Where Did the Real Estate Offices That Opened in Crowds During Moving Season Go... Hit the Lowest Point in 25 Years

1,796 New Real Estate Agencies Opened in January-February, Dropping to the 1,000s for the First Time
Market Slump and Oversaturation of Realtors Among Key Factors

The number of newly licensed real estate agents opening their businesses this year is the lowest in 25 years since 2000.

According to the Korea Association of Realtors on the 13th, the number of newly opened real estate agents until February this year was 1,796, confirmed as the lowest for the January-February period since 2000. In January, 871 new real estate agents opened their businesses, and in February, there were 925.

The interior of a licensed real estate agent's office in downtown Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

Looking at the number of real estate agents who opened their businesses in January-February over the past 10 years, there were 3,844 in 2016, 4,486 in 2017, 4,260 in 2018, 3,353 in 2019, 3,972 in 2020, 3,306 in 2021, and 3,473 in 2022, ranging between 3,000 and 4,000. After that, the number dropped to 2,496 in 2023 and further declined to 2,008 last year. From 2000 to 2015, the number of new openings during the same period fluctuated due to the number of annual exams and passers but ranged from a minimum of 2,500 to as many as 6,000. This year is the first time the number of new openings has fallen to the 1,000 range.

The association explained, "The number of newly opened real estate agents this year is unusually low." Typically, January and February at the beginning of the year see an increase in openings targeting the spring moving season. However, despite this seasonal factor, the reason why the number of newly opened real estate agents did not increase much during this period this year appears to be due to the saturation of real estate agents amid an overall sluggish real estate sales market.

The total number of licensed real estate agents was 117,923 in February 2023, then decreased monthly to 111,756 by February last year.

As the real estate agent business conditions remain sluggish, the number of examinees taking the real estate agent exam has also significantly decreased. Last year, the number of examinees was 154,669, the lowest in eight years. This is the first time since 2017 that the number of exam takers has fallen below 200,000.

An association official told Yonhap News, "Unless government-level policies to revitalize the real estate market are introduced, this downward trend is inevitable," adding, "Some people want to close their offices but are forced to keep them running reluctantly because they cannot recover their goodwill payments."