The government has decided to allow the installation of lodging houses on farmland that is directly owned by the farmer starting this December. This is part of the proliferation of rural populations. Lodging is available for cooking and sleeping, and can be installed by simply reporting. It has a total area of 33妊, which is more than 50% larger than the existing farmhouse. Because it can be equipped with a deck and parking lot, industry insiders say it will be the perfect second home for urbanites who dream of farming life, and it will help revitalize the rural economy and the exchange between urbanites and farmers. It is also exempt from capital gains and end-of-life taxes, and is accessible geographically.

 

Affordable second homes

Rural sojourn shelters are more about housing, and experts say they should be affordable and functional enough to serve their purpose. Geumsan G&T (CEO Kim Hee-yeon) is the largest small building company in the Yeongnam region, and has attracted a lot of attention by supplying high-quality farm shelter at reasonable prices throughout the country. The company has made a name for itself by bringing high-quality shelter to the market at affordable prices that can be used as a second home, and now offers a range of upgraded, smaller structures. 

 

Affordability and the true value of a home

The best materials for a robust design 

The company strives for affordability and true value in its homes, never compromising on design or using low-cost, low-quality materials. The company uses only the highest quality, certified materials for its interior and exterior construction, as well as practical and durable designs. Shelter has a lattice steel structure on the bottom, triple insulated, minimizes floor sagging, and provides complete protection from summer humidity and winter cold. The floor and columns are made of zinc tubing, which is very durable. Zinc tubes are very resistant to moisture, so they don’t rust when wet, and they’re so durable that they can be used semi-permanently. CEO Kim Hee-yeon says “We invest more in what you can’t see. We use zinc tubes for internal structures such as floors and columns, and triple layers of plywood and insulation for floors to make them more durable and insulated. The insulation used is also of high quality materials.”

 

Reasonable pricing with a variety of finishes

The company has also put a lot of effort into exterior insulation and interior finishing. First of all, thick insulation is used inside the walls of all products to increase insulation, and the interior is simple in design and made of high-quality materials. In particular, it used cypress wood as a partial finish for the interior, which releases a large amount of phytoncides, which helps natural antibacterial and air purification, and also absorbs and releases moisture depending on humidity. It also has a natural humidity control function, helping to create a more comfortable living environment. The company produces various products using building materials such as emblematic siding, zinc, and thermosiding, and produces farm and rural shelters with single-story structures to various double-story structures. Embossed siding is a synthetic wood that is non-deformable, durable, and aesthetically pleasing, and has recently gained popularity as a building material. The company’s Embossed siding shelter is made of 30 tons of Styrofoam with 100 tons of interior Styrofoam, plywood and waterproofing sheets, and the interior is finished with gypsum board. The 6-pyeong size is the most popular, with an exterior wall made of zinc containing more than 100 tons of insulation. The Zinc Sheter was sold at the 2024 Daegu Kyunghyang Housing Fair at an introductory price of 11.9 million won, which was a huge success. Thermosiding products are exterior walls made of aluminum alloy. Thermosiding, also known as metal siding, is a semi-combustible material that has excellent insulation, condensation prevention, and waterproofing properties. It also has a semi-permanent lifespan, meaning that its color and shape will not deteriorate over time. The roof also uses a zinc product that does not deform or deteriorate, so it will remain in the same condition as when it was first constructed. 

 

Quality, practical interior finish, produced and shipped in-house

All handmade in large production facility, industry-leading affordable prices

The interior consists of a room, a bathroom (with 30-liter water heater), a small kitchen with sink and induction, and all the windows are double-glazed for good insulation and soundproofing. The duplex has windows on three sides, and with the height extension, the floor level is high enough for an adult to walk around without bending over. Depending on your preferences, you can even choose from options such as windows, decks, awnings, and canopies, and in the case of a permanent shelter, you can even add a separate room if you want. The company produces single- and double-ply products in zinc, emblematic siding, thermosiding, and all materials, and even within the double-ply range, there is a wide variety of products, including extended and stepped. The company also produces “丑” shaped products. The company has a large production facility of 10,000 square meters in Gyeongju, Gyeongju, and Chungdo, and manufactures all products in-house. Kim says “We buy all of our materials in bulk and manufacture them ourselves to ensure that we always produce a consistent product, while keeping our production costs down and our margins to a minimum in order to offer the lowest possible price to our customers. We even have our own transportation vehicles and special vehicles such as cranes to save on transportation costs. There is sometimes no transportation cost for nearby places, and even for the most distant places, the transportation cost does not exceed 300,000 won.” The products are very affordable compared to other companies, with the cheapest single-story product costing 14 million won and the most expensive duplex costing around 20 million won.

 

Portable restrooms, multi-purpose offices, campers

High-quality, affordable, and durable housing

The company also produces portable toilets, multi-functional offices (break rooms), and campers. The portable toilets are equipped with an automatic water level control to prevent overflowing cisterns, and are available with a variety of options including sinks, water heaters, and showers, and are supplied to factories, campgrounds, sports facilities, and events. The multipurpose offices are used as tourist information centers for temples and other tourist destinations, as well as crime prevention centers, and recently, the company renovated 22 crime prevention centers in Dalseo-gu, Daegu. The camper is built like a camping capsule using zinc or sandwich panels, and can be attached and detached to the cargo area of a one-ton vehicle. You can take it off and use it as a regular car on weekdays, and reattach it on weekends to use it as a camper. It’s also very affordable, costing only about 6 million won, even with windows and air conditioning. Kim is a member of the Rotary Club of Daegu and regularly volunteers to build houses in Vietnam. Kim says “We want to build bridges between urbanites and rural communities. We will continue to provide high-quality, cost-effective and durable housing, as well as meaningful activities to make the region more welcoming.”

신태섭 기자  tss79@naver.com