In the last week of May, both sales and jeonse in the nationwide apartment market continued to rise.
According to the weekly market report released on the 29th by the real estate research firm Budongsan114, nationwide apartment sale prices rose 0.14% from a week earlier. By region, Gyeonggi Province recorded the steepest increase in the country at 0.19%, closely followed by Seoul at 0.18%. Including Incheon, the Gyeonggi region climbed 0.16%, pushing the overall greater Seoul area up 0.17%. In contrast, outside the capital region, the five major metropolitan cities rose 0.04% and other provinces gained 0.03%.
Of the 17 cities and provinces nationwide, prices rose in 11 and fell in five, with more regions showing an uptrend. By city and province, after Gyeonggi and Seoul, North Jeolla (0.12%), North Chungcheong (0.09%), and Ulsan (0.08%) saw the largest increases. In contrast, Gwangju (-0.14%) fell by a relatively large margin, and South Chungcheong (-0.05%) and Sejong (-0.02%) also trended downward.
On Apr. data, the nationwide monthly sale price change rate was 0.17%, marking the second straight month of a smaller increase after Feb. (0.58%) and Mar. (0.35%).
The rental market also showed a clear uptrend. In the fifth week of May, nationwide apartment jeonse prices rose 0.18% from the previous week. Seoul in particular jumped 0.27%, leading the overall jeonse increase in the greater Seoul area (0.22%). Gyeonggi and Incheon also rose 0.18%, adding momentum to the gains. The five major metropolitan cities and other provinces posted increases of 0.06% and 0.04%, respectively.
Budongsan114 predicted that rising presale prices for new apartments in Seoul and fewer monthly and jeonse listings will continue to spur both sale prices and jeonse. In fact, from January to May this year, the average presale price per 3.3 square meters (pyeong) for privately sold apartments in Seoul was 640.2 million won, up 20.6 million won from the second half of last year.
As presale prices for 84 square meters of exclusive space in Heukseok New Town and Noryangjin New Town in Dongjak District, which recently opened subscriptions, approach the 3 billion won level, analysts say these high-priced new apartments could further push up surrounding dwellings prices. In addition, Seoul apartment monthly and jeonse listings have fallen by nearly 30% from two years ago, increasing upward price pressure in the rental market.
A Budongsan114 official said, "If property taxes become heavier due to the real estate tax reform in July, the increased tax burden could translate into higher housing costs for tenants, supporting sale prices," adding, "While macroeconomic variables such as future base rate hikes cannot be ruled out, the upward trend in the monthly and jeonse market is strengthening the downward rigidity of apartment prices and could heighten instability in sale prices."