[Practical Finance] Don't Miss the Gongneung and Wirye Newlywed Hope Town Subscription

Good Price and Location... A New Challenge for 'My Home'

Although the number of newlywed couples hit a record low of 1,032,000 pairs as of November 2022, their desire to own a home has become even clearer. According to the '2022 Housing Survey' released last month by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, 92.0% of newlywed households expressed a strong desire to own a home. However, the homeownership rate stood at only 49.0%.

The government has decided to support young people, including newlyweds, who have found it difficult to purchase homes due to high interest rates and rising house prices by expanding special supply and offering low-interest loans this year. Public sale supply will also continue at a steady pace. Since the beginning of the year, newlywed couples have been busy checking eligibility and strategizing for applications to newlywed hope towns and New:Home in Seoul and the metropolitan area.

◆ "We've been waiting, Gongneung Newlywed Hope Town"

Perspective view of the Newlywed Hope Town in Gongneung-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul / Image courtesy of Korea Land and Housing Corporation

An opportunity has arisen to purchase a newly built apartment with an exclusive area of 59㎡ near a Seoul subway station for around 600 million KRW. The protagonist is the Gongneung-dong area Newlywed Hope Town (Sinheeta) in Nowon-gu, which has been accepting applications since the 8th.

The site, formerly an old military barracks, was developed on consignment by the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH). Of the total 294 households, 139 are allocated to Sinheeta. The rest will be supplied as military barracks (80 households), Happy Housing (60 households), and public sales for displaced persons (15 households). Since the Sinheeta application deadline is until 5 p.m. on the 10th, applicants need to hurry.

Originally scheduled for supply in 2021, the application schedule was delayed due to late agreement with the Ministry of National Defense, which owns the site. It boasts a prime location just 300 meters in a straight line from Hwarangdae Station on Subway Line 6, with Taereung Elementary School and Gongneung Middle School nearby. Construction is handled by GS Construction, Gyeryong Construction, Dongbu Construction, and Daebo Construction.

The sale price varies by floor but is set between approximately 580 million and 610 million KRW under the price ceiling system. Payments are made with a 10% deposit, two 10% intermediate payments, and a 70% balance upon move-in. All units feature balcony expansions, and buyers can choose minus options.

Compared to nearby complexes, a safety margin of about 100 million KRW is expected. For example, the large Taegang Apartment complex with 1,676 households trades similar-sized units in the high 500 million KRW range, and Taereung Harrington Place, which moved in January 2022, saw its 59㎡ units change hands in early December last year for just over 700 million KRW. Considering that newly built apartments with 59㎡ in northern Seoul are recently priced around 1 billion KRW, this offers considerable merit.

However, the complex prohibits resale for three years, and residents must live there for three years. The re-winning restriction period is 10 years. Priority is given to Seoul residents, and winners will be announced on February 1. The expected move-in date is October 2027.

◆ Namwirye Sinheeta, better location than New:Home?

Perspective view of the Newlywed Hope Town in Wirye New Town, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi Province / Image provided by Korea Land & Housing Corporation

In Gyeonggi Province, the Sinheeta in Changgok-dong, Seongnam City, Wirye New Town A2-7 block is attracting attention from buyers. This complex, with a maximum of 23 floors and a total of 1,309 households, will supply 440 households as Sinheeta. The rest include 219 Happy Housing units and 650 military barracks units.

The main application on the 11th will include 87 units of 55㎡ exclusive area. Additionally, unclaimed units from the 353 households selected in the preliminary application will be added to the main application. Move-in is scheduled for January 2026, and like Gongneung Sinheeta, there is a three-year resale restriction. The mandatory residence period is five years, and the re-winning restriction period is 10 years.

Being located in Wirye New Town, access to Gangnam is good. It takes about 15 minutes by bus to Namwirye Station on Subway Line 8. The nearby Wirye Central Plaza makes it convenient to use surrounding commercial areas. The sale price is around 620 million KRW. Since there are almost no comparable units of the same size in nearby complexes, exact comparisons are difficult, but based on price per pyeong, a price difference of about 200 million KRW is expected.

It can be confused with the Wirye New Town A-14 block, which is holding applications around the same time. New:Home is the new name for public sale housing under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, which aims to supply 500,000 units during its term. This Wirye New:Home is being sold under a profit-sharing (sharing) model. Although administratively located in Songpa-gu, Seoul, considering development benefits such as the Wirye Line tram, Sinheeta in Namwirye is evaluated to have a better location.

New:Home is also supplied in Daebang-dong, Dongjak-gu, and Magok District, Gangseo-gu, Seoul. For complexes with the same announcement date, applicants cannot apply simultaneously, and there is a possibility of winning in complex B before the announcement of winners in complex A. Therefore, newlywed couples who urgently want to own a home should prioritize their residential area and apply accordingly.

Meanwhile, since Sinheeta was the housing type first introduced by the Moon Jae-in administration to stabilize housing for newlyweds, once the supply of complexes approved under this scheme ends, it will no longer be offered under the same name. An LH official said, "It can be seen as a change in supply type," adding, "It will be absorbed into New:Home supply."