The Seoul Metropolitan Area Auction Market Heats Up Again... Seoul Apartment Winning Bid Rate Hits 115%

Seoul, Gyeonggi, Incheon Metropolitan Area Apartment Winning Bid Rates Reach All-Time Highs
Bidders Flock Amid Housing Price Rise Outlook... Winning Bids Exceed Twice the Appraised Value

[Asia Economy Reporter Ryu Tae-min] The relentless rise in housing prices is heating up the auction market. Last month, the average winning bid rate for apartments in Gyeonggi Province hit an all-time high, while the winning bid rates in Seoul and Incheon also maintained record-high levels. The winning bid rate, considered a leading indicator of the housing market, has exceeded 100% for eight consecutive months in Seoul since February this year, and for 9 and 13 consecutive months in Incheon and Gyeonggi, respectively.

According to Gigi Auction, a court auction specialist company, the average winning bid rate for apartments in Seoul in September was 115%. Although it dropped by 1.3 percentage points from the previous month, it marks the eighth consecutive month this year that the rate has exceeded 100%. The winning bid rate is the ratio of the winning bid price to the appraised value. For example, an apartment appraised at 100 million KRW was sold at 115 million KRW.

The trend is similar in Incheon and Gyeonggi. The average winning bid rate for apartments in Gyeonggi in September rose by 0.4 percentage points from the previous month to 115.4%, the highest figure recorded in Gyeonggi since the company began compiling statistics in 2001. The ratio of sold properties to total listings also reached an all-time high of 77.9%. The average winning bid rate for apartments in Incheon was 123.7%, the highest in the metropolitan area. Incheon has maintained a winning bid rate above 100% for nine consecutive months, and Gyeonggi for thirteen consecutive months.

Some apartment auction winning bids have even exceeded twice the appraised value, indicating signs of overheating. A 50㎡ (exclusive area) apartment in Juwon Village, Goam-dong, Yangju-si, Gyeonggi, attracted 32 bidders on the 29th of last month and was sold for 302.5 million KRW, 2.25 times the appraised value of 133 million KRW. On the 8th of last month, a 60㎡ apartment in Sinmyeong Apartment, Hwado-eup, Namyangju-si, Gyeonggi, attracted 42 bidders and was sold for 391.69 million KRW, recording a winning bid rate of 195.8%.

Experts interpret the continued record-breaking prices in the auction market, considered a leading indicator of the sales market, as a signal that housing prices will continue to rise. Lee Joo-hyun, a senior researcher at Gigi Auction, said, “Due to the recent supply shortage combined with consecutive housing price increases, the asking prices in the sales market are very high, making the auction market, perceived as relatively cheaper, popular and causing the winning bid rates to rise significantly.”

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