![[김정태의 부동산주간뷰] The reason why there is a particularly strong backlash against the regulation of ‘stepping stone loans’: ZUM News](https://thumb.zumst.com/400x250/https://static.news.zumst.com/images/52/2024/10/20/07398b21899f445cb530f6166efd502f.jpg "[김정태의 부동산주간뷰] The reason why there is a particularly strong backlash against the regulation of ‘stepping stone loans’: ZUM News")
[서울=뉴스핌]Kim Jeong-tae, Construction and Real Estate Reporter = It was expected that the government’s ‘tightening of the purse strings’ would proceed in all directions after the domestic base interest rate cut, but from the public’s perspective, the government was caught in the back.
This is an attempt to suddenly restrict and lock down even the ‘Stepping Stone Loan’, a policy financial product tailored to the common people.
It was revealed that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which is in charge of stepping stone loans, recently verbally requested banks to restrict the handling of loans for this policy loan product. Although it is called a ‘request’, in reality it is no different from the government’s ‘instruction’, so banks have no choice but to follow it immediately.
There are two main reasons for the strong backlash from end users and public criticism. The only real hope for the low-income people in purchasing their own homes was attempted to be implemented without sufficient advance notice.
The gist of the loan restriction implementation is as follows. When a first-time home buyer receives a stepping stone loan, the existing 80% loan-to-value ratio (LTV) is reduced to 70%, and when signing up for a guarantee from the Korea Housing Finance Corporation, the highest priority repayment for small tenants, the so-called ‘air defense system’ (KRW 55 million in Seoul), is provided. was excluded from the loan. Since the stepping stone loan itself is tailored to the common people, the size of the loan is bound to decrease significantly.
In particular, ‘post-secured loans’ secured by newly built apartments that have not yet been registered have been virtually discontinued. This is devastating news for those planning to move into newly built apartments who need to borrow the down payment and balance right away, or for actual consumers whose loan amount has been reduced.
The restriction on handling of stepping stone loans was decided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and commercial banks at an emergency meeting on the 11th, and KB Kookmin Bank began implementing it three days later on the 14th, and other banks were scheduled to implement it from the 21st. The policy was quickly implemented in just 10 days.
There was no particular policy promotion or notice regarding this. Real consumers have no choice but to stamp their feet because they only find out about this absurd fact when they go to the bank counter.
From the government’s perspective, it may have been a measure to prevent this in advance due to concerns that the sharp increase in household loans would continue due to the cut in the base interest rate. Even if we understand this a hundred times, there is absolutely no consideration in policy.
In addition, the government’s lending regulations are still going back and forth, reducing the credibility of government policies. The financial authorities suddenly postponed the strengthening of the ‘Stress DSR (Total Debt Service Ratio)’ regulation, which was scheduled to be implemented at the end of June, for two months. This was criticized for causing an explosion in household loans and a surge in housing prices in the metropolitan area.
Then, the head of the Financial Supervisory Service put pressure on the banking sector to reduce household lending. In this process, the Financial Supervisory Service’s back and forth comments were inconsistent and only resulted in side effects that harmed actual loan users. As a result, the preferential interest rate benefits of the banking sector were reduced, and additional interest rates were increased and lending was blocked.
This stepping stone loan regulation has become the peak. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport appears to have taken a step back in response to the strong criticism, but looking at the press release from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport makes one feel a sense of betrayal.
On the 18th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport explained, “We would like to inform you that the suspension, complete suspension and withdrawal of measures to reduce the Housing and Urban Fund stepping stone loan are not true,” adding, “We plan to take complementary measures to minimize inconvenience to end users through consultation with relevant organizations as soon as possible.” “We would like to inform you that this is the case,” he said in an official statement.
Reading between the lines, it is interpreted that although it has caused confusion, it means that the reduction of policy finance will proceed. However, this is contrary to what Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Park Sang-woo revealed at a press conference just a month ago.
Minister Park hinted that there will be no reduction in policies such as stepping stone loans, saying, “We will try to avoid reducing the target of policy mortgage loans or touching the policy mortgage target as much as possible.”
On the other hand, financial authorities such as the Financial Services Commission are pointing out policy loans as one of the main causes of the increase in household loans, which is reducing the credibility of government policies. The government’s honest position on this and its policy direction must be properly informed to the public.
In the end, given the government’s will to prevent the rapid increase in household loans, it has become clear that it is using loan regulations and interest rates to suppress demand. This is expected to have a significant impact on the real estate market.
Immediate regulation of housing demand is highly likely to lead to a recession in the housing market and a ‘balloon effect’ that causes the jeonse and monthly rent markets to fluctuate.
This is expected to have a significant impact on the housing supply market. If demand shrinks in a situation where private supply is sluggish due to a surge in construction costs, the vitality of housing supply is likely to decline further, creating a vicious cycle between housing supply and demand.
For this reason, there are still question marks as to whether the government’s redevelopment project for Seoul and the first new city, as well as the supply of the third new city, will be carried out on time and properly.
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