Two homes but no cash: EBS1 examines couple’s retirement shortfall

A couple in their 60s who own two homes but cannot afford to contribute even 10 won to their only daughter’s wedding will be the focus of EBS’s Wealthy at 100, airing on EBS1 at 10:50 p.m. on Monday, October 19, 2026.

The program’s second episode examines how Ji Mun-jeong and Lee Yeon-ho became a “house-poor” couple despite owning two properties in Gyeonggi Province. With their daughter preparing to marry after managing their finances and supporting roughly half the household budget, they face having to handle their money and meet their living costs themselves.

EBS describes Wealthy at 100 as the country’s first financial solutions program for the retirement generation. It examines participants’ lives alongside their finances, including the family relationships behind money problems, to identify practical ways forward.

Ji and Lee met as they were making fresh starts in life and formed a remarried household. Lee worked for many years at a pharmaceutical company, rising to a senior position. Ji spent about 10 years as a flight attendant and now works as a customer service training instructor.

Their daughter’s approaching wedding has left them unable to sleep. They want to help their only child begin her new life, but have no money available for wedding expenses. Their two homes have not prevented an immediate cash shortage.

Unpaid notices for taxes, administrative fines and other bills are piling up, and the couple cannot always pay their loan interest on time. Selling a property to raise money is also difficult: circumstances prevent one of their homes from being sold immediately.

Their dependence on their daughter presents a further challenge. Since Ji began battling cancer, her daughter has taken on many responsibilities in her place, managing her parents’ income and spending as well as providing roughly half the household’s financial support. Ji is anxious about how she and her husband will manage their finances and cover the shortfall in living expenses once their daughter marries and establishes her own household.

Both parents continue to work. Following a business failure, Lee began operating a food truck for the first time in his life to earn a living. Sales vary considerably with the weather and customer turnout, however, and he sometimes returns with little income despite spending long hours preparing to trade.

Ji was already living with a rare disease when she developed cancer four years ago. Her medication alone costs hundreds of thousands of won a month. With living expenses and treatment costs to meet, she cannot afford to stop working and continues to travel outside the capital area to give lectures while undergoing her cancer battle.

Even with both of them earning, their finances have shown little improvement. Monthly outgoings, including living expenses, medical costs and loan interest, exceed their income, leaving them repeatedly in deficit. Keeping up with current expenses is difficult, leaving little room to prepare for retirement. Their daughter’s departure will also remove the support that has helped cover the gap.

The episode will closely analyze the couple’s properties, loans, income and spending to identify why they are short of cash despite owning two homes. It will present tailored financial solutions aimed at ending the recurring deficits and helping them prepare for a stable retirement.

It will also examine the changes Ji and Lee need to make to manage their household independently after years of relying on their daughter, and explore whether they can improve their cash flow as she begins her own family life.

The episode about the “house-poor” couple with two homes will also be available to watch again on the EBS website.

Read the original (Korean)