[New Mokdong, When?] ① Floor Area Ratio 130% → 300%, Transforming into a New Town with up to 53,000 Housing Units

34 Reconstruction Sites in Gangnam, 27 in Seocho, 14 in Songpa
Meanwhile, Only 3 in Mokdong, Just 1 Since 2010
Consecutive Safety Inspections Passed, About 53,000 Households Planned

Editor's NoteIn 1983, under the government's new town development plan, a neighborhood was established. Mokdong (Mokdong New Town) in Seoul is on the verge of its second transformation. It is reconstruction. The day is not far off when nearly 40-year-old old apartments will be demolished and rebuilt into high-rise apartments equipped with the latest residential systems. Of course, there are huge challenges to overcome. Rebuilding a community with as many as 392 apartment buildings (14 complexes) and about 100,000 residents (26,935 households) is not easy. It is difficult to predict how long it will take. However, many residents of Mokdong New Town are eager. They want to quickly escape the anxiety caused by exterior walls breaking in strong winds and the inconvenience of insufficient parking spaces.

Apartment buildings in the Mokdong area of Yangcheon-gu, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Wanyong] Mokdong is considered one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in the southwestern part of Seoul, alongside Yeouido. Leveraging its strong academy district, it attracted affluent residents not only from Yeongdeungpo and Yeouido in the same area but also from the northern part of Seoul. As a result, in the 2000s, it was regarded as a region that threatened the Gangnam 3 districts (Gangnam, Seocho, Songpa). Especially during the real estate market boom in 2006, it was grouped with Gangnam, Seocho, Songpa, Bundang, Yongin, and Pyeongchon as part of the ‘Bubble Seven’ and faced concentrated government regulations.

However, in the 2010s, the gap between Mokdong and the Gangnam 3 districts began to widen. This was due to the lack of new development and reconstruction issues. In fact, reconstruction in Mokdong was modest. Since 2000, only three complexes have undergone reconstruction: Dongsin Apartment (now Mokdong Lotte Castle Winner), Wangja Mansion (Mokdong Kumho Apartment), and Mok 1st Housing (Mokdong Lotte Castle Maestro). Among these, only Mokdong Lotte Castle Maestro was reconstructed after 2010.

On the other hand, Gangnam has seen continuous reconstruction of complexes such as Cheongsil Apartment, Gaepo Jugong 2 Complex, Cheongdam Hanyang, Gaepo Jugong 3 Complex, AID Yeongdong Loan, and Gaenari 3rd Complex, transforming into new residences like Raemian Daechi Palace (2015), Raemian Blestige (2019), Cheongdam Xi (2011), The H Honor Hills (2019), Samsung Hillstate 2 Complex (2008), and Gaenari Prugio (2006). The number of reconstructed complexes reached 34.

Gangnam still has about 30 complexes preparing for reconstruction, including Apgujeong Miseong, Apgujeong Hanyang, Gaepo Hyundai, Eunma, Gaepo Siyoung, Irwon Daewoo, Gaepo Hanshin, Dogok Samik, and Gaenari.

Seocho has seen reconstruction of Banpo Jugong 2 Complex, Banpo Jugong 3 Complex, Banpo Hanyang Apartment, Seocho Hanyang Apartment, Sinbanpo 6th Complex, and Banpo Woosung Apartment. New complexes such as Raemian Banpo Prestige (2009), Banpo Xi (2008), Sinbanpo Xi (2018), Banpo Hillstate (2011), Banpo Central Xi, Acro River Park Banpo (2016), Acro Riverview (2018), Banpo Central Prugio Summit (2018), Banpo Roel 1 & 2 Complex (2021, 2022), and Banpo Summit (2018) have been built, totaling 27 complexes.

Songpa, which once competed with Mokdong for the position after Gangnam and Seocho, began gaining fame as a new residential district from the 2000s with developments such as Garak Siyoung Apartment, Munjeong-dong 136, Songpa Bando Apartment, Jamsil Jugong Apartments 1, 2, 3, and 4 Complexes, and Pungnap Woosung and Samyong.

Garak Dongbu Centreville (2001), Songpa Samsung Raemian (2001), Jamsil Parkrio (2008), Jamsil Els (2008), Jamsil Resentz (2008), Jamsil Trizium (2007), Jamsil Lake Palace (2006), Songpa Haemoro (2006), and Songpa Hyundai Hillstate (2006) were newly built through reconstruction.

In 2018, Helio City, called the largest reconstruction project since the founding of Korea, was completed. In 2019, Jamsil Olympic Park I-Park was built, and Hillstate e-Pyeonhansesang Munjeong (scheduled for 2024) is currently under construction. So far, 14 reconstruction projects have been carried out, and 31 complexes are still preparing for reconstruction.

◆12 Complexes Passed Safety Inspections for Development Project Decision

As reconstruction had been sluggish in Mokdong, changes are now underway. Most apartment complexes in Mokdong New Town have met the reconstruction requirements.

Last November, the ‘Mokdong District Land Development Project District Unit Plan and Plan Decision’ was approved, and earlier this year, many complexes that underwent safety inspections passed the reconstruction criteria. Complexes 3, 5, 7, 10, 12, and 14 were upgraded from ‘conditional reconstruction’ to ‘immediate reconstruction,’ and including Complex 6, which passed the safety inspection first three years ago, seven complexes are now eligible for reconstruction.

Additionally, Complexes 1, 2, 4, 8, and 13 received ‘conditional reconstruction’ results. Even if they received conditional reconstruction judgments, public institution appropriateness reviews are conducted only upon local government requests, so these complexes are also likely to pass the safety inspection threshold. Complexes 9 and 11 have not yet passed safety inspections but are undergoing the process again.

If reconstruction proceeds as planned, up to 53,000 households will be built on the 4,368,463m² area of Mokdong New Town apartment complexes. Considering that Complexes 1 to 14 currently have 26,935 households, the number of households will roughly double. To this end, Seoul City plans to allow the floor area ratio, currently averaging around 130%, to increase up to 300%.

Of course, due to the large scale of the complexes, it is expected to take at least 10 years for the entire area to be reconstructed, even at the fastest pace. This is because when a large-scale land development area is reconstructed all at once, relocation surges can cause rental housing shortages and significant impacts on the local real estate market.

Therefore, Seoul City will designate each complex as a special planning zone and manage the reconstruction by adjusting the order of disposition. In fact, in the case of Gwacheon reconstruction, Phase 1 was carried out in the late 2000s, but Phase 3 has not even begun demolition yet, with a gap of more than 15 years.