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The number of houses purchased by minors in Korea totaled 2,953 between 2019 and 2023, according to Rep. Min Hong-chul of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea.

The lawmaker said on Monday that the data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport indicates that those who own multiple homes have been purchasing properties under the names of their minor children. He called for thorough investigations to ensure there were no illegal transactions or illicit gifting in the process of passing down assets through privilege from parents.

According to the data, these minors spent a total of 517 billion won ($381 million) on purchasing nearly 3,000 homes over the past five years. This means the scale of housing purchases by minors amounts to an average of 590 houses and 100 billion won per year.

Looking at the regions where these minors purchased homes, Seoul accounted for 628 houses, Gyeonggi Province for 869 and Incheon for 275, meaning that the Seoul metropolitan area makes up a total of 1,772 houses, or 60 percent.

The individual with the most purchases among these minors owns 22 houses. This minor bought six houses in 2020, 15 in 2021 and one in 2022, with the purchases spread across regions such as Seoul, Busan and North Jeolla Province. The total purchase amount reached 2.37 billion won.

Following closely was a minor who owned 21 houses in South Gyeongsang Province. The lawmaker highlighted that this buyer is under the age of 9.

"Measures must be taken to reduce the widening gap that starts from the very beginning of life, addressing the increasingly severe issue of inequality," Min said.