Increase in 'Expedition Investment' in Seoul Apartments and Villas... Non-Local Buyers' Purchases Rise from 17% to 25%

[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] The proportion of non-local buyers purchasing apartment, villa, and officetel collective buildings in Seoul is increasing.

According to Zigbang on the 19th, among buyers of collective buildings in Seoul in the first half of this year, 74.7% were Seoul residents, down 8.3 percentage points (p) from 83.0% in 2012. Meanwhile, during the same period, the proportion of buyers residing in Gyeonggi and Incheon increased from 11.3% to 15.9%, and those from other provinces rose from 5.7% to 9.4%. Collective buildings refer to apartments, row houses, multi-family houses, officetels, and commercial buildings.

A Zigbang official said, "Over the past nine years since related information has been disclosed, the proportion of Seoul residents purchasing collective buildings in Seoul has steadily decreased, while demand from non-local investors has rapidly flowed into Seoul, which appears to be one of the causes of the rise in Seoul real estate prices."

The purchase of collective buildings within the residents' own residential areas by Seoul residents has been decreasing every year.

The proportion of buyers purchasing collective buildings within the same district as their registered address decreased by 21.0 percentage points from 69.5% nine years ago to 48.5% in the first half of this year in the 'Nodogang' area (Nowon, Dobong, Gangbuk districts). In 'Mayongseong' (Mapo, Yongsan, Seongdong districts), it dropped by 14.4 percentage points from 48.6% to 34.2%, and in 'Geumgwan-gu' (Geumcheon, Gwanak, Guro districts), it fell by 10.2 percentage points from 32.2% to 22.0%.

In the case of the 'Gangnam 3 districts' (Gangnam, Seocho, Songpa districts), it decreased by 2.9 percentage points from 58.1% to 55.2% during the same period. However, compared to the second half of last year (50.6%), the first half of this year saw an increase of 4.6 percentage points. This is analyzed as a result of wealthy residents in the Gangnam 3 districts, where high-priced homes are concentrated, focusing on owning a "smart single property" due to government regulations on multi-homeowners, leading to an increase in purchases within the district.

In the recently sharply rising 'Mayongseong' area, excluding residents of the area, the highest proportion of buyers came from Gangnam-gu at 12.1%, followed by Seocho-gu (3.0%), Seodaemun and Songpa districts (2.3%), and Bundang-gu in Seongnam (2.2%). The proportion of Gangnam-gu residents purchasing collective buildings in Mayongseong was the highest since the first half of 2013 (9.3%).

For the 'Nodogang' area, where housing prices have recently surged, excluding residents of the area, the highest proportions of buyers were from Seongbuk-gu (4.6%), Gangnam-gu (2.8%), Jinju-si (2.5%), Jungnang-gu (2.1%), and Dongdaemun-gu (1.8%). In the case of 'Nodogang,' purchases by residents of adjacent areas were active. Additionally, Zigbang estimated that Jinju-si, where the Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) headquarters is located, ranked due to LH's active purchase and rental business.

A Zigbang official said, "Recently in Seoul, the noticeable trend is the increase in the proportion of purchases within the district by wealthy residents of the Gangnam 3 districts and their increased purchases in the Mayongseong area, which has emerged as a new high-priced region."

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