Seoul apartment pre-sale prices have surged by more than 44% over five months, surpassing 37 million KRW per 3.3㎡. This year, all areas in Seoul except the Gangnam 3 districts (Gangnam-gu, Seocho-gu, Songpa-gu) and Yongsan-gu were removed from the pre-sale price ceiling regulation zones, and construction costs have also risen, which is expected to increase upward pressure on pre-sale prices.
Given this situation, there is a growing trend of giving up on buying a home in Seoul. Instead, there is a noticeable increase in population movement to the Gyeonggi area, where pre-sale prices are lower and the supply of pre-sale units is abundant, compared to Seoul.
According to Real Estate R114 on the 1st, as of August 28, the average pre-sale price of apartments in Seoul was 37.43 million KRW per 3.3㎡, a sharp increase of 44.35% (11.5 million KRW) compared to March (25.93 million KRW).
In fact, for the Dongdaemun-gu Huigyeong Xi Decencia, which held a subscription in April, the price for an exclusive 84㎡ unit was set between 820 million and 976 million KRW. However, the Raemian La Grande, which was pre-sold in the same district in August, was priced between 1.011 billion and 1.099 billion KRW for the same area, showing a difference of over 100 million KRW at the highest.
Pre-sale prices jump even higher outside the Gangbuk area. The Lotte Castle East Pole in Gwangjin-gu, pre-sold in July, was supplied at up to 1.49 billion KRW for an exclusive 84㎡ A-type unit, and the Cheonggye SK VIEW, pre-sold this month with only one unit available, showed a pre-sale price of 1.34178 billion KRW for an exclusive 84㎡ unit.
The rise in Seoul apartment pre-sale prices is leading to a ‘de-Seoul’ phenomenon. Instead, the population is moving to the Gyeonggi area (Gyeonggi-do, Incheon, etc.), where pre-sale prices are lower than in Seoul, causing the metropolitan population structure to resemble a round ‘donut’ shape, with the areas surrounding Seoul swelling.
According to the domestic population movement statistics from April to July by Statistics Korea, the Gyeonggi area (18,130 people) and Incheon (7,817 people) recorded net inflows, with more people moving in than out. In contrast, Seoul experienced a net outflow of 13,643 people.
The ‘de-Seoul → inflow to Gyeonggi’ trend is expected to continue. According to real estate information company Real Estate Info, 13 complexes (5,832 units) will be pre-sold in the Gyeonggi area from this month until the end of the year.
Major complexes include Posco E&C’s ‘The Sharp Uijeongbu Station Link City’ scheduled for pre-sale in Uijeongbu in October. It is a large complex with 1,401 units. In Anyang, GS Construction will launch ‘Anyang Xi The Forest’ with 483 units this month. In Gwangmyeong, ‘Trius Gwangmyeong,’ consisting of 3,344 units, will be pre-sold.
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