In the first half of this year (January to June), it was recorded that one out of three first-choice subscription accounts for apartments nationwide was used in Seoul.
According to a report from the real estate research firm Real Today on the 17th, among the 257,672 first-choice apartment applicants nationwide in the first half of the year, 83,709 were from Seoul, accounting for 32.5% of the total. This means that one in three people who applied for first-choice subscriptions in the first half applied for apartments in Seoul. In the metropolitan area, including Gyeonggi Province (65,607) and Incheon (5,605), a total of 154,921 people applied for first-choice subscriptions, representing 60.1%.
The proportion of first-choice applicants from Seoul decreased slightly from last year's 40.0% (603,481 people). However, it still maintained a high level. In regions outside of Seoul and the metropolitan area, only three areas exceeded 10,000 applicants: North Chungcheong Province (32,582), South Chungcheong Province (26,631), and North Jeolla Province (22,190). The area with the fewest applicants was South Jeolla Province, with only 10 people.
The average competition ratio for first-choice subscriptions in the first half was the highest in Seoul at 72.92 to 1. The 'Riverside SK View Lotte Castle,' which was sold last month, had 6,020 applicants for 14 first-choice units, resulting in an average competition ratio of 430.0 to 1. The 'Raemian One Pavella,' which was supplied in February, had 40,635 applicants for 268 units, finishing the first-choice subscription with an average of 151.6 to 1.
Following Seoul, the competition ratios were high in North Chungcheong Province (34.48 to 1), North Jeolla Province (21.03 to 1), Sejong (12.04 to 1), and South Chungcheong Province (10.02 to 1). Areas with competition ratios below 1 to 1 included South Jeolla Province (0.05 to 1), Gwangju (0.31 to 1), Daegu (0.34 to 1), and Busan (0.35 to 1).
A representative of Real Today noted, "Despite rising raw material and construction costs resulting in higher sales prices amid political uncertainty, demand has concentrated in Seoul, leading to a pronounced polarization." He also mentioned that "the overall subscription enthusiasm may somewhat ease due to the June 27 loan regulations, but Seoul will continue to maintain strong demand, sustaining the fervor for sales."