This year, Seoul villa jeonse and monthly rent transaction volumes increased. As apartment jeonse and monthly rent prices rose and purchase costs grew, demand appears to have shifted to relatively cheaper row houses and multi-family homes.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's actual transaction price system on the 3rd, the number of jeonse and monthly rent transactions for row houses and multi-family homes in Seoul from January to April this year totaled 49,679, up 7.4% from the same period last year (46,244). Compared with the previous four months, from September to December 2025 (43,807), it rose 13.4%. As some April contracts have not yet completed actual transaction reporting or fixed-date registration, the final transaction volume could increase further.
After the expansion of the land transaction permit zones in October last year pushed up Seoul apartment jeonse and monthly rent prices and sharply reduced new supply, jeonse and monthly rent demand appears to have shifted to villas as an alternative housing option.
Jeonse and monthly rent prices for row houses are also strong. According to the Korea Real Estate Board (REB), in April, jeonse prices for row houses in Seoul rose 0.44% from the previous month, the largest increase in 12 years and 7 months since September 2013 (0.54%). The cumulative increase from January to April this year was 1.34%, the highest in 15 years since 2011 (3.73%).
Monthly rents are rising particularly fast. The cumulative increase from January to April was 1.60%, higher than jeonse, and marked the highest increase for the same period since related statistics began in July 2015.
Use of the right to request lease renewal has also increased. From January to April this year, renewals accounted for 27.25% of row house and multi-family contracts in Seoul, up slightly from the same period last year (26.73%). The share of contracts using the right to request renewal rose 7.2 percentage points to 32%.