Apartment prices in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, and Songpa District, Seoul, have risen more than 10% this year. The average apartment price in Gwacheon was about 100 million won higher than in Songpa. In contrast, apartment prices in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, fell by 4.5% during the same period.
According to the Korea Real Estate Board (REB) on the 25th, the only places in the metropolitan area where apartment prices have risen by more than 10% are Gwacheon and Songpa. The apartment transaction price in Gwacheon increased by 10.01% this year, compared to a mere 1.07% rise last year.
The cumulative number of apartment transactions in Gwacheon reached 648 as of the 25th. The average transaction price was 1.966 billion won, nearing 2 billion won. This is about 3.8 times higher compared to the average transaction price of 581.78 million won in Gyeonggi Province as a whole. The highest price was recorded at 3.68 billion won for an exclusive 124㎡ unit in Jungang-dong, which was transacted on June 21.
Apartment prices in Songpa, Seoul, have increased by 10.68% so far this year, compared to a rise of 2.28% last year. The average price is 1.87945 billion won, which is about 100 million won lower than that of Gwacheon. The highest price was 5.7 billion won, recorded for an exclusive 211㎡ unit at Galleria Palace on February 13.
The high rising rate in Gwacheon and Songpa can be attributed primarily to their absolute price levels being lower compared to the top areas of Gangnam and Seocho. The average transaction price for apartments in Gangnam District is 2.8623 billion won, while Seocho District stands at 2.85529 billion won, approximately 1 billion won higher than those in Gwacheon and Songpa.
Yoon Ji-hae, chief researcher at Real Estate R114, said, "Among the core areas of the metropolitan region, Gangnam and Seocho have high absolute price levels, making it difficult for financially capable demand to access these areas. Therefore, this demand seems to have shifted toward Songpa and Gwacheon, which offer residential stability."
Ham Young-jin, head of the real estate research lab at Woori Bank, noted, "Songpa has advantages such as redevelopment and views of the Han River, resulting in lower per-pyeong prices compared to Gangnam and Seocho, which influenced price increases. Additionally, Gwacheon's factors, including redevelopment expectations and accessibility to Gangnam, along with being a non-regulated area, lowered the entry barrier."
In contrast, the area in the metropolitan region with the largest drop in apartment prices is Pyeongtaek, which fell by 4.48%. The oversupply situation is significantly influenced by the numerous unsold units emerging in the Brain City, which is being developed as a large-scale residential complex.
According to the Korean Statistical Information Service, as of the end of May, the number of unsold units in Pyeongtaek was 4,442, accounting for one-third of the total unsold units (12,155 units) in Gyeonggi Province. The recently launched 'Brain City Medispark Rosé' received only 38 applications for the recruitment of 1,200 units. In Pyeongtaek, 10,663 housing units are scheduled to be completed this year.