Average Apartment Price per 3.3㎡ in Gangnam 4 Districts Approaches 50 Million KRW

'Smart Single-Unit' Trend Sparks Increase in High-Priced Apartment Purchases Last Year
Average Sale Price in 11 Districts South of Hangang Approaches 40 Million Won
However, Gangnam Slows After 12·16 Measures... Stable Outlook Expected

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Jiwon] The average apartment sale price per 3.3㎡ in the four Gangnam districts of Seoul?Gangnam, Seocho, Songpa, and Gangdong?has been analyzed to be on the verge of reaching 50 million KRW. This is interpreted as a result of last year's "smart one-house" craze, which concentrated buying demand on high-priced apartments in Gangnam. However, since the upward trend in Gangnam area housing prices has slowed following the government's December 16 real estate measures last year, some analyses suggest that the market will stabilize in the first half of this year.

According to the monthly housing price trend time series data from KB Kookmin Bank on the 2nd, as of December last year, the average sale price per 1㎡ of apartments in the four Gangnam districts was approximately 14.87 million KRW. Converted to the sale price per 3.3㎡, this amounts to about 49.08 million KRW, which is a 6.95% increase compared to the same month the previous year (45.88 million KRW).

By region, Gangnam-gu had the highest price at about 64.35 million KRW per 3.3㎡, followed by Seocho-gu at 56.18 million KRW. Songpa-gu showed a significant gap with 44.21 million KRW compared to Gangnam and Seocho. The average sale price of apartments in the 11 districts south of the Han River, including the Gangnam area, was about 39.4 million KRW, rising 6.5% compared to the same month the previous year, approaching 40 million KRW. North of the Han River, districts such as Gwangjin-gu (36.75 million KRW), Seongdong-gu (36.63 million KRW), and Yongsan-gu (44.18 million KRW) showed notable price increases.

As Gangnam area prices surged, the price gap between high-end and low-end apartments widened significantly. Seoul's December last year fifth quintile ratio was 4.75, the second highest figure last year following October's 4.78. The fifth quintile ratio is the value obtained by dividing the average price of the top 20% (fifth quintile) by the average price of the bottom 20% (first quintile). A higher value indicates a greater price disparity between high-priced and low-priced apartments.

In December last year, the average price of first quintile apartments in Seoul was 370.19 million KRW, while the average price of fifth quintile apartments was 1.76158 billion KRW. According to KB Housing Price Trends, the apartment sale price indices in Gangnam and Songpa rose by 4.41% and 5.11%, respectively, over the year as of December last year, significantly exceeding the Seoul average of 2.91%.

However, since the government strengthened regulations such as limiting mortgage loans on high-priced homes exceeding 900 million KRW through the December 16 real estate measures, there is also a forecast that Gangnam area housing prices may regain stability. In fact, according to data released by the Korea Real Estate Board on December 26 last year, the rate of increase in Seoul apartment prices has halved compared to before the announcement of the measures, and urgent sale listings with significantly reduced prices have been appearing in some Gangnam area reconstruction complexes.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.