'Oh Hot' Seoul Housing Market Forgets Summer Off-Season

Lotte Castle Eastpole Tops First-Priority Subscription in Seoul This Year
Cheonggye SK View and Raemian Lagrande to Announce Resident Recruitment on the 4th
July Seoul First-Priority Average 119.3 to 1... Strong Performance Expected to Continue in August

Even during the summer, which is considered an off-season, the Seoul housing pre-sale market is lively and attracting strong demand. Due to the high-interest rate trend and rising raw material prices, complexes that had been postponing their pre-sale schedules since last year have started to come forward one after another, and buyers are also showing signs of not delaying further as the 'housing price bottom theory' gains traction. Lotte Castle opened the pre-sale season in August.

Aerial view of 'Lotte Castle Eastpole' in Jayang-dong, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul / Image courtesy of Lotte Construction

According to the Korea Real Estate Board's Subscription Home on the 2nd, 'Lotte Castle Eastpole' located in Jayang-dong, Gwangjin-gu, recorded an average competition rate of 98.4 to 1, with 41,344 applicants competing for 420 units (excluding special supply) in the first-priority subscription held the previous day. This is the highest number of subscription applications among the 13 complexes pre-sold in Seoul this year. It is twice the number of applications for 'Cheongnyangni Lotte Castle High Luce' (21,322 applications), which previously held the record for the most applications in Seoul. The highest competition rate was 303.2 to 1, which occurred in the 74㎡ exclusive area type.

With an average pre-sale price of 40.5 million KRW per 3.3㎡, this complex boasts a prime location near Guui Station on Subway Line 2. It consists of 6 buildings, ranging from 7 basement floors to a maximum of 48 floors above ground, with a total of 1,063 households. A construction industry official said, "Gwangjin-gu was previously considered a preferred residential area mainly in Gwangjang-dong, but surrounding areas like Jayang-dong have become more favored than before," adding, "Although the pre-sale price is not exactly cheap, it seems buyers submitted subscription applications considering the location and potential price gains."

With construction companies and associations moving to avoid missing the timing, summer pre-sales in Seoul are expected to continue without interruption. 'Cheonggye SK View,' built by SK Ecoplant, is also scheduled to officially start pre-sales by issuing a resident recruitment announcement on the 4th. This complex, which has progressed from a local housing association to general pre-sale, will be developed in Yongdap-dong, Seongdong-gu, with 3 buildings ranging from 5 basement floors to 34 floors above ground, totaling 396 households with exclusive areas of 59 to 84㎡. Among them, 108 units are for general pre-sale. It is a 2-minute walk to Sindap Station on Subway Line 2 and a 3-minute walk to Dapsimni Station on Line 5.

'Raemian La Grande,' redeveloped by Samsung C&T in the Imun 1 Redevelopment Promotion Zone in Dongdaemun-gu, should not be overlooked either. It is also expected to issue a resident recruitment announcement on the 4th and hold subscriptions around mid-month. The complex consists of 39 buildings ranging from 5 basement floors to a maximum of 27 floors above ground, with a total of 3,069 households, of which 920 are for general pre-sale. Attention is focused on whether it will continue the success following 'Huigyeong Xi Decencia,' grouped under Imun-Huigyeong New Town, which recorded an average competition rate of 51.7 to 1 in the first-priority subscription.

Yoon Ji-hae, head of the Real Estate R114 Research Team, said, "The average competition rate for first-priority apartment subscriptions in Seoul in July was 119.3 to 1, the only triple-digit rate nationwide, showing the hot subscription fever during the summer," adding, "With quality complexes gathering this month as well, the Seoul pre-sale market is expected to maintain its strong performance."

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