The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has announced plans to supply 8,000 units of urban public housing on the site of the Yongsan Railroad Maintenance Depot in Seoul, aiming to create a 'mini new town,' stirring the local real estate market. The revival of Yongsan, which has been imprinted as a prime investment area by investors following repeated development intentions declared by former Mayor Oh Se-hoon and Mayor Park Won-soon, is now gaining momentum.
Recently, significant positive developments have followed in Yongsan. These include the expansion of metropolitan express lines such as GTX and the Shinbundang Line extension, development of the Yongsan US military base site including the creation of a national park, and the Hannam New Town development. In particular, various blueprints have been unveiled to transform the 'triangle' zone between Samgakji, Yongsan, and Ichon into a representative mixed-use complex of residential, commercial, business, and cultural facilities in northern Seoul. Interest in the Samgakji area, where subway lines 4 and 6 intersect, has reached its peak. Investors are focused not only on Samgakji but also on the excellent transportation network with access to Gangbyeonbuk-ro and Hangang-daero, and the large-scale development projects nearby such as Yongsan districts 2, 3, and 4 and the Camp Kim site. Indirect and direct benefits are also expected from projects like the creation of a green pedestrian path connecting Seoul Station, Namsan, and Yongsan Park, the Hangang riverside tourism resource development, and the undergrounding of the above-ground sections between Seoul Station and Noryangjin Station.
Anticipating an influx of visitors through these diverse developments, investors are concentrating on income-generating real estate. A representative product is the commercial complex within the station-area 2030 youth housing ‘Yongsan Hoban Verdiium Stay’ called ‘Yongsan Tri Square.’
‘Yongsan Tri Square’ is a neighborhood living facility within ‘Yongsan Hoban Verdiium Stay,’ which consists of two buildings ranging from 7 basement floors to 37 above-ground floors, totaling 1,086 households. It offers 36 units on the 1st and 2nd floors?30 units on the 1st floor and 6 units on the 2nd floor?with various sizes ranging from 22 to 123 square meters. As of May, the structural work has been completed and finishing work is underway.
A sales representative for ‘Yongsan Tri Square’ emphasized, “Due to the nature of station-area 2030 youth housing, which must be located within a radius of 250 meters (relaxed from 350 meters in 2019) from subway platform boundaries in quasi-residential, quasi-industrial, or general/neighborhood commercial road areas, the commercial complex ‘Yongsan Tri Square’ inherently benefits from its station-area location and commercial district.” In fact, ‘Yongsan Tri Square’ is located in a double station area, just about a 3-minute walk from Samgakji Station on subway lines 4 and 6, offering excellent accessibility. It is a high-rise building on a wide main road and is designed as the only approximately 140-meter-long street-type commercial complex in the area, providing unmatched visibility. The representative added, “Street-type commercial complexes are much more advantageous than typical box-type complexes in attracting customers and increasing dwell time,” and expressed expectations that “with the location and design of this self-proclaimed ‘golden commercial district’ combined with broad demand, activation will occur faster than expected.”
As the representative mentioned, ‘Yongsan Tri Square’ boasts a broad demand base with no shortage of fixed demand, hinterland demand, or floating population. First, it enjoys solid fixed demand from the 1,086 households of ‘Yongsan Hoban Verdiium Stay’ youth residents and the hinterland demand from about 8,000 households in the surrounding area, including ‘Yongsan Park Xi.’ The floating population is also abundant. Many office workers use Samgakji Station, and it is analyzed that the number of employees and visitors to several public institutions located on the ground floor of ‘Yongsan Hoban Verdiium Stay,’ such as the Seoul City Urban Regeneration Support Center and the Seoul City Youth Startup Activity Support Center, will reach about 50,000 annually. The number of vehicles passing along Baekbeom-ro and Hangang-daero in front of the complex throughout the day is also considerable.
Proximity to schools such as Yongsan Elementary School is also considered a locational advantage that guarantees the profitability of ‘Yongsan Tri Square.’ This is because it secures a target group with purchasing power, including teachers, students, and parents, whose consumption patterns such as usage times and preferred business types are clear.
‘Yongsan Tri Square’ plans to showcase sophisticated design and state-of-the-art facilities tailored to 2030 trends, prioritizing the residents of ‘Yongsan Hoban Verdiium Stay.’ Through a differentiated MD composition including popular business types such as convenience stores, coffee shops, bakeries, hair salons, nail salons, clinics, pharmacies, and laundries, it aims to create a ‘non-stop commercial district’ operating 24/7, 365 days a year. The representative stated, “While attracting a balanced range of customer-attracting facilities, we will also focus on designing shopping routes to enhance customer attraction and securing ample parking space.”
The golden successful commercial district offering excellent premiums and future value, ‘Yongsan Tri Square,’ has its sales promotion center located near Samgakji Station at 2-350 Hangang-ro 2-ga, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. The move-in for youth housing and commercial spaces is scheduled for February next year.
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