The final sale prices for the main application of the Newlywed Hope Town in block A1 of the Seongnam Bokjeong 2 district in Gyeonggi, which took advance applications five years ago, rose by up to 260.05 million won from the initial estimate. Based on an exclusive 55 square meters, the maximum increase rate is 48.3%. The expected move-in date was also pushed back by 4 years and 7 months, from Oct. 2025 to May 2030. With both the sale price and the wait time increasing, some advance-allocation winners say they may have to give up the main application.
According to Korea Land & Housing Corporation (LH) Cheongyak Plus on the 12th, the sale prices for advance-allocation winners of Seongnam Bokjeong 2 block A1 announced by LH on the 10th are 766.37 million to 798.45 million won for the basic type of exclusive 55 square meters, depending on floor and dwelling type. The exclusive 56 square meters terrace type is set at 812.14 million won. Including balcony expansion fees and acquisition tax, the total cash burden for the exclusive 55 square meters also exceeds 800 million won.
At the time of advance application in 2021, the estimated sale prices were 538.4 million won for exclusive 55 square meters and 554.89 million won for exclusive 56 square meters. The main-application price for the exclusive 55 square meters rose by 227.97 million to 260.05 million won, or 42.3% to 48.3%, from the estimate. The exclusive 56 square meters rose by 257.25 million won, or 46.4%.
The application schedule was also pushed back significantly. At the time of advance application, the main application was guided for May 2023 and move-in for Oct. 2025. However, the main-application notice came out this August, 3 years and 3 months later than scheduled, and move-in was delayed to May 2030.
During the project delay, issues included the sale of land owned by Seongnam City and resident complaints over the placement of dwellings near a school. After discussions between Seongnam City and LH, the city-owned land was sold in May 2023. A design change was also made to exclude some apartment buildings that had been planned near the school. As a result, the total supply scale decreased by 134 households, from 1,026 to 892.
As the project period lengthened and construction and financing costs rose, the total project cost increased by 279.3 billion won (57.1%), from 489.5 billion won to 768.8 billion won. LH said compensation for city-owned land, responses to complaints, design changes, and a longer construction period collectively affected the higher sale prices.
The surge in sale prices is also fueling dissatisfaction among advance-allocation winners. Because Newlywed Hope Town is a public-sale housing program supplied to newlyweds without homes at prices lower than the market, most demand comes from buyers with relatively limited funds. For this reason, there are concerns that sale price hikes amounting to hundreds of millions of won could lead to giving up the main application.
With sale prices rising sharply, the financial burden on winners has also grown. Newlywed Hope Town is a public-sale housing program supplied to newlyweds without homes, engaged couples, and single-parent families. Although certain income and asset criteria must be met, the loan limit for exclusive mortgage loan is up to 400 million won within 70% of the dwelling price.
One advance-allocation winner said, "At the time of the advance application, the total asset threshold was capped at 362 million won, but the main-application sale price is close to 800 million won and the policy loan tops out at 400 million won," adding, "We were told it would be in the low-500-million-won range, so we expected even at most it would be in the 600-million-won range."
The person added, "It is not easy for a newlywed household subject to income limits to shoulder more than 800 million won in expenses, including options and taxes," and "We are even considering giving up the main application. If we had known this, we would have made a different choice instead of waiting for the advance application."
LH says it has absorbed as much of the increase in project costs incurred during the additional delay as possible to reduce the burden on advance-allocation winners. An LH official said, "Compensation for city-owned land, meeting requirements arising from environmental and safety-related complaints, and the additional construction period required for a large-scale project affected the sale price," adding, "To reduce the damage to advance applicants, we took measures not to pass on the cost increase for the period of additional delay in the main application to the sale price."