Housing Purchase Sentiment Falls for the First Time in 5 Months
The housing sales consumer sentiment index, a gauge of prospective homebuyers' sentiment, turned downward for the first time in five months. According to the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements' 'August 2026 Real Estate Market Consumer Sentiment Survey' released on the 16th, the nationwide housing sales market sentiment index stood at 116.7 last month, down 2.8 points from 119.5 the month before. It was the first month-over-month drop in five months, since the index recorded 110.6 in March. The index, however, stayed above the benchmark of 115, remaining in the 'upswing' phase.
The sales sentiment index for the Seoul metropolitan area fell 2.9 points from 128.5 to 125.6, while non-metropolitan regions also slipped 2.5 points from 109.0 to 106.5. Among them, Seoul saw the largest decline. Seoul's sales sentiment index dropped 7.4 points from 139.9 to 132.5, the third-steepest fall nationwide after Gangwon (-9.1 points) and Gwangju (-9.1 points). The Seoul index fell to its lowest level in four months since April, when it stood at 124.9.
Trends varied by region. Sejong posted the largest nationwide gain, with its sales sentiment index jumping 11.4 points from 101.5 to 112.9.
The jeonse market moved in the opposite direction from the sales market. The nationwide housing jeonse market sentiment index rose 0.8 points from the previous month to 113.5, the highest in a year since August of last year, when it was 103.4. The metropolitan area rose 0.7 points to 119.0 and non-metropolitan regions gained 1.1 points to 107.3. Seoul, however, bucked the nationwide upward trend, with its jeonse sentiment slipping 1.1 points from 121.8 to 120.7.
The nationwide housing market sentiment index, combining sales and jeonse, fell 1.0 point to 115.1. Seoul dropped 4.2 points from 130.8 to 126.6. Land market sentiment continued its downward slide. The nationwide land market sentiment index fell 1.3 points to 79.6, remaining in the 'downswing' phase below the benchmark of 95. Seoul rose 8.0 points from 99.5 to 107.5, the second-largest gain after Sejong (10.1 points), while Jeju plunged 13.7 points from 75.6 to 61.9, recording the steepest decline nationwide.
The nationwide real estate market sentiment index, combining housing and land, fell 1.1 points from the previous month to 111.5. The sentiment index ranges from 0 to 200, with a reading above 100 meaning a larger share of respondents said prices rose or transactions increased compared with the previous month. The survey covered 6,680 households across 152 cities, counties, and districts nationwide, along with 2,338 real estate brokerages.
