▲ The whole area of an apartment complex in Seoul as viewed from Yeouido 63 Building. (Reporter Go Iran photoeran@)
Seoul apartment prices are showing signs of calm. Buying sentiment is rapidly sinking due to the spread of pipe net tax due to the government’s measures for the 2nd and 4th supply, the tax burden due to the soaring public price, and the increase in interest rates.
According to KB Real Estate on the 28th, last week (as of the 22nd), the Seoul apartment purchase advantage index recorded 79.8. It has fallen for the eighth consecutive week since it hit 113.4 in the last week of January this year (as of the 25th).
It’s been 4 weeks since it was below 100. If the Buy Advantage Index exceeds 100, there are many buyers, and if it is less than 100, there are many sellers. This means that there are more people in Seoul who want to sell houses than those who want to buy them.
The rise in house prices has also been declining for the fifth week. According to KB Real Estate, the sale price of apartments in Seoul, which rose 0.42% in the third week of last month (as of the 15th), declined significantly to 0.24% last week.
In fact, the 115㎡ type exclusively for Lotte Woosung Apartments in Junggye-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul, was traded at 1.37 billion won on the 17th. It is a price adjusted by about 60 million won from the reported price released last month (1.43 billion won). The 58m2 type exclusively for Byucksan Apartment in Hongeun-dong, Seodaemun-gu, was sold for 580 million won this month, and was adjusted up to 60 million won compared to last month (625 million ~ 640 million won). In Gaepo-dong, Gangnam-gu, a 59㎡ type for Raemian Blessage was sold for 1.89 billion won on the 10th. It is 20 million won lower than the highest price (2.1 billion won).
Lim Byeong-cheol, senior researcher at Real Estate 114, said, “The market for apartments in Seoul has become increasingly public, and transactions have slowed down across the metropolitan area.”
Experts are seeing the pipe net tax in the Seoul apartment sales market due to the impact of the second and fourth measures to supply 830,000 households nationwide by 2025. There are concerns that the government’s housing supply power will be greatly shaken due to allegations of land speculation initiated by the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH), but the sentiment to watch is spreading. The tax burden and interest rate hikes arising from the soaring quoted price are also factors that make buyers hesitate to buy.
However, it is still unclear whether the house price will turn downward. The buying trend is still continuing around the outskirts of Seoul.
This month, the 58㎡ type dedicated to the Jugong 10 complex in Junggye-dong, Nowon-gu, sold 7 million won higher than the previous highest price (760 million won). The 59㎡ type for Dong-A Bullam in Sanggye-dong was also signed on the 12th at a reported price of 520 million won. The 84㎡ type exclusively for Doosan Apartments in Gasan-dong, Geumcheon-gu, is sold for 795 million won, which exceeds the previous reported price (740 million won), and has 800 million won in front of it.
Gangnam and Mok-dong, where expectations for reconstruction are spreading, are also supporting the rise in house prices. In the 7th complex of Mok-dong’s new city, a 53㎡ type dedicated to the building recorded a reported price of 1.5 billion won at the beginning of this month. Apgujeong Shin-Hyundai 12th-only 110㎡ type was reported at 3 billion won this month.
Both the opposition candidates in the Seoul Mayor’s by-election have suggested expanding housing supply as their main goal, suggesting the possibility of deregulation on redevelopment and reconstruction, and expectations for the reconstruction market are growing.
Researcher Lim emphasized, “There are still inquiries about the purchase of mid- to low-priced apartments in the outskirts of Seoul, such as Nowon and Dobong. In particular, amid the slowing increase in apartment prices, the by-election of the mayor of Seoul, which is less than five days left, is a variable to watch out for.”