Jeonse Deposits Soar 35% in Six Years, Jeonse Loans Jump 53%
Jeonse demand in the Seoul metropolitan area is far outpacing supply, with rents last month posting their largest rise in three years and 10 months. As homes become harder to find, demand for loans to cover security deposits is also growing, deepening housing burdens.
According to the Korea Real Estate Board on the 15th, Gyeonggi Province's jeonse supply-demand index stood at 110.7 in the second week of November, the highest since the first week of August 2021 (111.3), when jeonse shortages were acute. Incheon recorded 110.4 and Seoul 120.2 the same week. Outer Seoul also showed tight conditions, with the northeast region at 123.0 and the southwest at 125.9. An index above 100 means jeonse demand exceeds the supply of listings.
Regional imbalances within Gyeonggi Province are also stark. Gyeongbu Region 1 recorded 116.2, the West Coast region 117.0, and Dongbu Region 1 111.7. The Gyeongui region, including Gimpo, Goyang and Paju, which had excess supply in the first week of January this year at 91.1, reversed to 108.5 by the second week of November.
The pace of rent increases is accelerating as well. Yonhap News Agency's analysis of data from the national statistics portal KOSIS, run by the National Data Agency, found the jeonse and monthly rent consumer price index rose 1.4% from a year earlier last month, the steepest increase since December 2022, or in three years and 10 months. The rate of increase expanded for four straight months: 1.1% in July, 1.2% in August, 1.3% in September and 1.4% in October. Monthly rent prices rose 1.5%, the highest since December 2013, while jeonse prices climbed 1.4%, the highest since February 2023.
The accumulation of deposit burdens is also evident. An analysis of microdata from the Survey of Household Finances and Living Conditions shows the average jeonse deposit for renting households stood at 217.97 million won (about $156,000) as of 2025, up 34.9% from 2019 (161.62 million won). Average financial debt taken out to cover deposits grew 53.0% over the same period, from 30.33 million won to 46.39 million won. The ratio of financial debt to jeonse deposits also rose 2.5 percentage points, from 18.8% to 21.3%.
Rising loan rates are adding to tenants' burdens. The interest rate on newly extended jeonse loans at commercial banks fell to an annual 3.70% in May 2025 before turning back upward, reaching 4.57% in September. Higher housing costs and interest payments leave less income for dining out, leisure and durable goods. The Korea Development Institute (KDI) noted that rising market rates and weak wage growth in the non-semiconductor sector are constraining household consumption capacity.
At its regular housing supply briefing on the 13th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport pointed to signs of cooling, citing growing supplies of Seoul apartments for sale and rent. It said 44,000 households are set to move into new homes in the capital region through the first quarter of next year. Under its housing stability plan announced in September, the government plans to supply about 100,000 public housing units in the metropolitan area by next year. However, new supply takes time to reach completion, and the exercise of contract renewal rights along with homebuyers shifting to renting have slowed the pace of growth in jeonse listings.
