Money raised by selling stocks and bonds to buy homes topped 8 trillion won ($5.8 billion) in the first seven months of this year, with more than half going toward homes priced at 1.5 billion won or more.
Securities Sales for Home Purchases Reach 8 Trillion Won
According to funding plans submitted to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and obtained by lawmaker Kim Jong-yang of the People Power Party, proceeds from stock and bond sales used to buy homes totaled 8.03 trillion won from January through July, the data showed on the 1st. That accounts for 6.2% of all money spent on home purchases.
The figure has grown every year. It stood at 1.12 trillion won in 2022, then rose to 1.68 trillion won in 2023, 3.18 trillion won in 2024 and 5.82 trillion won last year. This year's seven-month total already exceeds last year's full-year figure by more than 2 trillion won.
The share of securities proceeds in purchases of high-end homes has also risen sharply. From January through July, 4.25 trillion won in stock and bond proceeds went toward homes priced at 1.5 billion won or more, or 52.9% of the 8.03 trillion won total. Securities proceeds made up 12.2% of all money spent on homes in that price range over the same period, up from the 4% to 5% range recorded between 2021 and 2025.
By region, the money concentrated in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province. Seoul drew 5.17 trillion won, or 64.4% of the total, while Gyeonggi accounted for 2.21 trillion won, or 27.5%, with the two regions absorbing 91.9% of the funds. Within Seoul, the money clustered in districts dense with expensive homes: Gangnam at 834.3 billion won, Songpa at 715.3 billion won and Seocho at 701.6 billion won.
Buyers in Their 30s Sold the Most, but Share Was Highest Among Those in Their 50s
Rankings by age group diverged between total amounts and shares. Buyers in their 30s sold the most securities to fund home purchases, at 2.67 trillion won. They were followed by buyers in their 40s at 2.40 trillion won, those in their 50s at 1.73 trillion won and those 60 and over at 1.09 trillion won. Buyers in their 20s accounted for just 145.6 billion won.
The order reverses when measured against each age group's total purchase funds. Buyers in their 50s ranked highest at 7.7%, followed by those in their 40s at 6.3%, those 60 and over at 5.8%, those in their 30s at 5.6% and those in their 20s at 5.1%. Buyers in their 30s led in absolute terms, but those in their 50s relied most heavily on selling securities to cover the cost.
By housing type, condos dominated. Of the total proceeds, 7.16 trillion won, or 89.1%, went toward buying units in high-rise residential complexes. Multi-unit dwellings accounted for 415.3 billion won, detached and multi-household houses 325.8 billion won, and low-rise multi-unit housing 136.0 billion won.
The share of securities proceeds in overall home purchase funding has also climbed steeply. It rose from 1.4% in 2022 to 2.2% in 2023, 2.6% in 2024 and 3.1% last year, before jumping to 6.2% in the first seven months of this year — more than quadruple the 2022 level.
