South Korea’s Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) revealed on April 17 that the Moon Jae-in administration manipulated key government statistics on housing prices, income, and employment throughout most of its five-year term.
The state audit agency found that the falsification was carried out under the direction or pressure of the former presidential office Cheong Wa Dae, implicating all former presidential policy chiefs, including Jang Ha-sung, Kim Su-hyun, Kim Sang-jo, and Lee Ho-seung. The audit into the alleged statistical manipulation began in September 2022, with the final report released after two years and seven months.

According to a detailed 903-page audit report on the compilation and use of key national statistics, Cheong Wa Dae and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport manipulated the “Weekly Housing Price Trend Survey” 102 times between January 2018 and October 2021. They received draft statistics from the Korea Real Estate Board (REB) before they were publicly released and pressured the agency to lower the growth rate or even show a price drop if the numbers were politically unfavorable. In some cases, they threatened to cut the agency’s budget or staff if it did not cooperate.
The audit also found that Statistics Korea altered its calculation of household income under pressure from Cheong Wa Dae, making falling incomes appear to be rising.
The BAI said that the housing price data was falsified from the outset, making it impossible to restore. As redevelopment windfall taxes were based on these figures, lawsuits against the government are expected. Former People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Gyeong-joon estimated that more than 1 trillion won in extra charges were imposed on redevelopment project members due to the manipulated data.
According to the audit, the Moon administration manipulated statistics to cover up the failures of its core economic policies, including the “income-led growth” strategy and housing price stabilization efforts. As data began to show soaring home prices, declining household income, and an increase in irregular employment, the presidential office pressured agencies like the REB and Statistics Korea to produce more favorable figures that concealed the worsening situation.
The manipulation began almost immediately after the Moon administration took office. According to the report, in June 2017, ahead of its first real estate policy announcement, the Blue House began requesting weekly drafts of housing price data to assess policy impact. By January 2018, officials criticized the figures, calling them “incorrect” and questioning whether the agencies were “properly monitoring the market.” They then instructed the REB and the Ministry of Land to “reexamine” the statistics, effectively demanding manipulated figures to downplay the housing price surge.
The manipulation continued throughout the administration. In June 2021, a group chat among senior MOLIT officials included a message that read, “The fate of this administration depends on the housing price trend survey. If the numbers show prices doubling, this government will be seen as a failure.” Internal messages from employees of the REB revealed the ongoing pressure, with some saying, “Guys, MOLIT wants us to lower the numbers again. Let’s do it,” while others lamented, “They’re out of control now. They’re openly manipulating the data.”