Yongsan's Solo Uptrend, Suspicious Low-Price Direct Deals

Office Relocation and Development Boost
Upward Trend from 4th Week of March
Contrasting Decline in Gangbuk Area
May Direct Apartment Listings
7 out of 8 Show Price Drops
Transactions Below 1.7 Billion KRW
"Suspicion of Related-Party Transactions"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Seoyul] In the Yongsan area of Seoul, where housing prices are rising alone due to the relocation of the presidential office and development prospects, most of the apartments directly traded last month were sold at lower prices. In particular, some transactions were conducted at prices more than 1.7 billion KRW lower than the previous actual transaction price, raising suspicions among some that these might be related-party transactions.

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's Real Transaction Price Disclosure System on the 8th, 7 out of 8 apartments directly traded in Yongsan-gu, Seoul last month were sold at lower prices. Directly traded properties in Yongsan-gu accounted for about 30% of the total reported properties (27) as of that day.

Even as apartment sales transactions have slowed and Seoul apartment prices have remained roughly flat, Yongsan apartment prices have shown an upward trend due to the relocation of the presidential office and development prospects. According to the weekly apartment sales price index by the Korea Real Estate Board, Yongsan-gu showed an upward trend from the fourth week of March (0.01% compared to the previous week) through last week (0.03%). In contrast, the overall Seoul index fluctuated between flat, increase, and decrease during the same period. Especially in the Gangbuk area, the index was flat or decreasing and has shown negative changes continuously since the second week of May.

Despite the solo upward trend in the Yongsan area, most direct transactions were conducted at lower prices. Among the properties sold at lower prices through direct transactions, some were traded at prices excessively below market value. Yongsan Park Tower in Yongsan 5-dong (exclusive area 149.92㎡) was traded last month at 2.7 billion KRW. The previous actual transaction price for the same size unit in this complex was 3.59 billion KRW in August last year, marking a decrease of 890 million KRW. The asking prices for units of the same size listed on Naver Real Estate range from 4 billion to 4.2 billion KRW. Similarly, Hyeongwoo Bestville 3rd in Hannam-dong (228.21㎡) was directly traded last month at 2.122 billion KRW, down 1.728 billion KRW from April this year (3.85 billion KRW). The asking price for this complex is set at 4.3 billion KRW.

Reconstruction complexes along the Han River, expected to benefit, were also directly traded at prices lower than the previous actual transaction prices. Sanho Apartment in Wonhyoro 4-ga (100.56㎡) was sold for 1.5 billion KRW, 500 million KRW less than the previous actual transaction price of 2 billion KRW in August last year.

Due to the excessive price drops in transactions, some on-site reactions suspect related-party transactions. The representative of real estate agency A near Yongsan Park Tower said, "Even if buyers express willingness to buy at market prices, sellers sometimes refuse to sell to get more money," adding, "In such situations, a price drop transaction does not make sense." A representative from real estate agency B near Hyeongwoo Bestville 3rd also said, "This price is the actual transaction price from two years ago," and added, "Related-party transactions are suspected."

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