People Power Party lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo [Yonhap]
People Power Party lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo [Yonhap]

People Power Party lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo on Wednesday criticized the government's tax reform plan, saying it amounted to "in effect threatening elderly residents in their 60s and 70s living in Seoul's Gangnam to get out."

Ahn made the remarks in a Facebook post, saying the plan "crushed long-term investment by young people in their 20s and 30s through the ISA nerf, and upended retirement preparations for those in their 40s and 50s."

"The plan sharply raises the comprehensive real estate tax on homeowners with properties valued at 3.2 billion won ($2.24 million) or more, removes the 'holding' component from the special long-term ownership deduction and allows only 'residency,' and caps the capital gains tax deduction at 1 billion won," he said. "There are no exceptions even for single-home owners."

He added that "the core of this government's real estate tax reform is concentrated taxation on ultra-high-priced homes and heavier taxes on non-resident homeowners," and that "the targets are clear — elderly residents in their 60s and 70s living in Gangnam's three districts."

Ahn went on to say that 87 percent of ultra-high-priced homes in the 4 billion won range in Seoul are concentrated in Gangnam's three districts, which also have the highest concentration of homeowners in their 60s and 70s. "When the tax reform takes effect, Seoul's elderly in that age group will take a direct hit. In Gyeonggi Province, seniors in areas such as Bundang and Gwacheon will be similarly affected," he said.

He criticized as "a populist carve-out" a provision that offers up to 500 million won in capital gains tax relief for homeowners aged 65 or older who sell their metropolitan-area homes and relocate to other regions. "In plain terms, it is telling retired people in their 60s and 70s in Gangnam — people with no income — to hurry up, sell their homes, clear out and move away," Ahn said.

He also questioned who would benefit from pushing elderly residents out of Seoul. "Is the plan to hand those homes over to supporters of this government — people who can buy a home without a mortgage, receive hundreds of millions of won in bonuses, and take out 100 million-won-plus liens?" he asked.

Ahn called the government's 2026 tax revision bill "a politically motivated 'abandonment-of-the-elderly' tax bill dressed up in taxes and regulation," saying it should be scrapped without further debate.


mp1256@heraldcorp.com