Surge in Tenants Under 30... "High Housing Prices Drive Entry into Rental Market"

[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] The proportion of tenants under the age of 30 in the rental market has sharply increased. Analysts suggest that as housing prices rise, younger generations with relatively limited purchasing power are rapidly entering the rental market.

On the 24th, according to Zigbang's analysis of tenants with confirmed dates by age group, from January to April this year, the '30-39 years old' group accounted for the highest proportion at 28.2%. This was followed by '50 years and older' at 26.8%, 'under 30' at 25.2%, and '40-49 years old' at 19.8%.

Notably, the growth rate of tenants under 30 stands out. Zigbang's analysis shows that compared to 2014, the proportion of tenants with confirmed dates in 2021 decreased by 5.3 percentage points (p) for both the 30-39 and 40-49 age groups. In contrast, the under-30 group increased by 8.7 p. Especially in 2018 and 2019, when real estate prices began to rise significantly, the proportion of tenants under 30 increased markedly.

The change in tenant age distribution in the metropolitan area was similar. This year, the proportion of tenants under 30 with confirmed dates rose to 22.2%, surpassing the 40-49 age group at 20.8%. The 30-39 age group decreased from 33.5% in 2014 to 28.6% in 2021.

The number of tenants has also increased. The number of tenants with confirmed dates ranged from 1.73 million to 1.75 million annually from 2014 to 2017. Since 2018, the number has increased by more than 100,000 each year compared to the previous year, reaching 2,135,000 nationwide last year. The increase in tenants is partly interpreted as reflecting the impact of 'household fragmentation,' such as 'single-person youth households.'

Ham Young-jin, head of Zigbang Big Data Lab, said, "The influx of those under 30, who are economically more vulnerable than other age groups, into the tenant market is progressing rapidly," adding, "With the mandatory reporting of housing lease transactions scheduled to be implemented on June 1, more detailed legal protection measures for these groups need to be established."

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