'Height Matching·Panic Buying' Drive Low-Cost Apartment Prices Skyward in Seoul

Seoul High-End Apartments Rise 22% While Mid-Low Range Apartments Increase 38%
Seoul's 5th Quintile Ratio Uniquely Declines Nationwide

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghyun Choi] Due to the trend of mid-to-low priced apartments in Seoul catching up in price and the impact of 'panic buying,' the 'quintile ratio,' which indicates the price gap between apartments, has uniquely decreased nationwide.

According to KB Kookmin Bank's monthly housing price trend statistics on the 27th, the quintile ratio of apartment prices in Seoul this month was 4.4, down 0.2 from 4.6 in the same period last year. The quintile ratio is the value obtained by dividing the average price of the top 20% of apartments (5th quintile price) by the average price of the bottom 20% (1st quintile price). A higher figure indicates greater price polarization.

Seoul was the only region nationwide where the quintile ratio fell over the past year. The average price of 5th quintile apartments in Seoul rose 12.9% (KRW 215.27 million) over one year, reaching KRW 1.8816 billion. The increase rate for low-priced apartments was even higher. The average price of 1st quintile apartments surged 19.5% (KRW 70.28 million) to KRW 430.76 million compared to last year. Compared to two years ago, while the 5th quintile average price increased by 21.5% (KRW 333.5 million), the 1st quintile average price rose by 37.8% (KRW 118.13 million), nearly double the growth rate of high-priced apartments.

However, nationwide, the gap in the quintile ratio between high-priced and low-priced apartments widened further. This month, the nationwide apartment average quintile ratio was 7.9, the highest in 10 years and 7 months since January 2010 (7.9). The nationwide 5th quintile average apartment price was KRW 866.3 million, up 24.2% (KRW 168.57 million) compared to a year ago, while the 1st quintile average price remained at KRW 109.83 million, the same level as a year ago.

Park Wongap, Senior Real Estate Specialist at KB Kookmin Bank, said, "Recently, people in their 20s and 30s have engaged in panic buying, purchasing many mid-to-low priced apartments," adding, "The price gap between low-priced and high-priced apartments in Seoul is likely to narrow further."

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