An air conditioner [123rf]
An air conditioner [123rf]

A story about a tenant in southern Gyeonggi Province who says her landlord repeatedly interfered with her air conditioner use has gone viral, stirring controversy online.

The account was posted Sunday on the online community Bobaedream under the title "Is my landlord really in the right here?"

The author, identified only as A, said she is a young first-time worker who moved into a four-story villa in southern Gyeonggi Province just two weeks ago. She pays a deposit of 30 million won ($19,500), a monthly rent of 450,000 won and a maintenance fee of 30,000 won, and covers all utility bills — including electricity — herself.

A said she had been leaving the air conditioner running continuously because inverter-type units are more energy-efficient when left on than when switched on and off repeatedly. She shared a screenshot of a text message the landlord sent her.

In the first message, sent June 17, the landlord cited "usage precautions from an air conditioner technician," warning that running the unit for extended periods could overheat the outdoor compressor and create a fire hazard. The landlord asked A to switch to fan mode to save electricity and avoid straining the machine. The message also said that tenants who work from home all day run the air conditioner far longer than others, and instructed her to turn it off after 1 a.m. and open the veranda, windows and inner doors to let in fresh air.

The landlord did not stop there. On June 20 — apparently after noticing the unit was still on — the landlord sent another message asking A to turn off the air conditioner and open the windows on "a cool, rainy day like today" to save electricity.

A replied that opening the windows on the second floor let in too many insects such as gnats. The landlord nonetheless sent another message on June 22, writing words to the effect of "it's breezy outside — open the windows and turn off the AC~~." The landlord then asked what A planned to do when the real heat arrived and what would happen if a sensor broke down, before adding: "Unit 201 is the only one with the air conditioner on — do as you please. I feel disrespected when my words are ignored."

A said she stopped using the air conditioner entirely for three days after receiving that message, wondering if she had done something wrong. "But it was so hot that I turned it back on, and the landlord called me and made a huge fuss — threatening to cancel the lease and take back the 30 million won deposit," she said. "I'm new to all this and I don't know if this is normal. No matter how I think about it, it doesn't seem right."

The post drew widespread criticism of the landlord online. Commenters wrote that "landlords like this still exist?"; that "the tenant pays for the electricity — it's not the landlord's place to interfere"; that "this looks like classic gapjil"; that "they seem to be taking advantage of her because she's young and inexperienced"; and that "it looks like they're setting up to blame the tenant for negligence and charge her for repairs if the unit breaks down."

Under Korean law, once a lease is signed, a tenant has the right to use the property freely within normal bounds. Under the Civil Act, a landlord's obligation is to provide the property in a usable condition — not to control the specific lifestyle choices of the tenant.

Legal experts generally hold that if the tenant pays the electricity bill and air conditioner use falls within ordinary residential use, the landlord cannot restrict it. Unless the lease explicitly includes clauses limiting heating and cooling hours or imposing sanctions for excessive use, a landlord cannot unilaterally dictate how or when a tenant uses the air conditioner.


bbo@heraldcorp.com