The purpose of the study is to examine how housing consciousness has been changed through various discourse on ideal housing from opening ports to the present. Reviews of literature including newspapers, magazines, novels, advertising materials, research papers, books, and so on are mainly utilized in accomplishing the purpose. This study covers four periods such as the enlightenment era, the Japanese colonial nile, before and after the Korean war, and after the economic development to present. During the enlightenment period in which foreign culture and housing were introduced, with reconsideration on traditional housing basic physiological housing value including health and hygiene was appeared. The desires of Munhwa housing with western styles and housing improvement were emphasized due to the new cultural improvement during the Japanese colonial rule. Before and after the Korean war which was chaotic times with rehabilitation, the provision of a large amount of public housing with minimum conditions for the basic human needs was the most important. After 1960s, due to the housing policy focusing on the mass-provision of apartments and the discourse on apartment as an ideal housing for the ordinary households in Korea, apartment dwellings become structure type norms in Korea.