Despite Cooling Subscription Fever... Market Gains and Low Prices Still 'Unbeatable Hits'

The number of autonomous districts in Seoul where the average apartment sale price exceeds 50 million KRW per 3.3㎡ has more than doubled in one year. As of November last year, only Gangnam-gu, Seocho-gu, and Songpa-gu among the 25 autonomous districts in Seoul had average apartment sale prices exceeding 50 million KRW per 3.3㎡, but last month, Yongsan-gu, Seongdong-gu, Mapo-gu, and Gwangjin-gu were added, making a total of seven districts. The photo shows the view of Seoul apartments from 63 Square. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hye-min] Although the enthusiasm for subscription has somewhat cooled due to the decline in housing prices, apartments expected to yield significant price gains due to low sale prices continue to be popular. A clear polarization phenomenon is emerging, with subscription results varying depending on location and sale price.

According to Korea Real Estate Agency's Subscription Home on the 24th, 'Centreville Asterium Yeongdeungpo' in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, was sold out with an average competition rate of 199.7 to 1 in the first-priority subscription results announced the day before. Considering that it is a small complex with only 156 households including union member quotas and consists only of exclusive areas of 49 to 59㎡, this is an unusual success amid the cold subscription market.

The success was mainly due to the sale price being cheaper than nearby market prices. This complex was subject to the price ceiling system, with sale prices set between 549 million and 671 million KRW. The Acro Tower Square in Yeongdeungpo-dong 7-ga nearby, with an exclusive area of 59㎡, was traded at 1.44 billion KRW in September last year. Even considering that this apartment is a large complex, the sale price is about half the market price.

It is widely analyzed that the low sale price also influenced the record-breaking success of 'Doraem Village 13 Complex Joongheung S-Class Green County' recently sold in Sejong. This complex recorded an average competition rate of 3511.4 to 1 in the first-priority subscription held on the 15th. The sale price for the exclusive 59㎡ was 143.33 million KRW, which was the level of Sejong housing prices eight years ago, and it was called a 'lottery' apartment even before the subscription. Built as public rental housing in 2014, after the mandatory rental period ended, priority was given to existing tenants for sale, and the remaining units were released this time. The 59㎡ unit in this complex was already traded at 495 million KRW last month. This guarantees a definite profit of over 300 million KRW just by winning the subscription.

The 'Hanam Hills Park Prugio 3 Complex' in Hanam-si, Gyeonggi-do, where a non-priority subscription was held at a price about 500 million KRW lower than the current market price, also recorded a high competition rate of 9486 to 1 in the subscription results on the 21st. Ye Kyung-hee, senior researcher at Real Estate R114, said, "The sorting of quality in the sale market has become clear," adding, "Complexes with good locations and high expectations for price gains will continue to see high competition rates."

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