Haeundae No Longer the Center... High-End Real Estate Fever Spreads to Downtown Busan

- A New Era for Luxury Living in Downtown Busan: "Seomyeon Summit The New" Sets the Bar with High-End Brand and Spacious Design
- From Gwangalli and Haeundae to Seomyeon: Robust Demand Signals Expansion of High-End Residences into the Urban Core

A major transformation is anticipated in the high-end real estate landscape of Busan, which has traditionally been centered around coastal areas. Development projects, ranging from high-end mixed-use complexes to the redevelopment acceleration district around Busan Citizens Park, are gaining momentum. As demand grows among those seeking to enjoy an upscale lifestyle while living in the city center, there is an increasingly active movement to supply high-end properties focused on Busan's inland urban areas.

The areas that best represent downtown Busan are the Seomyeon district and the vicinity of Busan Citizens Park. Located at the heart of the city, these areas offer excellent transportation accessibility, including transfer stations for Subway Lines 1 and 2. They have also maintained strong residential demand thanks to robust living and business infrastructure, such as department stores, major hospitals, government offices, and a concentration of financial offices. In particular, the vibrancy of the Seomyeon commercial district, combined with the green environment centered around Citizens Park, has made these locations stand out as rare urban sites. Leveraging these locational and environmental advantages, there has recently been a surge in high-end residential facilities and mixed-use development projects, positioning the inland city center as the core of a new luxury residential belt.

Amid this trend, it has been reported that Daewoo E&C is preparing to launch a new complex featuring its residential brand "Summit" in the Seomyeon district, which is considered the very center of Busan. The "Seomyeon Summit The New," to be built on the former site of the NC Department Store Seomyeon branch?often referred to as a "prime spot"?will consist of four buildings, ranging from eight basement floors to 47 above-ground floors. The apartment unit breakdown is as follows: 165 units of 84sqm A, 142 units of 84sqm B, 142 units of 122sqm, 136 units of 131sqm A, 8 units of 131sqm A-T, 43 units of 131sqm B, 8 units of 131sqm B-T, 69 units of 131sqm C, 10 units of 136sqm A, 10 units of 136sqm B, 10 units of 136sqm C, 10 units of 136sqm D, and 166 units of 147sqm, totaling 919 units. The development will also include a large-scale commercial and neighborhood facility spanning approximately 29,767sqm from the first basement to the third above-ground floor.

As the first high-end complex to be supplied in Seomyeon, all unit types will be medium to large-sized. The development will feature a sky lounge, a guesthouse with a dry sauna and jacuzzi-focused design, and community spaces on the first to third floors above ground, including a 25-meter, three-lane swimming pool, a large-scale private golf facility, and a sauna. In addition, a range of premium concierge services, similar to those found in the Gangnam area, are also planned for introduction.

In the area around Busan Citizens Park, redevelopment acceleration district projects are in full swing. Five redevelopment zones are currently underway in the Bujeon-dong, Jeonpo-dong, Beomjeon-dong, and Choeup-dong areas of Busanjin-gu. Major domestic construction companies are participating as contractors, each promoting their high-end brands: Zone 1 is GS E&C's "Xi," Zone 2-1 is POSCO E&C's "Otiere," and Zone 3 is DL E&C's "Acro." The total number of units is expected to reach approximately 9,000 in the future, and the area is anticipated to transform into a luxury residential town.

With the active supply of high-end residential complexes centered on Seomyeon and Citizens Park, some analysts predict that the high-end residential belt, which has been concentrated in coastal areas such as Haeundae and Gwangalli, will successfully expand into Busan's urban core. While many high-priced coastal homes are relatively older, the inland area is being newly developed and boasts excellent locational conditions, leading to expectations that it will establish itself as an emerging affluent neighborhood.

The solid demand for high-end residences within Busan supports this outlook. In fact, since the beginning of this year, major luxury homes have set new record-high prices for their types, even during a market adjustment period: a 186sqm unit at "Haeundae LCT The Sharp" in Haeundae-gu sold for 4.98 billion KRW (79th floor), a 221sqm unit at "Haeundae Kyungdong Jade" sold for 4.8 billion KRW (19th floor), and a 157sqm unit at "Haeundae Doosan We've the Zenith" sold for 2.9 billion KRW (68th floor). Additionally, according to KB Kookmin Bank's May monthly housing market trend statistics, Busan recorded an apartment average quintile ratio of 6.3?the highest among the six metropolitan cities. The quintile ratio is the value obtained by dividing the average price of the top 20% of homes (fifth quintile) by the average price of the bottom 20% (first quintile). A higher ratio indicates a greater price gap between high-priced and low-priced homes, signifying more pronounced polarization.

Furthermore, "Blanc Summit 74" in Beomil-dong, Dong-gu, which launched sales in June, is the area's first high-end product. Despite its relatively high pre-sale price, it is on the verge of selling out quickly. This demonstrates that demand and satisfaction for high-end residential products in Busan are being confirmed through actual transactions.

While demand for high-end residences is spreading in the city center, new developments are also being launched in the coastal belt. "Summit Limited Namcheon," to be built on the former Megamart site in Namcheon-dong, Suyeong-gu, will comprise a total of 835 units and will feature views of the Gwangan Bridge.

A real estate expert commented, "High-end residential facilities are established after carefully considering and selecting locational values such as symbolism and infrastructure. Ultimately, this proves that Busan's urban core possesses locational value equal to that of coastal areas like Marine City and Centum City. If high-end residential facilities are supplied in earnest, the area will form a key axis of Busan in the future."