Belated but grand? The future of public housing in Korea

•South Korea started public housing program fairly late.•It has been expanded with strong public and political support since its introduction.•Considering recent changes, Korean public housing should utilize private sector.•Korean experience has implications for other developing countries' housing policy.

South Korea is renowned for its burgeoning economy, but its history of public housing is relatively short compared to those of other developed countries. Until the end of the 1980s, like other developing countries, squatter settlements were rampant. Following its introduction in 1989, however, public housing has consistently grown, accounting for 5.0% of Korean households as of the end of 2012. Even yet, Korean politicians continually compete for votes by claiming that the supply should be further increased by 10%. Though Korea's public housing program got off to a late start, it can be said that it has become quite grand. It has, however, faced complications such as land and funding deficiencies, which are products of the late start. In addition, housing stock and housing market conditions differ from those of other developed countries. This is why better measures such as the utilization of private housing stock are being discussed.