Seoul apartment prices rise 0.12%, extending record run to 87 weeks
In short
Seoul apartment sale prices rose 0.12% in the first week of October (as of October 5), the 87th straight weekly gain and the longest run on record, according to Korea Real Estate Board data released on October 8. The weekly gain widened from 0.09% for the first time in six weeks, as outer districts such as Seodaemun rose while Gangnam, Seocho, Songpa and Yongsan fell. Seoul's year-to-date jeonse (lump-sum lease) price gain of 8.35% has overtaken the 8.31% rise in sale prices.
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Seoul apartment sale prices rose 0.12% in the first week of October (as of October 5) from the previous week, according to weekly data the Korea Real Estate Board released on October 8. It was the 87th consecutive weekly rise since the first week of February last year, extending the longest run on record after the previous 85-week record, set between June 2020 and January 2022, was broken the week before. Asia Economy said the board's weekly series began in 2012. [ 2 , 5 , 8 , 9 ]
The weekly gain widened by 0.03 percentage points from 0.09%, the first increase in six weeks after five weeks of slowing. Chosun Ilbo and Dong-A Ilbo said the rate had eased from 0.29% in the fourth week of August, while Kyunghyang Shinmun gave 0.24% in the third week of August as the starting point. The board said that while some contracts were signed at lower prices in places, solid demand for large complexes with good living conditions and those near subway stations produced rising deals that lifted the overall market. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
Gangnam, Seocho, Songpa and Yongsan were the only Seoul districts where prices fell. Gangnam fell 0.34% after 0.56% a week earlier and Seocho 0.27% after 0.33%, while Songpa (-0.19%) and Yongsan (-0.01%) matched the previous week. Yonhap, Chosun Ilbo and Asia Economy put Gangnam's run of declines at nine weeks; Maeil Business put it at six. Yonhap said the three Gangnam districts face higher tax burdens expected from a tax overhaul. Nam Hyuk-woo (남혁우), a real estate researcher at Woori Bank, said the three districts remained subdued by policy uncertainty over the tax reform plan and worries about prolonged high interest rates, and that Yongsan's high-priced riverside areas would share the weakness because most fall under the tax reform plan and loans there are capped at 200 million won. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 8 , 9 ]
Lower-priced outer districts kept rising. Seodaemun gained 0.36%, the most in Seoul, followed by Gangbuk (0.35%), Geumcheon (0.34%), Gwanak (0.33%) and Dobong (0.32%). Chosun Ilbo reported that 11 Seoul districts have risen more than 10% this year, against four in the same period last year, and that Seoul's year-to-date rise of 8.31% compares with 5.53% a year earlier. Ham Young-jin (함영진) of Woori Bank, quoted by Asia Economy, said young buyers using first-time buyer loans are pushing up outer-district prices, but that rising mortgage rates and fatigue could make next year's rise gentler. [ 2 , 5 , 6 , 8 ]
Gyeonggi province rose 0.18% and Incheon 0.02%, with the capital region up 0.14%. Suwon's Yeongtong district gained 0.62%, Seongnam's Bundang district 0.56% and Anyang's Dongan district 0.41%. Yonhap described these as areas affected by Samsung Electronics' in-house housing loans, while Dong-A Ilbo linked southern Gyeonggi's strength to the buying power of chip industry workers. Prices outside the capital region were flat for a fourth week. [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
Seoul apartment jeonse (lump-sum lease) prices rose 0.16%, while Seocho fell 0.21% for an eighth week and Gangnam 0.02%. Seoul's year-to-date jeonse gain reached 8.35%, overtaking the 8.31% rise in sale prices and nearly 4.5 times last year's 1.87% over the same period, Yonhap and Kyunghyang Shinmun reported. [ 3 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]
Why it matters
The data show gains shifting from Seoul's high-priced districts to its lower-priced outskirts and to southern Gyeonggi, while lease prices are rising faster than sale prices this year. Yonhap linked weakness in the Gangnam districts to higher tax burdens expected from a tax overhaul, and a Woori Bank analyst quoted by Asia Economy said rising mortgage rates and price fatigue could make next year's rise gentler.
Key facts
- Seoul apartment sale prices rose 0.12% week on week in the first week of October (as of October 5), Korea Real Estate Board data released on October 8 showed. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 ]
- The weekly gain widened from 0.09% the previous week, after five weeks of slowing. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 6 , 7 ]
- It was the 87th consecutive weekly rise, the longest run on record. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 ]
- Gangnam (-0.34%), Seocho (-0.27%), Songpa (-0.19%) and Yongsan (-0.01%) were the only Seoul districts where prices fell. [ 1 , 4 , 8 ]
- Seodaemun rose 0.36%, the largest gain among Seoul districts. [ 2 , 8 ]
- Gyeonggi province rose 0.18% and Incheon 0.02%, with Suwon's Yeongtong district up 0.62%. [ 1 , 4 , 5 ]
- Seoul apartment jeonse prices rose 0.16% for the week. [ 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]
- Seoul's year-to-date jeonse gain of 8.35% overtook the 8.31% rise in sale prices. [ 3 , 5 , 7 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Seoul apartment sale prices rose 0.12% in the first week of October, the 87th consecutive weekly rise and the longest run on record. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 5 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 ]
- The weekly gain widened after five consecutive weeks of slowing. [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
- Gangnam's decline narrowed from 0.56% to 0.34% and Seocho's from 0.33% to 0.27%. [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Yongsan fell 0.01% for a second straight week. [ 2 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]
- The Korea Real Estate Board said solid demand for large complexes with good living conditions and those near subway stations led to rising deals despite some lower-priced contracts. [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Suwon's Yeongtong district rose 0.62% and Seongnam's Bundang district 0.56%. [ 1 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 9 ]
- Samsung Electronics' in-house housing loans were linked to gains in Yeongtong and Bundang. [ 4 , 5 ]
- Seoul's year-to-date jeonse gain of 8.35% exceeded the 8.31% sale-price gain, against a 1.87% jeonse gain in the same period last year. [ 3 , 5 , 7 ]
Still unclear
- How long Gangnam district prices have been falling. Yonhap, Chosun Ilbo, Kyunghyang Shinmun and Asia Economy say nine weeks; Maeil Business says six.
- When the previous 85-week record run ended. Yonhap says the third week of January 2022; Asia Economy says the first week of January 2022.
- Where the five-week slowdown began. Chosun Ilbo and Dong-A Ilbo cite 0.29% in the fourth week of August, Yonhap describes the slowdown from the fifth week of August (0.29% to 0.22%), and Kyunghyang Shinmun cites 0.24% in the third week of August.
- Whether the 87-week count skips a week. Only Dong-A Ilbo says the count excludes a week last year when the survey paused for the Chuseok holiday.