Chapter 68 - New Start in Korea (1) – PART 1
Gun-Ho read an economic newspaper every day and surfed on the Internet in his office-tel in Yeongdeungpo District (“Yeongdeungpo”).
“Since I made a lot of money by investing in real estate in China, let’s do that in Korea too. Let’s start by researching the real estate market in Korea.”
Gun-Ho wanted to buy a condo located in Gangnam.
At that time, TowerPalace in Dogok Town was the most popular condo, and RaemianFirstige in Banpo Town was under construction.
“Sh*t! They are too expensive!”
Gun-Ho thought he wanted to buy a condo in Gangnam and run a small business, or get a job just like he did when he was in China. However, the condo price was not affordable.
“I won’t be able to buy even one condo with the money I made from China!”
Gun-Ho was disappointed.
“When I was living in a OneRoomTel in Dujeong Town, Cheonan City, I was jealous of people living in a new condo there. The condo price of Gangnam is five times of that condo in Dujeong Town. The housing price polarization is so extreme! Should I get a loan to buy it? Who’s going to pay for the interest then? I don’t even have a job.”
Gun-Ho had no idea what to do.
He was sure that the price of a condo in Gangnam will increase, but he couldn’t afford to buy one. That made him sigh. He started searching on the Internet again.
“What is this? They are photos of the current Apgujeong Town and the same town 60 years ago where there was a pear tree farm. It’s a black-and-white photo. Who uploaded this kind of comparison photos?”
There was a description of the photos below it.
[Oh my goodness, father. You should have bought the land there at that time.]
Gun-Ho chuckled.
“There still has to be a land like that. We just don’t know which one. If it is easy to find out, everyone will be rich.”
“Can anyone do that? It doesn’t have to be the owner of the real property to request it?”
“Of course.”
Gun-Ho thought that he would get a copy of the real estate registration of the townhouse apartment where his parents were living. The instructor continued to explain something about a real estate registration.
“Okay, look at here. This section here is called ‘Gab Gu.’ It shows the ownership of the real property. You can see who actually owns this real property.”
“If there is a loan from a bank, it will show on the ‘Eul Gu’ then.”
“That’s right. Any changes in the rights, other than the ownership right will be recorded in this section. If you loan money from a bank and used this real estate property as a security for the loan, or your credit card company seized the real property because you defaulted in your payment, then those facts will be shown in this ‘Eul Gu’ section.”
Gun-Ho gradually learned about real estate.
“I didn’t know anything about it when I invested in China. I was just lucky.”
Gun-Ho felt a sense of relief.
When Gun-Ho came back home, he opened the Supreme Court website to request a copy of the real estate registration of his parents’ townhouse apartment.
“What is it? Download and install a security program?”
“Okay, I did. It’s now asking the name of the owner.”
Gun-Ho called his father and asked the owner’s name.
“The owner’s name? Why do you need his name?”
“I just need it.”
“Let me look at the lease agreement. Hold on.”
Gun-Ho’s father gave the owner’s name to Gun-Ho.
Once Gun-Ho entered the owner’s name, it allowed Gun-Ho to print out a copy of the real estate registration.
“Hmm, the owner’s name is the same as the name on the registration. It’s convenient.”
Gun-Ho took a close look at the registration.
“What is this? The owner loaned 30 million won from Shinhan Bank and he has another loan of 10 million won from a credit union.”
Gun-Ho started analyzing the real estate registration.
“If this townhouse is sold by auction, can my dad take his security deposit back? I believe he told me that the security deposit was 20 million won. I guess he can get it back since that townhouse is worth 100 million won according to my mom. I believe I heard that the area would be redeveloped soon, but no one talks about it anymore. Is it canceled?”
Gun-Ho took out a cigarette and started smoking.
“Should I buy a condo for my parents? I can use 100 million won out of 1,100 million won I have. Then they don’t have to pay the monthly rent. I can buy a condo under my name.”
Gun-Ho closed his eyes and thought for a second, and then opened his eyes again.
“No, it’s not the time for it. I can do it later. They are fine with the apartment for now.”
Gun-Ho made a call to his mother.
“Mom, are you okay with the apartment you are living in right now?”
“This apartment? I wish this was my own apartment.”
“Just wait for a few years, mom.”
“You became mature, my boy. Thank you for saying it. Haha.”