Rent and live in public hanok

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

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Sat, December 9, 2023 | 07:33

Society

Rent and live in public hanok

Posted : 2017-12-15 15:50

Updated : 2017-12-17 08:58

Visitors assess the interior of a hanok up for public bidding for two years rent by Seoul Metropolitan Government at a open house held Dec. 8. / Yonhap

Seoul government to rent out second traditional Korean house

By Kim Ji-soo

Bukchon Hanok Village, located in Jongno-gu, is a unique hybrid of a neighborhood. It's an old part of Seoul that at the same time accompanies modern structures such as the Hyundai building and the Constitutional Court alongside traditional-style Korean residential houses known as "hanok." It is also a tourist area, drawing both foreigners and Koreans to view the nooks and crannies of the small alleys that house both the old and the new.

A hanok located in the inner alleys of the neighborhood is for rent as part of a project by the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

A modernized version of the hanok was a popular form of housing for Seoulites in the 1970s, before most people moved to apartments. Now a rarity, they are mostly concentrated in Bukchon and Seochon, as a type of housing preferred by people now more willing to embrace the challenges of living in one.

But through a project with the city government, people have a chance to live in one of 29 affordable hanok, which are available to the public.

Last week, the city government put up for public bidding a second hanok that will be rented out for two years to a successful candidate. The city government held an open house there on Friday and Saturday. On the first day, a sizeable group of people gathered at the hanok, which is a unique combination of a two-story white Western-style structure linked to a two-bedroom hanok.

While the market value may be higher, the city government said it will begin the bidding at around 5.3 million won per year for the two-year lease.

Lee Ju-young, a 50-year-old who lives in Dongdaemun-gu, eastern Seoul, was seriously considering moving in. "We could use that Western-style part of the house as a library, and this hanok edifice as the living quarters. If I get to rent this, it would mean a return to hanok living many decades since I lived in one in my childhood. From then on, it's always been apartments," she said during the open house.

Yoo, a 35-year-old also from Seoul, surveyed the hanok with her husband, last Friday.

"We are looking at it with interest, as there is an elementary school nearby for our two children," she said, while she and her husband were busy assessing the walls and the necessary heating for the house. "But with so many people here today, I am afraid the bidding price may go up."

Interested bidders crowd the hanok up for bidding at Gahoe-dong, northern Seoul, Dec. 8. / Yonhap

The house has an area of about 83 square meters. It is also less affected by the noise and eyes of interested sightseers as it is located off the main roads.

The Western structure looks like it might date back to Japanese colonial times (1910-1945). Jung Mee-young, a team leader at the Hanok Development Division of the Housing & Architecture Bureau of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, said it's hard to determine the exact date when the hanok was built.

"Experts, however, will launch a study to see whether the white structure there may well be a modern/contemporary architectural relic that city might have to protect," Jung said. She said until recently, the city government had been renting out its hanok for traditional craft workshops. However, with the increasing interest in the traditional Korean lifestyle, including hanok, the city government decided to give people the chance to experience the pros and cons of living in one before purchase.

After Jung's brief presentation of the hanok and the bidding process, people bombarded her with questions about heating, parking, possible renovations and estimated monthly living costs.

The ardent interest in renting the hanok also stems, in part, from the uncertainty of when the city government will put up the next hanok for rent. The first one, located in Gye-dong, also in Bukchon, was rented out last year to a newlywed couple. The second one's inhabitant will be determined sometime this month.

janee@ktimes.com