As the Wirye-Sinsa Light Rail project, which had been adrift for 18 years, cleared the preliminary feasibility study and got on track, the real estate market across the Wirye New Town area is heating up.
The Ministry of Planning and Budget said on the 10th that the Wirye-Sinsa urban railway project passed the preliminary feasibility study (pre-feasibility). It comes about a year after it was selected in April last year for an expedited pre-feasibility review. The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to immediately begin establishing the basic plan and accelerate the project. A Seoul city official said, "After passing the pre-feasibility, it generally takes at least four months to carry out prior procedures such as budget allocation and contract-related deliberations before commissioning the basic plan establishment, but the city completed all procedures since last September," adding, "We will issue the notice for the basic plan establishment service today and enter the phase of substantive project implementation."
The Wirye-Sinsa Line is a 14.7-kilometer light rail connecting Wirye New Town, built across Songpa-gu in Seoul and parts of Seongnam and Hanam in Gyeonggi Province, with Sinsa Station in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. The project was pursued through private investment starting in 2008, but faced difficulties in selecting a project operator. After Samsung C&T withdrew in 2016 citing business feasibility, the GS Engineering & Construction consortium, selected as the preferred bidder in 2020, also pulled out in 2024 for the same reason. In November of the same year, the project was converted to a fiscal project, effectively sending it back to square one.
Residents, who had been significantly dissatisfied, are cheering. A person surnamed Yoon in their 50s, who said they moved into the first privately sold complex in Wirye New Town in 2015 and still live there, said, "We even paid the cost-sharing for the Wirye-Sinsa Line construction, but the project stalled for so long that it was very frustrating," adding, "Once the Wirye-Sinsa Line is built, I expect quality of life to improve as commuting to Samseong Station will be possible in 20 minutes without transfer." Previously, residents of Wirye New Town paid 547 billion won in railway cost-sharing, included in sales prices, for the construction of the Wirye-Sinsa Line and the Wirye Tram.
The Wirye Tram, currently in trial runs, could officially open as early as December. This tram is a streetcar that connects Macheon Station on Subway Line 5, Bokjeong Station on the Suin-Bundang Line and Line 8, and Namwirye Station on Line 8. If the Wirye-Sinsa Line is completed in addition to the Wirye Tram, transportation convenience is expected to improve. There are many development catalysts as well. POSCO Group is building a research and development (R&D) "Global Center" on Site 2 of the Wirye housing site development district in Changok-dong, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, with a target completion in 2030, and a consortium led by Hyundai Engineering & Construction is pursuing a Smart City development project near Bokjeong Station on Line 8.
An employee at a real estate agency in Changok-dong, Sujeong-gu, Seongnam, said, "Since the second half of last year, expectations for transportation and development have ripened, and listings have sold quickly once they come on the market," adding, "Home prices have risen a lot, with asking prices now well over 2 billion won for properties that were transacting at 1.5 billion won early last year." The person said, "With the news of the pre-feasibility approval, home prices could rise by at least 50 million won more."
On Naver Real Estate, the asking price for an 84-square-meter unit at "Wirye Central Xi" in Changok-dong is 2.4 billion won, while the most recent actual transaction was 1.95 billion won (on Oct. 15 last year). This size traded at 1.58 billion won and 1.6 billion won in March last year. In Jangji-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, an 84-square-meter unit at "Songpa Kumegreen Wirye Complex 24" traded at 2.15 billion won in January last year. That was up 580 million won from the March transaction price of 1.57 billion won last year.
Nam Hyeok-u of Woori Bank's Real Estate Research Institute said, "Last year, Wirye New Town home prices were undervalued, lagging by about 100 million to 200 million won even compared with Misa New Town, but since the second half, the market has been 'matching levels' with nearby areas such as Godeok in Gangdong-gu," adding, "In this atmosphere, progress on the Wirye-Sinsa Line acted as a catalyst, pushing prices up quickly." Nam said, "Home prices will be affected as the project becomes concrete, at points such as permit announcements and groundbreaking after the pre-feasibility approval."