With Seoul's apartment supply shortage persisting and the scarcity of newly built apartments intensifying, attention is turning to apartments whose resale restrictions are being lifted. In particular, following the October 15 measures last year that extended the resale restriction period to three years for regulated zones in Seoul and the greater Seoul area, demand is expected to focus on apartments that became eligible for sales rights resale after just one year under the previous rules. However, even when resale restrictions are lifted around the same time, the pace at which listings appear varies depending on the move-in date.
According to real estate big-data platform Asil on the 3rd, "Hillstate Medialle" in Daejo-dong, Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul, saw a sharp increase in listings after its resale restrictions were lifted on the 28th of last month. As of the 27th, the day before the lifting, sale listings totaled just 21, but as of today they have more than doubled to 47 in the span of a week. Over the same period, jeonse and monthly rental listings, of which not a single one had been registered, came in at 62 jeonse and 14 monthly rental listings.
According to nearby brokerages, the upcoming move-in scheduled for October is seen as the reason for the increase in listings. An official at brokerage A nearby said, "With the resale restriction lifted, investors looking to realize price gains and owners looking to lease out their units are putting properties on the market all at once," adding, "Some owners are selling their sales rights and moving to other parts of Seoul."
While the preference for newly built apartments is growing amid a shortage in supply, demand from buyers in their 30s and 40s remains substantial given that this is a large complex with a move-in date close at hand, and transactions of occupancy rights are also continuing steadily. An official at brokerage B said, "Most units are priced under 1.5 billion won, so loans are readily available, and access is convenient — taking Line 3 from Yeonsinnae Station to the Jongno area or the GTX to Seoul Station — so it's drawing strong interest, mainly from younger buyers."
In contrast, "Gocheok Pruigio Hillstate" in Gocheok-dong, Guro-gu, Seoul, whose resale restrictions were lifted around the same time, has remained relatively calm. The complex, with a total of 983 units, became eligible for resale starting on the 26th of last month, but listings have shown little change. Although resale is now permitted, listings of units up for sale have risen by just one, from three to four. The scheduled move-in date is October 2028, more than two years away, which limits access for end users. An official at brokerage C said, "There's no telling how government policy will change after the local elections, so both buyers and sellers are taking a wait-and-see approach," adding, "The exemption from the actual residency requirement does not apply, so gap investment is not possible either, which seems to be why everyone is on the sidelines."
In the second half of this year, more complexes in Seoul and the greater Seoul area are slated to have their resale restrictions lifted in succession. Starting next month, transactions will become possible for "Riversent Pruigio Wibe," "Otier Foret," "Jegi-dong Station I'Park," and "Sangbong Central I'Park."
Experts advise that rather than the lifting of resale restrictions itself, factors such as the move-in date, whether actual residency is feasible, and surrounding market prices should be considered together. While the lifting of resale restrictions used to lead directly to a pickup in transactions, in recent years the feasibility of actual residency and rental utilization has become a more significant factor influencing the value of sales rights.
Koh Jun-seok, professor at Yonsei University's Sangnam Institute of Management, said, "The supply being released through resale is attractive in that the units are newly built and the building and unit numbers are already fixed," and predicted, "Given the limited supply of new units in the market, demand will remain steady even if sales rights prices rise."
