March Cheongyak Home Revamp and April General Election... Construction Companies' Sales Schedules in Confusion

March Scheduled Sale Dates Moved Forward or Delayed
Demand Drops During Election Season, Causing 'Burden'
Real Estate Agency: "More Time Needed for Review After Restructuring"

View of downtown apartments from Namsan, Seoul. / Photo by Yonhap News

With the Cheongyak Home site revamp set to last over half a month next month and the April general elections approaching, construction companies are struggling to coordinate their sales schedules. For now, they are flooding the market with sales volumes this month, while paying close attention to their sales performance.

According to the construction industry on the 6th, the consortium of Hyundai Engineering & Construction and Kumho Construction plans to open the model house for the "Hillstate Eoullim Cheongju Sajik" apartments, supplied in the Sajik 3 District area at 215-8 Sajik-dong, Seowon-gu, Cheongju, Chungbuk, on the 22nd. Since applications on Cheongyak Home will not be accepted from the 4th to the 22nd of next month, they have decided to move up the sales schedule from the original plan.

Construction Companies Weighing "When to Launch Sales?"

However, the sales schedule has not been finalized. A representative from a sales promotion agency said, "Recently, construction companies have been busy coordinating sales schedules. The situation is changing by the hour. Since Cheongyak Home will be unavailable during the active spring sales season and other issues tend to be overshadowed ahead of the general elections, many construction companies are either moving up their March sales plans to February or postponing them until after late April."

Cheongyak Home will suspend its service for about three weeks to incorporate changes in the subscription system, such as the introduction of special supply for newborns and the extension of the subscription account eligibility period for minors. During this period, construction companies will not be able to proceed with new resident recruitment announcements or any subscription-related schedules. However, subscription applications for urban lifestyle housing, officetels, and residential hotel facilities will continue as usual.

Although the Korea Real Estate Agency’s prior notice will prevent major confusion for users of Cheongyak Home, construction companies planning sales next month are facing deep concerns. They must either move their sales schedules before the 4th of next month or postpone them until the end of the month, but the latter is hindered by the proximity of the general elections. During election season, apartment sales promotions rarely attract attention, and printed materials or banners often get deprioritized. For this reason, construction companies try to avoid scheduling sales during election periods.

A construction company official said, "Even when trying to print promotional materials, they inevitably get pushed aside by election flyers, and road advertising using buses also receives less attention compared to election promotions. During election season, consumer focus inevitably drops. The market is already tough, and I worry that the supply gap might become too long." It is pointed out that many projects will experience delays of over two months or miss the optimal timing.

Sudden Flood of Sales This Month

Given this situation, an unexpected flood of sales is forecasted in February. According to Real Estate R114, 36 complexes nationwide, totaling 30,646 households (including rental units), are scheduled for sale this month. This is the highest volume for the same month since surveys began in 2000. Of these, 17 complexes with 16,645 households will be sold in Seoul and the metropolitan area. By region, Gyeonggi (8,700 households), Seoul (4,485 households), and Incheon (3,460 households) rank highest. Although this is a decrease from January (17,255 households), it is three times higher compared to the same period last year (5,435 households).

Another construction company official said, "It is impossible to ignore uncertainties such as policy changes after the general elections when postponing schedules, but we can read the atmosphere and readjust the schedule accordingly."

The Korea Real Estate Agency stated that the decision was unavoidable to ensure smooth service. A representative said, "There are more than 10 subscription-related rules to be reflected in the Cheongyak Home revamp, and subsequent inspection work requires about three weeks of absolute time. Even when the Financial Settlement Institute operated the system (then Apartmenttoyou), revamps took one to two weeks."

They added, "For complexes that have moved up their resident recruitment announcements to February, we will ensure that special supply and first-priority subscriptions proceed smoothly during the system revamp period. We are providing sufficient guidance and coordination."

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