LH housing backlog: 209,270 approved units await construction

Approximately 209,270 housing units approved by the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) have yet to begin construction, according to data released by National Assembly member Jeong Hee-yong. The unstarted projects cover a land area roughly three times the size of Yeouido. The backlog consists of 101,634 units for sale and 107,636 rental units.

Delays are concentrated in the Seoul metropolitan area, which accounts for 63 of the 111 unstarted sites. Gyeonggi Province has the highest number of stalled projects with 41 locations, followed by Seoul with 18 and Incheon with 4.

The primary cause for the delay is cited as ‘immature land conditions,’ affecting nearly 80% of the units. This includes ongoing compensation for existing buildings or obstacles, as well as incomplete infrastructure such as roads and pipelines. Another 20% of delays are attributed to administrative issues, including local government cost-sharing negotiations and civil complaints.

While the government has announced plans to accelerate the timeline from approval to construction, critics argue that current measures lack the specificity needed to resolve the existing bottleneck of approved but unstarted projects.