Seoul's Average Price for a Standard-Sized Apartment Tops 2 Billion Won Again After Five Months

The average sale price of an 84㎡ apartment in Seoul (the equivalent size under Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport standards, hereafter "national standard unit") exceeded 2 billion won again in September for the first time since May — a gap of four months (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport statistics and reporting verification). As of September, the figure stood at 2.00063 billion won, up 22.8% from the same month a year earlier. The average sale price of private apartments nationwide that month was 8.706 million won per ㎡ (about 28.73 million won per 3.3㎡), setting a record high for the first time in two months (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport statistics, verified via issue briefing). "The Shop Bundang Heist" in Bundang-gu, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, posted a price of about 111.05 million won per 3.3㎡, marking the highest sale price outside Seoul since 2020 (sale announcement and reporting verification).

Rising construction costs are a key factor behind the price increases. The standard construction cost (the government's baseline construction expense) has been raised three times this year (based on Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport notices), and the construction cost index has risen for 12 consecutive months (Bank of Korea statistics). Industry sources assessed that with uncertainty over international raw material prices added to the mix, new sale prices are unlikely to fall.

In step with rising sale prices, the government is moving to boost housing supply (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and issue briefing verification). The ministry is set to commission a study titled "Urban Planning Flexibility Measures for Expanding Housing Supply," which would reduce developers' public contribution burdens when land use is changed. The backdrop: about 1 million ㎡ of unbuilt land in Seoul and 750,000 ㎡ across 15 regulated zones in Gyeonggi Province have seen development delayed by public contribution obligations. Seoul has already piloted a program lowering the public contribution rate from 60% to 30% in 11 districts in northern and southwestern Seoul.

With construction costs rising and policies easing public contribution burdens moving forward together, the government's urban planning flexibility measures are expected to serve as a catalyst for restarting delayed urban housing supply. However, concerns remain about applying uniform national standards, given differences in local conditions.