In Just Six Months, 5,158 More Homes Owned by Foreigners
Chinese Nationals Account for 68% of the Increase with 3,503 Additional Units
Seven Out of Ten Foreign-Owned Homes Are in the Seoul Metropolitan Area
Clear Preference for Apartments Among Foreign Buyers
As the number of homes owned by foreigners in South Korea continues to rise, Chinese buyers are leading the trend. Nearly 70% of the increase in foreign-owned homes over the past six months was driven by Chinese nationals, with the number of homes owned by Chinese increasing by over 3,500 units.
According to the "Statistics on Foreigners' Land and Housing Ownership as of the End of 2024" released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on May 30, the number of homes owned by foreigners rose from 95,058 at the end of June 2024 to 100,216 at the end of December 2024, an increase of 5,158 units in just six months. Of this increase, the number of homes owned by Chinese nationals rose from 52,798 to 56,301, a jump of 3,503 units. This means that Chinese nationals accounted for 68% of the total increase in foreign-owned homes.
Currently, Chinese nationals own the largest number of homes among all foreigners in South Korea. Of the total 100,216 homes owned by foreigners, 56.2% are owned by Chinese nationals. This is approximately 2.5 times more than the United States, which ranks second with 22,031 units (22.0%). Canada (6,315 units), Taiwan (3,360 units), and Australia (1,940 units) follow. The number of homes owned by Chinese nationals in South Korea has been steadily increasing since the late 2010s.
By region, there is a pronounced concentration in the Seoul metropolitan area. Of all homes owned by foreigners, 72.7%?a total of 72,868 units?are located in the Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Incheon areas. Gyeonggi Province has the largest share with 39,144 units, followed by Seoul with 23,741 units, and Incheon with 9,983 units. In non-metropolitan areas, foreign ownership is highest in Chungnam (6,156 units), Busan (3,090 units), Gyeongnam (2,826 units), Chungbuk (2,819 units), and Gyeongbuk (1,923 units), with a higher concentration in the Yeongnam region.
By property type, apartment buildings and other multi-family housing accounted for 91.3% (91,518 units) of foreign-owned homes. Apartments were the most common at 60,654 units (60.5%), followed by multiplex and row houses at 30,864 units (30.8%), and single-family homes at 8,698 units (8.7%). By number of homes owned, 93.4% of foreign owners (92,089 individuals) owned one home, 5.3% (5,182 individuals) owned two homes, and 1.3% (1,310 individuals) owned three or more homes.
Meanwhile, the total land area owned by foreigners increased from 264.6 million square meters at the end of 2023 to 267.9 million square meters at the end of 2024, a rise of 1.2% (3.3 million square meters). Of this, the United States accounted for a dominant 53.5% (143.31 million square meters). China owns 21.21 million square meters, representing 7.9% of the total, and accounted for an increase of 410,000 square meters, or about 12.5% of the total increase. Unlike housing, the proportion of land owned by Chinese nationals remains relatively low.
The government stated that it will continue to closely monitor the status of real estate owned by foreigners. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said, "We plan to strictly manage speculative real estate transactions by foreigners by thoroughly investigating abnormal transactions suspected of illegal activity, linking statistics on land and housing ownership by foreigners with transaction reporting information."
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