Jeonse (a lump-sum, refundable deposit paid in lieu of monthly rent) prices for Seoul apartments have risen for 84 consecutive weeks amid a supply shortage, and monthly rents are climbing just as steeply, adding to the housing cost burden on tenants. Seven of every 10 lease transactions this year have been monthly-rent deals, and contracts of 3 million won or more a month are rising sharply. Such deals are now appearing in the mid- and low-priced residential belts on Seoul's outskirts — the districts known as "No-Do-Gang" (Nowon, Dobong and Gangbuk) and "Geum-Gwan-Gu" (Geumcheon, Gwanak and Guro) — a sign that high-end monthly rents are spreading across the entire city.
Data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's actual transaction price system showed on the 22nd that 6,570 apartment monthly-rent contracts of 3 million won or more had been signed this year through that date, up 9.7% from 5,988 in the same period a year earlier. Deals in the traditional high-rent areas of the three Gangnam districts — Gangnam, Seocho and Songpa — edged down to 3,896 from 3,899, while such contracts rose sharply across the other 22 districts.
In Mapo District, lease deals of 3 million won or more a month jumped more than 40% to 459 from 325 a year earlier. Gangdong District more than doubled to 148 from 67, and Dongjak District to 95 from 47. The shift was most striking in the outlying residential belts. In Nowon, Dobong and Gangbuk districts, 12 monthly-rent contracts of 3 million won or more were signed this year through the 22nd, up from just one in the same period last year. Geumcheon, Gwanak and Guro districts saw such deals rise 133% to 21 from nine.
Brokers attribute the trend to a shrinking supply of jeonse listings, which has pushed up jeonse prices and dragged monthly rents higher with them. According to the Korea Real Estate Board, Seoul apartment jeonse prices have risen for 84 straight weeks since February last year, with a cumulative gain of 7.79% this year — about 4.7 times the 1.66% recorded in the same period a year earlier. The average monthly rent for a Seoul apartment stood at 1.64 million won in August, with an average deposit of 195.65 million won. While deposits were flat from a year earlier, the monthly rent alone climbed about 14% from 1.44 million won.
Local brokerages point to a lack of newly built units as the force lifting both jeonse and monthly rents. "When a new apartment complex opened late last year, the market settled at a 50 million won deposit with monthly rent of 2.5 million to 3 million won for a 84-square-meter unit," an official at a Gangbuk District brokerage said. "Jeonse for the same size was above 700 million to 800 million won then and has now climbed to 900 million won, so tenants who cannot come up with a lump sum are choosing high monthly rents." An official at a Dongdaemun District brokerage said: "As redevelopment complexes in Cheongnyangni began accepting residents, jeonse for 84-square-meter units passed 1 billion won. Even those listings are scarce, so people are accepting high monthly rents."
According to the property platform Asil, jeonse listings in Dongdaemun District numbered 315, down 53% from 671 at the start of the year. Monthly-rent deals of 3 million won or more in the district rose 73% to 92 from 53 last year.
Analysts expect the rise in jeonse and monthly rents to be difficult to contain for some time, with new apartment supply in Seoul set to shrink through 2028. Data from Real Estate R114 showed that apartments scheduled for occupancy in Seoul are projected to fall to 25,281 units this year from 37,103 last year, then to 18,682 next year and 13,683 in 2028. A rise in renewal contracts as the rental squeeze intensifies, along with government policy centered on owner-occupiers, is also cited as a catalyst for the sharp drop in listings on the market.
The government has announced a housing stability plan built around the supply of 1.19 million publicly backed homes to ease instability in the rental market, but analysts say it falls short of stabilizing the jeonse and monthly-rent market. "Policies such as monthly rent support for young adults may lower immediate housing costs, but in a market with constrained supply, temporary small-scale aid will deliver little benefit relative to what recipients expect," said Shin Bo-yeon, a professor of real estate AI convergence at Sejong University.
