A woman passes by a real estate agency in Seoul, Nov. 14. Yonhap

Seoul will provide multilingual real estate counseling for foreign residents to protect them from fraud involving "jeonse" or lump-sum deposit leases, the city government announced, Sunday.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, counseling sessions will be held at the Seoul Foreign Residents Support Center in Daelim-dong, Yeongdeungpo District, every Monday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., starting Nov. 18.

English-speaking real estate agents will consult directly; interpretation will also be provided in seven languages -- English, Chinese, Vietnamese, Mongolian, Russian, Uzbek, and Urdu.

Non-Korean residents who wish to consult with real estate agents can visit the Seoul Foreign Residents Support Center, call (2229-4900), or apply via email at help@sfrc.seoul.kr. A multilingual counselor will provide the initial consultation. For more information, visit the Seoul Foreigner Portal at global.seoul.go.kr.

The city government plans to consider expanding the service to weekends after evaluating demand and gathering feedback from non-Korean residents.

Seoul operates 293 global real estate offices in downtown areas, including 219 offering services in English, 50 in Japanese, 17 in Chinese, and 7 in other languages such as Spanish and Russian.

The global real estate brokerage project was launched in 2008 during the tenure of Mayor Oh Se-hoon, aimed at supporting the settlement of foreign residents in the capital.

As of November, 54 districts in Yongsan, 32 in Gangnam, and 31 in Seocho provide multilingual real estate services.

In 2014, the Seoul Foreign Residents Support Center was established to offer free services to non-Korean residents in Seoul. These services include multilingual counseling, Korean language education, community activity support, and programs to help with early adaptation and social integration.

Since 2018, lawyers and certified labor attorneys have been providing professional counseling on legal and labor matters to assist foreign residents settle in the capital.

"Getting a house and signing a contract is the most basic element of living in Seoul," said Lee Hae-sun, Seoul's global city policy officer. "The city will continue to expand support in various fields so that foreigners can conduct real estate transactions more safely and conveniently to establish a stable settlement as well as continue their comfortable daily lives."