Money Game.
An article published in the 'Dispatch' on February 24 stated that the actor Ryu Joon Yeol recently sold a renovated building in Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam-gu for approximately 15 billion KRW (approximately 12.5 million USD).
The year 2020 marked the beginning of Ryu Joon Yeol's first venture into business, which was named 'Deep Breathing.' A lot in Yeoksam-dong was purchased for 5.8 billion KRW (4.8 million USD) by his company after that, with a bank loan totaling 5.2 billion KRW (4.3 million USD) being used to finance the transaction.
Ryu Joon Yeol's company began construction on the new structure immediately after acquiring the land, with more than 90 percent of the payments made through bank loans. The new structure has two below-ground levels and seven above-ground levels, and it was completed in less than a year. As a result of this process, Ryu Joon Yeol's company obtained an additional bank loan in the amount of 1.7 billion KRW (1.4 million USD).
The construction of Ryu Joon Yeol's new building was completed by November 2021; however, the structure was put up for sale as soon as it was finished. Eventually, the building was sold for 15 billion KRW (approximately 12.5 million USD) in January 2022.
Ryu Joon Yeol is expected to make a profit of 4 billion KRW (approximately 3.3 million USD) after deducting taxes and other expenses. In the opinion of real estate insiders, the actor will make a substantial profit from a relatively small investment of 600 million KRW (approximately $500,000 USD).
When asked about the actor's recent real estate transactions, Ryu Joon Yeol's agency C-Jes Entertainment responded with the following statement: "At its inception, Ryu Joon Yeol's company was established to manage his personal earnings. His personal activities, such as photo exhibits, are also managed by this corporation." "The Gangnam building was constructed with the intention of launching a clothing brand with a group of friends; however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ryu Joon Yeol decided not to proceed with the startup business and instead sold his building," C-Jes added.
The actor has since faced allegations of 'Gap' Investing. Gap Investing is when a person or entity buys property with an overwhelmingly disappropriate amount of bank loans in the hope the value of the property skyrockets in a relatively short amount of time. Due to Korea's Jeonse system where up to 90 percent of the property value is given as a down payment, investors are able to make loan payments. Although not illegal, the investing strategy is frowned upon as a social ill, as a means of the rich getting richer and destabilizing an already overheated real estate market.
A large number of netizens are currently reacting to the "Dispatch" report with comments such as, "How easy it is for a celebrity to make 4 billion won out of nothing", "That is a paper company and everyone knows it", "Celebrities can get huge amounts of loans so easily, while ordinary citizens can't even get a loan to buy a house", "It must be nice to enjoy all the unfair benefits that come with being a member of the highest class of society", "Well, since you made so much money off of real estate, I guess we don't need to see you on TV for a while", and more.
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