Brand Apartments for Seniors Only... "700,000 KRW Monthly Including Food Expenses" [Senior House]

[7-2]"Save Money with Large Complexes" Brand Apartments for Seniors Only

1,300 Units Sold, All Owners Aged 65 and Over

Facilities Are Ample, but Costs Reduced Through Economies of Scale

▲This is a view of Spring County Xi, a senior welfare housing complex in Yongin City, taken on the 3rd of last month. It looks like a typical apartment complex, but it is home to residents aged 65 and older. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

At Dongbaek Station in Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do, when the subway arrives at the platform, a neat apartment complex comes into view through the window. It looks no different from any other large branded apartment complex. However, upon closer observation of the residents coming and going, one can tell that this is a senior welfare housing complex. All 1,345 households are owned by seniors aged 60 and above. This place was approved under the senior welfare housing sales system when it was still active. General sales took place in 2016, and seniors began moving in from 2019.

On the morning of the 3rd of last month at 10 a.m., grandmothers and grandfathers started gathering at the community center inside the complex. One hand held a ukulele, while the other carried snacks like glutinous rice cakes, puffed rice snacks, and scorched rice-flavored candies. Before the club meeting began, from 67-year-old Grandma Im Oksun to 84-year-old Grandma Oh Gunja, they called each other "sister" and "younger sister," laughing and chatting just like when they were young girls. That day’s ukulele practice song was "Where the Wind Blows." Wearing magnifying glasses and staring intently at the sheet music, the seniors carefully crafted each note with their fingertips.

▲On the 3rd of last month, residents of Yongin Spring County Xi Apartment gathered at the community center to take a ukulele class.

"This is an apartment, but it’s not isolated like the apartments we used to live in. Nowadays, who greets seniors in apartments? It’s different here. Since we live among ourselves, we take care of each other. If someone has surgery or is sick, we leave food at their doorstep. There’s affection here. Because it’s a large complex, there are about 50 clubs like this. My husband is in a Japanese language club and is currently obsessed with Japanese dramas. Since all activities happen within the complex, we come down in summer or winter to meet neighbors and chat," explained Grandma Yeo Jinsun (76, pseudonym), who moved into Spring County Xi in 2019. She saved money by running a kindergarten when she was younger. With that money, she bought one apartment each in Yongin and Bundang. She sold the Yongin apartment to move here. The Bundang apartment is rented out, and the rent covers the maintenance fees here. Currently, the sale price of apartments here is about 600 million KRW (based on 59㎡ exclusive area).

Grandma Yeo said, "I hardly see anyone among the neighbors who are extravagantly wealthy. But it’s possible for those who sell a house or land to raise a lump sum of about 600 million KRW. As long as you can handle the maintenance fees, there’s no place better than this. It’s my own home that I bought with my own money, so I feel at ease."

▲On the 3rd of last month, residents are enjoying table tennis at the community center of Yongin Spring County Xi Apartment. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

The biggest advantage of a large-scale senior welfare housing complex is the 'economy of scale.' With over 1,000 households, monthly maintenance fees can be kept low. Kim Youngsoo, the facility manager in charge of operations here, said, "For one person, including meal costs, the total monthly maintenance fee is about 600,000 to 700,000 KRW." This includes a general maintenance fee of 300,000 KRW, meal costs for one meal a day (9,000 KRW per meal) totaling 270,000 KRW, and water and heating fees ranging from 100,000 to 150,000 KRW. If the apartment is larger, a couple lives together, or during winter when heating costs rise, the maintenance fee can go up to 1 million KRW per month.

Facility manager Kim explained, "There are facilities such as a fitness center, sauna, golf practice room, billiards room, table tennis room, pocket billiards room, and karaoke room, and Yongin Severance Hospital is just a five-minute walk away. Even though the facilities are not lacking compared to the best senior welfare housing, the 1,345 households share the costs, which helps lower the monthly maintenance fees."

In the late afternoon, Grandpa Joo Byungchul (77, pseudonym), who lives in Building 203, met his older and younger neighbors at the apartment’s table tennis room. "It’s an evening wager game. If I lose, I have to buy seolleongtang (ox bone soup). I’m grateful to be healthy enough to play table tennis like this. We all had a hard time when we were young. Now, we should live quietly and peacefully. I don’t want anything more."

[7-2] "Large Complex Saves Money" Branded Apartments Exclusively for Seniors