period through December 27, 2022.

This is the fourth measure following the designation of land transaction approval zones for speculative real estate development areas in three separate occasions in March, July, and August. The province plans to expand these newly identified speculative zones to land transaction approval zones to fundamentally block speculative land transactions in planned real estate development.

The province held the Gyeonggi Province Urban Planning Committee on the 17th to deliberate and approve the land transaction approval zone designation plan containing these measures, it announced on the 23rd.

The designation includes 6.2㎢ of forest land and roads/ditches in areas including Godeungdong, Simgokdong in Sujeong-gu, and Daejangsong in Bundang-gu of Seongnam City, and 5.5㎢ of forest land in areas such as Ssangjiri in Gosanmyeon and Hanunli in Geumgwangmyeon of Anseong City.

The designation of land transaction approval zones for speculative real estate development areas stems from the emergence of speculative land transaction practices as a social problem. Planned real estate developers purchase forest land and other areas that are practically difficult to develop at low prices, then sell them at inflated prices to shared investors while citing surrounding development prospects.

When designated as a land transaction approval zone, those who use land exceeding a certain area without approval or use it for unauthorized purposes face imprisonment for up to two years or a fine equivalent to 30% of the land price based on the individual public notice land price at the time of contract conclusion.

The province published the notice of approval zone designation in the Gyeonggi Province Gazette on the 23rd and plans to notify relevant cities and counties, competent registration offices, and related government agencies (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport).

An official from the province stated, "We determined that it is necessary to preemptively block speculative land transactions in planned real estate developments and applied more stringent land transaction approval standards," adding, "We plan to implement real estate speculation prevention measures including expanding the designation of land transaction approval zones for areas with speculative concerns and areas where speculation is occurring, in order to fundamentally block planned real estate speculation."