Korea Housing Finance Corporation (HF) signs the HF Dream House Social Contribution Agreement at the headquarters in charge of the eastern area of the Seoul metropolitan area of HF on June 17 to improve housing environments and create social jobs for the marginalized. Choi Jun-woo (left), president of HF, poses for a photo shoot with Nam Sang-oh, chairman of the Housing Welfare Solidarity after signing the agreement. (Photo: HF)

Choi Jun-woo, who took office as president of Korea Housing Finance Corporation (HF) in February, said HF will focus on strengthening housing finance to enhance housing welfare for the elderly and ordinary people who do not have homes.

At his first official press conference since taking office in May, Choi laid out his plan to resolve inconveniences in HF’s services and systems and strengthen housing stability.

Choi expressed his intention to continue to push for higher guarantees for leases, lower guarantee fees, expand the scope of those who can apply for housing pensions and strengthen the right to receive pensions for those who do not own homes.

HF will launch 40-year mortgage products, which are scheduled to be released in the second half of this year, to serve as a strong support to help vulnerable people such as young people and newlyweds buy and own their own homes, Choi said.

Choi added that HF will expand the issuance of ultra-long-term house mortgage securities (MBSs) and environmental, social and governance (ESG) bonds to practice heartwarming housing financing.

In order to lead a non-face-to-face financial service environment sparked by the spread of the COVID-19 virus, HF plans to speed up the pace of its digital transformation work and step up its efforts to create digital-friendly designs by introducing robot-based work automation technology and setting up the Digital Finance Department.

Choi also stressed that 80 percent of HF Headquarters’ workforce moved to Busan and settled in local communities in the city in the six years since the headquarters moved to Busan.

HF hired 26 percent of its new employees in Busan from local colleges and high schools , contributing to the creation of jobs in the Busan area.

In particular, HF plans to further expand social contribution activities for local communities.

Currently, the corporation focuses on remodeling community facilities for senior citizens such as senior citizen centers and fixing homes for the marginalized in Busan by dividing areas of its social contribution activities into the residential welfare, elderly welfare and local welfare areas.

“The Korea Housing Finance Corporation plans to upgrade and ramp up community contribution activities such as increasing jobs for those in need through collaboration with Busan City this year,” Choi said.

In the meantime, HF announced on June 17 that it has signed an agreement with the Housing Welfare Solidarity to improve the housing environment and create social jobs for the marginalized.

HF plans to select 240 vulnerable households including elderly people living alone and low-income households and improve their residential environments and expand safety facilities such as putting old wallpaper on walls and oilpaper on floor, replacing LED lights with new ones, repairing insect nets and installing indoor safety bars through this agreement.

In particular, HF plans to hire 160 unskilled building technicians to provide them with on-site work opportunities and opportunities to grow into experienced professional workers.

“HF is a public institution responsible for the housing welfare of the people,” Choi said. “We will steadily make efforts to improve the quality of life of the marginalized and create social jobs for them,” Choi said.

The HF Dream House Project, which marks its 10th anniversary in 2021, is a representative residential welfare social contribution activity of HF. HF supported improvements in 1,204 households’ residential environments from 2012 to 2020.

Established on March 1, 2004, HF is a state-run corporation that facilitates the long-term, stable supply of housing funds and other related instruments, thereby promoting national welfare and developing the national economy.

HF runs wide-ranging housing finance operations, including the supply of Bogeumjari Loan and Confirming Loan, the issuance of credit guarantees for housing finance and Home Pension (Reverse Mortgage) and the securitization of mortgage-backed claims and other instruments.