"From April Next Year, 17 Minutes to Gangnam"... Rising Housing Prices Along GTX Lines Including Dongtan and Pangyo

Partial Opening of Line A Stations Sees Record Apartment Sales Nearby
GTX-C Line Construction Expected Within the Year, Boosting Real Estate Market Sentiment

The Metropolitan Area Express Train (GTX) is heating up the real estate market in the Seoul metropolitan area. With the partial opening of the GTX-A line (Suseo to Dongtan section) scheduled for April next year, housing prices around the stations on this route are on the rise. Additionally, the prospect of the GTX-C line breaking ground within the year is creating an atmosphere of a full-fledged upswing in the real estate market in the corresponding areas.

The GTX-A line, scheduled to partially open next April (Suseo to Dongtan section), began test runs last September from SRT Suseo Station to Dongtan Station. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Rapid Recovery in Dongtan and Bundang Real Estate Markets

According to the monthly apartment sales price index change rate from the Korea Real Estate Board on the 13th, housing prices in Dongtan (Hwaseong City) and Pangyo (Bundang-gu, Seongnam City), where new GTX-A line stations are being established, have been on an upward trend since May. This coincides with when news of the partial opening of the Suseo to Dongtan section began circulating in the market. Upon partial opening, the line is expected to cover the 40 km between Suseo Station and Dongtan Station in just 17 minutes.

Hwaseong City, where Dongtan Station is located, recorded a decline rate in the 4% range during January and February this year but has since rapidly recovered with better month-over-month growth rates from May onward. Similarly, Bundang-gu in Seongnam City, where the provisional Seongnam Station is planned in Pangyo, has maintained a steady upward trend since May.

For example, the ‘Dongtan Station Shibeom The Sharp Central City’ apartment near Dongtan Station, with an exclusive area of 84A㎡, was traded at 1 billion KRW in January this year but saw transactions between 1.1 billion and 1.2 billion KRW starting in May. The ‘Dongtan Station Shibeom Hanwha Dream Green Prestige’ apartment, with an exclusive area of 84㎡, rose from the 900 million KRW range at the beginning of the year to 1.1 billion KRW in May and further to 1.2 billion KRW in August.

The ‘Botdeul Village Complex 9 (Kumho Eoullim)’ apartment in Sampyeong-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam City, recorded a new high price. The 101㎡ exclusive area unit was traded in the 1.8 billion KRW range until the first half of the year but was sold for 2.09 billion KRW in July, marking the highest price for that size. This apartment complex is considered a prime location near the new GTX-A station.

Although the opening is still more than a year away, apartment prices in Paju Unjeong New Town, located in the northern section of the GTX-A line, are also gradually rising. The ‘Unjeong New Town Central Prugio’ apartment, completed in 2018 with an exclusive area of 84㎡, was traded in the 500 million KRW range at the beginning of the year but reached 710 million KRW in July, the highest price this year. The ‘Kintex One City’ (Block 2) near Kintex Station in Goyang City also recorded a new high price of 1.655 billion KRW for an 84㎡ unit in March.

Not only in Gyeonggi Province but also in Seoul, where GTX passes through, previously sluggish transactions are showing signs of revival. The ‘Seoul Station Central Xi’ (completed in 2017) with an exclusive area of 84㎡ has not yet reached its previous highest price (1.83 billion KRW in 2021) but transactions in the 1.5 to 1.6 billion KRW range have increased. In the case of ‘Samik Apartment’ near Suseo Station in Gangnam-gu, a 10th-floor unit was traded at 1.47 billion KRW at the beginning of the year, but in May, a 3rd-floor unit was sold for 1.55 billion KRW, marking an upward price trend.

Growing Interest in GTX-C Line Area as Groundbreaking Becomes Possible Within the Year

Following the signing of an implementation agreement between the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the project operator in August, groundbreaking for the GTX-C line became possible within the year, causing housing prices near the planned stations to stir.

In the northern Gyeonggi region, including Uijeongbu and Yangju, the rate of decline has noticeably decreased since the first half of the year, and as of September, weekly apartment sales price change rates have turned positive, indicating changes.

Consequently, interest in new housing supply in areas along the GTX line is increasing. The ‘Unjeong Xi Signature’ launched in Paju Unjeong New Town in June attracted 41,000 applicants for first-priority subscription, recording an average competition rate of 64.31 to 1.

High-priced transactions are also emerging in apartment pre-sale rights. The ‘Cheongnyangni Station Lotte Castle SKY-L65’ near Cheongnyangni Station, which began occupancy in July, recorded a new high price of 1.656 billion KRW for an 84㎡ unit on the 33rd floor in July.

An industry insider said, “Typically, transportation networks cause various changes in the real estate market through planning, groundbreaking, and opening stages. Recently, rapid market recovery has been observed mainly in areas along the GTX line, so it is worth watching how the regions of other lines, including the C line, which is gaining momentum alongside the A line, will keep pace with the A line real estate market.”

Meanwhile, near Uijeongbu Station, which connects to the GTX-C line, POSCO E&C will launch ‘The Sharp Uijeongbu Station Link City’ in October. It is a large complex with 1,401 households, located in the Camp LaGuardia urban development project site, consisting of high-end apartments with 48 floors and medium to large units. The station is within walking distance, and once the GTX-C line opens, travel to Gangnam, Seoul will be possible within 20 minutes.

In Dongtan 2 New Town, Geumgang Housing plans to supply 662 units of ‘Dongtan New Town Geumgang Penterium 7th Central Park.’ Using the Dongtan Station area allows quick access to Suseo in Seoul. Hyundai Construction is also set to introduce 585 units of ‘Hillstate Dongtan Foret’ in Dongtan 2 New Town.

In Suwon, Hyundai Engineering plans to supply 482 units of ‘Hillstate Suwon Park Foret,’ and a Samsung C&T consortium plans to launch ‘Maegyo Station Pallucid’ in Seryu-dong, Suwon City within the year.