HUG Jeonse Deposit-Return Guarantee
A public guarantee where HUG repays your full deposit if the landlord fails to return it. The #1 line of defense against jeonse (lump-sum deposit lease) fraud.
💡 Jeonse is essentially an interest-free loan you make on the landlord's creditworthiness. Without a return guarantee, your entire deposit is just an unsecured loan tied to one single person.
What the ads say
Get one jeonse guarantee and fraud worries are over — your deposit is 100% safe no matter what.
How it actually works
Coverage caps at ₩300M in the Seoul metro area and ₩200M elsewhere, and you only qualify if the jeonse deposit is 140% or less of the home's value (as of 2026). The premium rate runs from 0.097%/yr for apartments at 70% or below, up to 0.211% depending on housing type and debt ratio. You must enroll before the first half of the lease term has passed. Once enrolled, if the landlord doesn't repay after the lease ends, HUG pays you first and then pursues the landlord for reimbursement.
⚠ Traps
- •A 'kkangtong' (underwater) home with a high jeonse-to-value ratio gets rejected outright — a home that can't be insured is itself the warning sign.
- •The premium is officially the tenant's responsibility, but many local governments cover 90% to 100% of it for youth and newlyweds — skip it and you're paying out of pocket for no reason.
- •Secure your legal tenancy rights first with a move-in report (jeonipsingo) and a fixed date stamp (hwakjeong-ilja); relying on the guarantee alone and delaying move-in is risky.
✓ Good for
- · Jeonse tenants
- · Renters of villas, officetels, and other homes with hard-to-verify market prices
- · Youth and first-time earners whose deposit is their entire savings
✗ Not for
- · Anyone signing for an underwater home above the 140% jeonse-to-value cap (ineligible)
- · Cases where the deposit is tiny relative to the home's value (little benefit)
Verification score (rubric)
- Real cash savings
- Ease of conditions
- No traps
- Clear audience
- Validity
- Accessibility
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