Over 100,000 Applicants for Qualification Exams This Year↓
Real Estate Market Slump, Transaction Freeze, and Increased Difficulty
The popularity of the Licensed Real Estate Agent qualification exam, known as the "college entrance exam for adults," has declined along with the downturn in the real estate market.
According to the Korea Industrial Manpower Corporation on the 10th, the number of applicants and passers for this year's Licensed Real Estate Agent qualification exam was the lowest in seven years since 2016.
The 34th Licensed Real Estate Agent qualification exam, held in October and for which the results were recently announced, had a total of 287,756 applicants for both the first and second parts, with 200,059 actually taking the exam, and 42,615 passing. Compared to last year, the number of applicants decreased by more than 100,000, and the number of test takers dropped by about 64,000.
The number of first-stage passers was 27,458, and second-stage passers were 15,157, with pass rates of 20.4% and 23.1%, respectively. The number of successful candidates was nearly 20,000 fewer than last year, marking the lowest level in eight years since 2015.
The decline in popularity of the Licensed Real Estate Agent exam is due to the real estate market slump and transaction freeze, which have also caused a recession in the real estate brokerage industry. According to the Korea Association of Licensed Real Estate Agents, about 1,200 real estate offices have closed each month on average this year.
Difficulty Increased... but Practical Use is Uncertain
The number of applicants for the Licensed Real Estate Agent exam, considered a barometer of the real estate market, has consistently exceeded 300,000 since 2017, except for 2019 (298,213). In 2021, when housing prices soared, the number of applicants nearly reached 400,000.
However, the difficulty level has risen to the point where the pass rate is lower than that of the CPA exam, and the real estate market atmosphere remains cold. In August, the number of closures (1,176) even surpassed the number of new registrations (826). Apartment transaction volume was 17,841 in January this year, the lowest in the past 10 years. This is due to the real estate market contraction caused by interest rate hikes.
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