NEW PUBLIC HOUSE DESIGNS IN SEOUL

[Anchor Lead]

Public rental apartments are known to be small and inconvenient. But from now on newly built public housing in Seoul will be more spacious and equipped with community amenities like swimming pools.

[Pkg]

Kim Bok-sun has lived in a 33㎡ public rental apartment for almost 30 years. Her tiny kitchen can barely accommodate one person.

[Soundbite] Kim Bok-sun(Public Rental Apartment Resident) : "When I have guests, I can't treat them to a cup of tea or a meal because my place is too small."

Most of the public rental apartments in Seoul are less than 60㎡ in size. More than half are less than 40㎡. With many public housing complexes being over 30 years old, aged facilities and lack of parking spaces have become serious issues. The Seoul city government has decided to build public rental apartments measuring more than 60㎡ in the next five years. They will account for 30 percent of public housing. That means they will be enlarged by 1.5 times to make them spacious enough for a family of three or four. They will also feature island kitchen layouts and built-in air-conditioning, as well as swimming pools and other community amenities. To prevent discrimination against low-income households, apartment units will be allocated randomly. The Seoul city government will apply the new regulations in phases to some 33,000 units in public rental apartment complexes that are over 30 years old.

[Soundbite] Oh Se-hoon(Seoul Mayor) : "I will make sure the residents of public rental housing can move to better and more comfortable apartments as soon as possible."

However, concerns are rising over where to relocate the existing residents while their homes are being rebuilt and how to deal with a higher rent after reconstruction.

[Soundbite] Cho Jung-heun(Korea Association of Property Appraisers) : "Rental prices will inevitably go up due to costs of construction or renovation if new or old apartments, as well as their larger size."

The Seoul Metropolitan Government says the rent will depend on residents' income, not on the size or quality of their apartments.