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Jeonse / Deposit Fraud — Survival Playbook

Avoid losing your deposit. The exact checks landlords hope you skip.

As of 2026-10-10

Korea’s jeonse (lump-sum deposit) lease puts a very large sum with one landlord. Korea has a special law for jeonse-fraud victims (전세사기피해자법), and the 등기부등본 (property register) is where the risk shows.

This playbook walks the register line by line, shows the 3 red flags that mean “walk away,” and the deposit-guarantee check to run before you sign.

ℹ️ Information is accurate as of the date shown and can change. Confirm critical steps with official sources before acting.

1. Before you pay anything

  • Look up the 등기부등본 yourself at iros.go.kr (₩700 to view online, ₩1,000 for an issued copy) — not the agent’s copy. Pull it again on signing day and before paying the balance.
  • Match the owner name on the register EXACTLY to the person/ID on the contract. A mismatch = stop.
  • Check the 건축물대장 (building ledger) for a “위반건축물” (illegal-structure) entry — HUG will not guarantee a unit listed as one (apartments are exempt from this check).

2. Three red flags = walk away

  • ① 근저당 (mortgage lien) + your deposit leave no margin. HUG only guarantees a deposit if the senior liens plus your deposit stay within 90% of HUG’s own house-price valuation. For villas and other non-apartments HUG values the home at 140% of the 공시가격 (official price), so the practical ceiling is about 126% of 공시가격 — and in multi-unit buildings the other tenants’ deposits count as senior debt too (HUG’s guarantee page, read 2026-10-10).
  • ② “신탁” (trust) on the register — a trust company is the legal owner. The person signing may have no authority to lease without the trust company’s consent, and HUG lists a lease signed without it as a known fraud type.
  • ③ Rent far below market, or pressure to wire money to an account that isn’t the registered owner’s.

3. Protect the deposit

  • File your 체류지 변경신고 (change-of-address report — for a foreigner it counts as 전입신고, deadline 15 days) and get 확정일자 (fixed-date stamp) on move-in day. Protection starts the day AFTER you report (주택임대차보호법 §3), so a mortgage registered on move-in day itself still ranks ahead of you.
  • Get a deposit guarantee: HUG 전세보증금반환보증 (khug.or.kr) accepts foreigners. The deposit can be up to ₩700M in the capital region and ₩500M elsewhere (any monthly rent is converted into deposit for this test). Apply before half the lease term has passed, counted from the later of balance day and your move-in report, and you must be living there with 전입신고 and 확정일자 done.
  • Pay only by bank transfer to the registered owner’s account, with a memo. Never cash.

4. If something goes wrong

  • HUG 전세피해지원센터 (Jeonse Damage Support Center): 1533-8119, weekdays 9:00–18:00 (closed weekends and public holidays). HUG offers free legal consultation for tenants hit by jeonse damage. For help in your language (20 languages, weekdays 09:00–22:00; Korean, English and Chinese only after 18:00), call the 1345 Immigration Contact Center.
  • If the lease has ended and the deposit isn’t returned, apply to the court for a 임차권등기명령 (lease registration order). Do NOT move out or move your address until the order appears on the register — only then does your priority survive the move.