[Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]
[Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]

"Anything below a certain amount is not normal." "The standard unit should go for at least 100 million won or more."

These were among the messages posted in a KakaoTalk group chat for residents of a Seoul apartment complex between June and November last year. The Seoul Metropolitan Government's Civil Affairs Judicial Police Bureau announced Monday that it had booked a man identified only as A on charges of violating the Licensed Real Estate Agents Act for leading a price-fixing scheme through a KakaoTalk open chat room, and referred the case to prosecutors.

A is accused of repeatedly posting messages in the residents' group chat designed to discourage listings below a specific price, with the intent of improperly influencing market prices. Investigators found that he repeatedly named a concrete price floor for specific units at an apartment complex identified as B and urged residents not to list below that threshold. He also labeled real estate agents who advertised listings at lower prices as "cage brokers" — a derogatory term — and persistently denounced them as unscrupulous agents working against the interests of apartment owners.

A also posted numerous messages casting nearby agents who listed lower-priced units in a negative light, writing that residents were "being pushed around by cage brokers" and warning them "not to fall for cage broker talk," investigators found.

A is also accused of repeatedly and without reasonable basis claiming that legitimately advertised listings — placed at the request of sellers — were fake. He posted messages framing normal transactions as attempts to "drag prices down," allegedly inciting residents and obstructing the normal business operations of nearby real estate agents.

Under the Licensed Real Estate Agents Act, anyone who uses notices, online communities or similar channels to discourage brokerage requests below a certain price — with the intent of improperly influencing market prices — and thereby obstructs the work of licensed real estate agents faces up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won.

The city ran a dedicated reporting period for real estate price collusion from February through late June, focusing its investigation on densely built apartment areas in Gangnam, Seocho and Songpa-gu, where complaints were most frequent. The probe targeted four types of conduct: pressuring sellers to advertise at above-market prices, steering listings below a certain price threshold away from the market through online channels, refusing co-brokerage arrangements, and posting fake listings to manipulate market prices. Those caught engaging in such conduct face up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won ($20,900). Seoul has built a coordination framework with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Korea Real Estate Board and other relevant agencies, and relies on tips from the public. Informants who submit decisive evidence contributing to a conviction may receive a reward of up to 200 million won following a review.

Lee Chang-seok, director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Civil Affairs Judicial Police Bureau, said apartment prices have continued to rise amid a housing supply shortage and instability in the jeonse market, creating conditions that have allowed price-fixing schemes through online communities to persist. "This kind of price collusion distorts real estate values and threatens the integrity of healthy property transactions," he said.


cook@heraldcorp.com