Foreigners Own 31 Trillion Won Worth of Land in Korea... Americans Hold 52%

US, China, Japan, and Europeans in Order of Ownership
Domestic Land Owned by Americans Exceeds 13 Trillion Won
Europeans Own 5 Trillion, Chinese and Japanese Own Around 2 Trillion Won
Gyeonggi-do Leads in Area, Seoul Tops in Value

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Jiwon] The area of domestic land owned by foreigners accounts for 0.25% of the entire national territory, with the land value totaling approximately 31 trillion KRW. By country, Americans own more than half of the total foreign-owned land, and the land value in Seoul accounts for about one-third of the total amount.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 4th that as of the first half of this year, the total domestic land owned by foreigners was 251.6㎢, an increase of 1.2% (2.94 million ㎡) compared to the end of last year. The land owned by foreigners accounts for about 0.25% of the total national land area. When converted to monetary value, it amounts to approximately 31.2145 trillion KRW (officially assessed value).

Americans own 131.61 million ㎡, up 1.4% from the end of last year, accounting for 52.3% of the total foreign-owned land area. In terms of value, this amounts to 13.0837 trillion KRW.

Chinese nationals own 19.803 million ㎡ (7.9%) of domestic land, making them the second-largest foreign landowners after Americans. The value of their land holdings is approximately 2.7085 trillion KRW. Japanese nationals own 18.348 million ㎡ (7.3%), with a land value of about 2.5549 trillion KRW.

Europeans own 18.18 million ㎡ (7.2%), which is less than China and Japan in terms of area, but their land value is higher at 5.2222 trillion KRW. Other countries collectively own 63.663 million ㎡ (25.3%).

The region with the largest foreign-owned land area is Gyeonggi-do, with 45.13 million ㎡ (17.9%). Other regions with significant holdings include Jeollanam-do with 38.72 million ㎡ (15.4%), Gyeongsangbuk-do with 36.47 million ㎡ (14.5%), Gangwon-do with 22.53 million ㎡ (9.0%), and Jeju with 21.91 million ㎡ (8.7%).

Although Seoul's foreign-owned land area is only 3.088 million ㎡, its value is 11.6173 trillion KRW, accounting for more than one-third of the total. Gyeonggi-do's land value is 4.661 trillion KRW, Jeollanam-do 2.5213 trillion KRW, Incheon 2.2992 trillion KRW, Busan 2.1519 trillion KRW, Gyeongsangbuk-do 1.7578 trillion KRW, Ulsan 1.3686 trillion KRW, and Gyeongsangnam-do 1.2575 trillion KRW.

The area where foreign-owned land increased the most over the past year was Gyeonggi-do, with an increase of 1.228 million ㎡ (145.6 billion KRW).

The above photo is not related to the article content.

By ownership type, Koreans with foreign nationality (overseas Koreans) hold the largest share with 140.61 million ㎡ (55.9%). Joint ventures hold 71.2 million ㎡ (28.3%), pure foreigners 20.41 million ㎡ (8.1%), pure foreign corporations 18.84 million ㎡ (7.5%), and government/organizations 0.55 million ㎡ (0.2%).

By land use, forest and farmland account for the largest portion at 166.32 million ㎡ (66.1%). Factory use accounts for 58.82 million ㎡ (23.4%), leisure use 11.9 million ㎡ (4.7%), residential use 10.54 million ㎡ (4.2%), and commercial use 4.02 million ㎡ (1.6%).

Foreign ownership of domestic land increased significantly by 6-9% annually during 2014-2015. Since then, the annual growth rate has stabilized somewhat at 1-3%.

The main reasons for foreigners acquiring domestic land in the first half of this year include inheritance or gifting by Koreans to foreign children, or cases where Koreans (including domestic corporations) holding domestic land change their nationality to foreign (foreign corporations) and continue to hold the land.

Examples of major foreign ownership and disposition cases include one Australian individual continuing to hold 110,000 ㎡ of land in Busan, one American individual holding 300,000 ㎡ of forest land in Chungbuk, and one Canadian individual disposing of 290,000 ㎡ of forest land in Yeongcheon, Gyeongsangbuk-do this year.

Multiple individuals from the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada acquired 220,000 ㎡ of land in Gyeonggi-do through gifting this year, and multiple individuals from the United States and Canada inherited 320,000 ㎡ of land in Gyeonggi-do. Two American individuals inherited 240,000 ㎡ of land in Gangwon-do.