"They Said 'It Would Never Return,' But It Did... The Place That Set a New Record High After 3 Years and 1 Month [Real Estate AtoZ]"

Previous Peak from August 2022 Surpassed After 3 Years and 1 Month
Unusual Recovery of Previous Highs from the Moon Administration's Housing Boom Outside the Seoul Metropolitan Area
Record-High Prices Continue in Deokjin and Wansan Districts Amid Su

While attention has been focused on the rise in housing prices in the Seoul metropolitan area, Jeonju in North Jeolla Province has, unusually for a provincial city, surpassed its previous peak from 2022. Major apartment complexes are seeing record-high transactions for the first time in years, and there is also strong enthusiasm in the subscription market. Analysts attribute this quiet rally in record-high prices to structural factors such as a supply shortage.

Jeonju unusually reclaimed its previous peak during the Moon Jae-in administration for a provincial city. The photo shows Punglim Iwon in Wansan-gu, Jeonju. It is an apartment owned by Kim Yoonduk, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Giji Auction.

According to the Korea Real Estate Board's "Apartment Price Trends for the Fourth Week of September" released on September 28, the apartment sales price index in Jeonju rose by 0.17% from the previous week to 102.12, surpassing the previous peak of 102.02 from August 2022 for the first time in three years and one month. After a sharp decline in the second half of 2022, Jeonju's annual apartment price growth rate closed at minus 0.6%, and in 2023, prices fell by another 2.62%. However, they rebounded by 3.01% the following year. So far this year (as of September), the index has risen by an additional 2.87%, ultimately breaking through the previous peak.

By district, Deokjin-gu surpassed its previous peak (101.98 in August 2022) for the first time in the third week of September, reaching 102.00, and then climbed further to 102.20 in the fourth week. Wansan-gu also rose to 102.05 during the same period, nearly surpassing its previous record high of 102.06 from August 2022.

Across the country, only a handful of areas have managed to recover to their previous peaks from the nationwide housing boom during the Moon Jae-in administration in 2021-2022. Even in Seoul, only nine districts-Gangnam 3 districts, Yongsan, Mapo, Seongdong, Gwangjin, Gangdong, and Yangcheon-have surpassed their previous highs, while most areas have yet to recover. In some regions, people say, "It's a peak that's unlikely to return." In this context, Jeonju has emerged as a "hidden stronghold," unusually surpassing its previous peak among small and mid-sized provincial cities.

The reason behind Jeonju's rising housing prices is straightforward. Although it is the largest city in North Jeolla Province with a population of about 600,000, there is a severe shortage of supply compared to the annual demand of about 3,100 households. The number of new apartment units supplied in Jeonju was only 2,447 in 2021, 2,567 in 2022, 1,369 in 2023, 245 last year, and just 277 this year. The lack of new supply has caused a sharp decrease in available listings, which in turn is pushing up the prices of existing apartments.

Actual transactions are also setting new records. In Deokjin-gu, an 84-square-meter unit in "Uahan City" was sold for 560 million won in June, surpassing the previous record of 527 million won from February 2022, and changed hands again for 575 million won earlier this month. In Wansan-gu, an 84-square-meter unit in "Seosin Ipark E Pyeonhan Sesang" broke its previous record of 620 million won from May 2022 four times just this month, with the most recent transaction at 635 million won.

The subscription market is also heating up. "The Sharp Lavionde" in Jungnosong-dong, Wansan-gu, which was offered for sale in January, drew 21,816 first-priority applicants, resulting in an average competition rate of 26.1 to 1. Of the total 2,226 units, 1,426 were offered for general sale in this large-scale complex. The rare availability of new units is believed to have absorbed the demand.

Jeonju is also the constituency of Kim Yoonduk, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Minister Kim graduated from the accounting department of Jeonbuk National University, worked in local civic organizations, and then entered politics. He is currently serving his third term as a National Assembly member representing Jeonju-gap. He owns a 130-square-meter unit in Punglim Iwon, Wansan-gu, Jeonju, under his spouse's name. This complex set a new record high of 549 million won last year after surpassing its previous peak.

Yang Jiyeong, a senior specialist at Shinhan Premier Pathfinder, commented, "For a city of 600,000 people, an annual supply of just 300 units is essentially a supply vacuum. There is a high likelihood that the shortage of listings and record-high transactions will continue for the time being." She added, "However, unlike the metropolitan area, the provincial market is driven by real demand. If policies do not support this, it may be difficult for the upward trend to continue in the long term." She emphasized, "Improvements in residential conditions and effective regional housing policies are needed for the upward trend to be sustained."