Hello, this is KOWORK, Korea’s No.1 platform for foreign job seekers and employers.
For HR professionals who find hiring foreign talent challenging or distant,
we share success stories and know-how from companies that have successfully recruited global talent.
Today, we spoke with Mr. Kyung-sik Son, CEO of Homes in Korea,
a company addressing the housing and daily life challenges of foreigners. 🏡
— Hello, nice to meet you. Could you briefly introduce your company?
Hello, I’m Kyung-sik Son, CEO of Homes In Korea.
Homes In Korea is a startup that addresses housing issues for foreigners living in Korea.
We primarily rent accommodations to international students and foreigners seeking mid- to long-term stays.
— What inspired you to start a housing service for foreigners?
The initial model was started by my co-CEO. While working as a dorm supervisor for international students, they noticed the challenges and inconveniences in the industry. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people needed self-quarantine accommodations.
However, the market supply was insufficient, so they began directly operating a total care service, including short-term accommodation brokerage, meals, and essential goods. After launching two to three such services and gauging market response, Homes In Korea was officially established.
— I heard you’ve launched a new service recently?
Yes. Until now, we operated by remodeling and renting out accommodations ourselves. Starting in early July, we also launched a brokerage service connecting Korean hosts with foreigners—similar to an Airbnb-style platform.
— Both “foreigners” and “real estate” seem like challenging areas. What has been the most difficult part?
Providing services for foreigners naturally involves a lot of trial and error. The domestic foreigner market is still not well-established, so there are few references, and most initiatives are first-time attempts.
In real estate, given the large amounts of money involved, financial challenges are also a significant difficulty.
— When preparing a new space, what do you consider most important?
At first, I thought interior design would be the key factor, but it turned out that location and price range were more important. For location, I expected students would prefer being near their schools, but regardless of which school they attended, they favored areas like Hongdae or Sinchon.
— That’s interesting! Why do you think that is?
Many of our customers are from Western countries like France and Spain, where party culture is common and important. We also host parties at our “Homes Lounge,” and since most party venues are in areas like Hongdae or Sinchon, demand naturally increases in those locations.
— I was really impressed by the “Homes Lounge” activities. How did it get started?
As I mentioned earlier, it started to meet customer needs. For foreigners in Korea, making Korean friends is important, but networking among themselves is also key. When we ask how they found out about Homes In Korea, “friend recommendations” come up most often.
We also gather a lot of user feedback through these activities, so I think it will remain one of our core identities moving forward.
— You’ve always worked closely with foreigners, but I heard you recently started hiring foreign employees as well.
Yes, that’s correct. We’ve been interested in hiring foreigners from the beginning, but since there weren’t many examples, we were a bit cautious. We were concerned about whether they could adapt well to our company culture and Korean society. So, we decided to start by hiring foreign talent on an internship basis.
From their perspective, living in Korea, they understand the challenges and the services needed best, so we believed they would resonate with our values.
— What was the most important factor when hiring foreign talent?
Practical experience, empathy, and problem-solving skills.
While job competency is important, it alone isn’t enough to deeply understand customers and propose solutions.
Since we provide services for foreign customers, we preferred candidates who are foreigners living in Korea, with experience in rentals and an understanding of community needs. Most importantly, they should be able to leverage that experience to address issues while embodying our brand values.
— What has been the most challenging or difficult part of hiring foreign talent?
Finding the right candidates was key. It wasn’t easy to identify foreigners living in Korea who fit our service, and regular job platforms had limitations in filtering foreign applicants.
Another important aspect was writing the job description. Beyond outlining job duties, we needed to clearly explain the work environment and the background knowledge required, which required a much more detailed approach than typical postings.
For companies like ours trying foreign hiring for the first time, administrative procedures and writing job postings can feel unfamiliar.
KOWORK provides a relatively easy guide through these processes, making it a very useful platform for first-time foreign hires.
If we expand foreign recruitment in the future, we plan to actively use KOWORK.
📋
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— What has changed the most since hiring foreign employees?
We hired a foreign marketing intern, which has allowed us to understand customer needs much more accurately. We primarily promote our brand and attract potential customers through content, events, and community activities.
When planning anything, our top priority is whether it meets the needs from a foreigner’s perspective. Experiences that only foreigners can truly relate to have become valuable marketing insights, greatly helping us in content and event planning and execution.
— Have you experienced any benefits or positive outcomes from hiring foreign talent?
This internship was supported by the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s “Attractive Jobs” program. Even having financial support reduced the burden on the company and encouraged us to actively try hiring foreigners.
From a branding perspective, having actual foreign team members is highly meaningful for a service targeting foreign customers. There’s a big difference between simply claiming to offer services for foreigners and designing services alongside foreign team members—it adds credibility and authenticity to the brand.
— What should companies pay the most attention to when hiring foreign employees, and why?
I’d say “onboarding” and a “structured internal communication system.” Since cultural backgrounds differ, it’s crucial not only to share the work manual but also to explain the context in detail—what our KPIs are and why they were chosen.
Visa issuance hasn’t been a major issue yet, as we haven’t hired foreigners as full-time employees, but if we expand to full-time hiring, preparation for administrative procedures will be essential. Ultimately, the most important thing is creating an environment where foreign employees truly feel like part of the team.
— Do you plan to expand or hire more foreign employees in the future?
We’re viewing it positively, as this internship has produced good results in both work performance and team dynamics. Although we don’t yet have a concrete full-time conversion process or visa support system, we would actively consider hiring more foreigners once our internal infrastructure is further developed.
— Do you have any funny stories about your foreign employees? 😊
When our first foreign intern arrived, I greeted them with “Have you eaten?” and they actually thought they needed to report whether they had eaten. They replied, “I didn’t eat breakfast, and I had lunch at 12.” Later, I explained that it’s just a common Korean greeting, and they laughed, saying, “So from now on, I can just say ‘Yes, I ate~,’ right?” and repeated it like they had memorized it.
— Lastly, is there any message you’d like to share with foreign job seekers or customers?
Homes In Korea isn’t just creating rental services for foreigners; we aim to address the challenges and inconveniences that come with living and settling in Korea.
Your perspectives and feedback can directly influence our content and services! If you’re interested in working in Korea and feel your insights as a foreigner could make a difference, we look forward to having you join us at Homes In Korea! 😊
Interview Assistance | Hyojeong Lee, Marketing Team, Homes In Korea
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