Average Monthly Rent for One-Room Apartments Near Seoul Universities: 609,000 KRW
Maintenance Fees Average 78,000 KRW
Monthly rent for one-room apartments near universities in Seoul has sharply increased, approaching an average of 600,000 KRW. Along with rising maintenance fees, the housing cost burden on university students has grown even heavier.
On the 11th, real estate information platform 'Dabang' analyzed the average monthly rent and maintenance fees for one-room apartments registered on Dabang near 10 major universities in Seoul for January, ahead of the 2025 new semester. For one-room apartments (under 33㎡) with a deposit of 10 million KRW, the average monthly rent was 609,000 KRW, and the average maintenance fee was 78,000 KRW. Compared to January last year, monthly rent rose by 6.1% and maintenance fees by 8.1%, meaning students near the 10 major universities in Seoul are paying an average monthly housing cost of 687,000 KRW.
A boarding house flyer is posted on the neighborhood bulletin board near Chung-Ang University in Dongjak-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung
The area with the highest average monthly rent and maintenance fees was near Ewha Womans University in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. The average monthly rent for one-room apartments near Ewha Womans University was 741,000 KRW, the only area among the 10 universities to record rent in the 700,000 KRW range. Following were Yonsei University (643,000 KRW), Sogang University (642,000 KRW), Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (631,000 KRW), Sungkyunkwan University (625,000 KRW), and Kyung Hee University (622,000 KRW).
The average maintenance fee was also highest near Ewha Womans University at 105,000 KRW, the most expensive among all universities. Seoul National University had 85,000 KRW, Chung-Ang University 84,000 KRW, and Korea University 80,000 KRW in maintenance fees. Following were Kyung Hee University and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (78,000 KRW), Yonsei University (76,000 KRW), Hanyang University (73,000 KRW), Sogang University (60,000 KRW), and Sungkyunkwan University (59,000 KRW).
Regarding the rate of increase in average monthly rent, the area near Sungkyunkwan University saw the largest rise. The average rent near Sungkyunkwan University increased by 33%, from 470,000 KRW in January last year to 625,000 KRW this year. Chung-Ang University rose by 9.8% (480,000 KRW → 527,000 KRW), Yonsei University by 7.2% (600,000 KRW → 643,000 KRW), Hankuk University of Foreign Studies by 6.9% (590,000 KRW → 631,000 KRW), and Korea University by 6% (570,000 KRW → 604,000 KRW).
The area with the largest increase in average maintenance fees was near Ewha Womans University, rising 16.7% from 90,000 KRW last year to 105,000 KRW this year.
With the steep rise in monthly rent, recent tuition fee increases at major universities are expected to further increase the financial burden on students. According to the Korea Council of Private University Presidents (KCPUP), among 190 universities nationwide (151 private, 39 national/public), 103 universities, accounting for 54.2%, have decided to raise tuition fees. Among major universities in Seoul, Sungshin Women's University (5.3%), Kyung Hee University (5.1%), Korea University (5.0%), and Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (5.0%) raised tuition by more than 5%.
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