[Choi Jun-young's Urban Pilgrimage] Yesterday and Today of Apgujeong

1960s Han River South Slum, 1970s Apartment Construction and Concentration on Both Sides of Seongsu Bridge
Repeated Controversies over High Prices and Preferential Sales... Still the Most Preferred Residential Area
Declined after 1994 Seongsu Bridge Collapse, Recently Revived

An article in an economic newspaper dated October 6, 1980, reported on the emergence of apartments in Yeouido and Apgujeong-dong priced at 2 million won per pyeong. It was rare then, as it is now, for existing apartments rather than newly supplied ones to be traded at such high prices. The apartments involved included the 80-pyeong Apgujeong Hyundai Apartments and the 69-pyeong Yeouido Seoul Apartments. The article analyzed that the reason for these high prices was the suspension of new supply of apartments larger than 60 pyeong. The price of 160 million won was unimaginable at the time. Forty-one years later, in September 2021, apartments of the same size were traded for 6.5 billion won. The fact that the price remains unimaginable over time is similarly evident in Apgujeong apartments.

Apgujeong-dong began as one of the 90 neighborhoods newly incorporated when Seoul expanded significantly in 1963. According to a Chosun Ilbo article dated November 22, 1964, which reported on visits to the Apgujeong slum to provide treatment, medicine, two sacks of rice, and clothing, Apgujeong-dong was a poor village south of the Han River. In 1966, there was also a report of a gang caught for forging documents to sell 10,000 pyeong of land in the area as their own. The selling price was 270 won per pyeong.

Apgujeong-dong began to attract serious attention in 1969 when the Seoul city government designated the area as a reclamation site for land development by filling in the river. Compared to the 1.71 million pyeong area around Tancheon, which became Jamsil, the 40,000 pyeong east of Hannam Bridge was a very small area, but people who recognized its potential began to gather. Rumors circulated that the construction company responsible for the embankment works was buying land, and from past experience, it was clear that prices would rise once land readjustment projects proceeded.

Development in the area began in earnest after the embankment was completed in 1972, and the area became a dense apartment district starting in August 1975 when the Ministry of Construction designated it as an apartment district to increase apartment supply. This measure, which allowed only apartments, led to complaints and laments from individuals who had purchased land there at the time, which were published in newspapers. It is unclear how these heartfelt appeals for land readjustment or apartment supply were resolved. At the time, Seoul City even offered seven types of tax exemptions, including acquisition tax and property tax, to encourage relocation to the area, but only land prices rose, and actual relocation did not proceed properly. In 1973, a landowner who owned 5,000 pyeong of pear orchards in the area sold the orchard at 17,000 won per pyeong and moved to Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province. The sold site is now where Apgujeong Hyundai Department Store stands.

The area, which had only potential, became a focus of attention in 1976 when news spread that Hyundai Construction would begin large-scale apartment construction. In 1977, with the start of construction of Seongsu Bridge, a road crossing Apgujeong-dong north to south was established. Hyundai Construction and Hanyang Construction began building apartments on both sides centered around Seongsu Bridge, and the area started to become a dense apartment district. Small landowners, taking advantage of the apartment district designation, had no choice but to sell their land at 50,000 won per pyeong, half the market price, but construction companies built apartments on this land and sold them at 500,000 won per pyeong, causing social controversy. It is sad that even now, debates over whether apartment prices are excessively high continue in a similar manner.

The apartments, built as “mansions” referring to luxury apartments at the time, became subjects of controversy due to high prices and preferential sales. Eventually, the government announced plans to investigate costs based on standard construction costs, a process that has been repeatedly seen. As apartment construction continued in Apgujeong-dong, by 1979, the pear orchards, once a local landmark, had almost disappeared.

Apgujeong apartments, which became synonymous with large luxury apartments through preferential sales, gained an advantage due to easy access to central Seoul via Seongsu Bridge. By 1982, the area gradually transformed into the most preferred residential area in Seoul. From this period, commercial bank branches concentrated in the area, elevating it to a financial district in Gangnam, and various commercial facilities, including Hyundai Department Store, began to be established in earnest. By 1986, apartment construction and sales in Apgujeong-dong concluded, and the area was recognized as a prestigious residential and commercial district. During this process, Yeouido, which had been the most preferred residential area, transformed into a business district, lowering its residential preference and allowing Apgujeong-dong to take its place. Since then, Gangnam has solidified its position as the top residential preference area to this day.

Apgujeong-dong, thus developed, later became home to South Korea’s first McDonald’s chain store and, in the 1990s, was once again criticized as the center of conspicuous consumption represented by the “Orange Tribe.” Apgujeong-dong, which seemed destined to remain the best endlessly, lost its top commercial district status and declined for a while after the collapse of Seongsu Bridge in 1994 but has recently revived. Apartment prices have also set new records driven by expectations of reconstruction, showing it remains the most preferred area. It is uncertain when reconstruction will occur, but it is a region that raises curiosity about what it will look like afterward. It is intriguing to wonder whether Han Myeonghoe, who built the pavilion named Apgujeong here during the Joseon Dynasty, truly had an exceptional foresight into the future.

Legal Expert, Yulchon LLC