Even homeowners can apply: LH slashes eligibility rules as public-sale units go unsold in regions

Mass vacancies at Wonju Musil public-sale complex

Seoul-region gap widens; experts cite need to relocate public institutions

A construction site for an apartment complex in a regional city [Newsis]

Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) is sharply relaxing eligibility requirements for public-sale housing in regional cities to clear unsold inventory. Complexes that failed to fill units during their initial subscription rounds have launched additional recruitment drives, but with leftover units persisting, LH has effectively dismantled the standard subscription threshold. The problem is not confined to the regions — large numbers of unsold public-sale units remain in the greater Seoul area as well, prompting further rounds of recruitment there.

Wonju public-sale units go unfilled as LH eases eligibility rules

According to the pre-sale industry, LH on Monday issued a "relaxed-eligibility additional resident recruitment notice" for public-sale housing at Block A-2 of the Wonju Musil district, covering the Musil-dong, Panbu-myeon and Heungup-myeon areas of Wonju, Gangwon Province. The current recruitment covers 182 units. LH had already run an additional recruitment drive for 191 remaining units in April, but units were still left over, prompting this new round. According to the LH notice, the complex is now entering its third recruitment drive, following the initial resident recruitment in September last year and the additional round in April.

Block A-2 of the Wonju Musil district comprises 560 units in total, of which 295 are designated as public-sale units. The exclusive use areas are 74 square meters (88 units) and 84 square meters (207 units). Pre-sale prices range from 356.99 million to 379.78 million won ($280,000) for the 74-square-meter units and from 404.19 million to 429.99 million won for the 84-square-meter units. Marketing materials highlight the complex's location in the transit-oriented area near KTX Wonju Station, along with nearby schools, a hypermarket and Wonju City Hall as lifestyle amenities.

Only 113 of the 295 public-sale units were filled during the initial offering, leaving 182 unsold — meaning just 38 percent of the original supply was absorbed. After subsequent recruitment rounds also failed to clear the inventory, LH effectively lifted all eligibility restrictions for this latest drive.

Under the new notice, any adult aged 19 or older, as well as corporations, may apply. Homeowners are eligible, and there are no requirements related to place of residence or housing savings account enrollment. Income and asset thresholds do not apply, nor does any prior subscription win history. Even previous contract holders or disqualified winners at Block A-2 may apply.

Standard public-sale housing is normally open only to householders without existing homes who reside in the area where the housing is being built, with priority given to those enrolled in a housing savings account. The latest additional recruitment for Block A-2 waives all of these basic eligibility criteria.

The phenomenon is not limited to regional cities. A large number of unsold public-sale units have also emerged in Incheon. On Tuesday, LH issued an additional resident recruitment notice for 252 of the 308 public-sale units at Block B2 of the Incheon Gajeong 2 district — meaning roughly 82 percent of the total supply remains unsold. The complex held its initial recruitment for all 308 units in April, followed by an additional round for 234 units in July.

LH's subscription platform has seen a string of notices for remaining or additional recruitment drives throughout September. Beyond the Wonju Musil A-2 and Incheon Gajeong 2 B2 complexes, additional recruitment is also under way for unsold units at Siheung Hajung Block A-4, the Gwangju-Jeonnam Innovation City Bitgaram LH Complex 1, Gwangju Hyocheon 2 LH Cheonnyeon Namu Complex 6, the Iksan Pyeonghwa public-sale housing and Daejeon Daedong 2 Block 1BL.

Experts: second round of public institution relocations key to reversing trend

The unsold-unit problem in the public-sale market mirrors the broader regional housing glut. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the number of unsold homes nationwide stood at 69,134 units at the end of August, up 917 units, or 1.3 percent, from the previous month. The greater Seoul area saw a 1.7 percent decline, while regional areas recorded a 2.5 percent increase to 49,998 units, accounting for 72.3 percent of the national total.

An apartment construction site near Dongdaegu Station [Herald DB]

Experts point first to a lack of regional infrastructure as the primary cause of unsold units even in the public-sale market. In areas with weak industrial and employment bases, the pool of genuine end-users who would absorb new housing supply is inherently limited. Analysts note that areas lacking adequate transportation, education and everyday amenities struggle to attract buyers even when pre-sale prices are relatively low.

The greater Seoul area, by contrast, tends to concentrate demand around public-sale projects with good access to Seoul or favorable development prospects such as expanded transit links. Data LH released earlier this year on 2025 public housing subscriptions showed that last year's public-sale offerings at Gwacheon Juam, Goyang Changneung and Hanam Gyosan drew competition ratios of 154-to-1, 104-to-1 and 87-to-1, respectively. The figures starkly illustrate how demand for the same public-sale product can diverge depending on location.

"The fact that vacancies are appearing even in public-sale housing reflects supply that does not match demand," said Yoo Seon-jong, a real estate professor at Konkuk University. "Until there is a fresh influx of population and industry into the regions, unsold units will realistically be difficult to resolve, whether in the private or public sector."

Yoo added that the government's planned second round of public institution relocations has merit in dispersing functions concentrated in Seoul to the regions, but said its impact would only materialize if it provides an environment where people can move to the regions and put down roots.

hss@heraldcorp.com