As the conflict between real estate agents and proptech (a compound word of real estate and technology) intensified, broadcaster Seo Kyung-seok even dropped out of the advertisement.
According to the real estate brokerage industry on the 15th, Seo Kyung-seok, who was selected as an advertising model for the real estate brokerage platform 'Darwin Brokerage', recently contacted this company and asked to stop advertising and terminate the model contract.
Darwin Brokerage signed an advertisement model contract with Mr. Seo and has been broadcasting radio advertisements on the radio program hosted by Mr. Seo since the 1st.
However, real estate agents as a group demanded an apology from the broadcaster and the bulletin board of the website, stopping the advertisement, and leaving the broadcast.
After the government introduced a reorganization plan to lower the upper limit of the real estate brokerage commission rate by up to half, proptech companies such as Darwin Brokerage started aggressively operating with a 'half price' commission, making Mr. Seo the central target of brokers.
Seo, who is also an ambassador for 'Eduwill Certified Realtor', a comprehensive education company, took the real estate agent exam last year and passed the first round, building a special relationship with the brokerage industry.
However, when he was selected as a Darwin brokerage model, the brokers were firmly studded with 'Ugly Hair'.
As the group action continued, the radio program production team eventually announced, "Mr. Seo Kyung-seok has decided to stop working as a Darwin brokerage model, and to replace and collect all the advertisements that he participated in."
As such, real estate agents, a powerful interest group with about 120,000 practitioners, are participating in various events based on strong organizational and unity.
The Korea Real Estate Brokers Association filed a lawsuit against Darwin Brokerage three times, and sent an official letter to Seoul Transportation Corporation twice to stop advertising, saying that Darwin Brokerage, which is currently advertising on the Seoul subway, is acting as an expedient brokerage.
The Association of Realtors also changed the website operation regulations and deleted the job advertisement for Darwin Brokerage posted on the association bulletin board.
Darwin Brokerage CEO Kim Seok-hwan said, "We have refrained from responding in the past, but we believe that the recent series of actions taken by the association have been excessive, so we plan to sue for obstruction of business and defamation."
The 'Preferential Bread Brokerage Corporation', which offers low brokerage fees based on its online business model, also recently filed a complaint with the police, claiming that real estate brokers as a group obstructed business.
It is said that nine brokers operating in Guwol-dong, Namdong-gu, Incheon, came to the Guwol branch, a preferential bread brokerage company, as a group, and forced them to take off the advertisements and promotional prints of the 'half-price fortune-telling' on the exterior wall.
Woo Dong-yun, CEO of the preferential bread brokerage company, said, "We have submitted a complaint to the police for breaking into a special building, obstructing business, coercion, and special threats." He said, "We will take strong legal action."
(Photo = Yonhap News)