As the "triple strength" trend—rising prices across sales, jeonse (lump-sum deposit), and monthly rent—continues in the Seoul apartment market, the prices of alternative residential options like officetels are also on the rise.

According to the second-quarter officetel price trend survey by the Korea Real Estate Board on the 15th, Seoul officetel sales prices rose by 0.24%, marking an expanded growth compared to the previous quarter (0.23%).

The Korea Real Estate Board explains that the upward price trend is being sustained by increasing demand, particularly for near-new officetels located in downtown areas and near subway stations with convenient transportation.

In particular, the rise in jeonse and monthly rent prices was notable.

In the second quarter, Seoul officetel jeonse prices rose by 0.40%, and monthly rents rose by 0.90%, both showing higher growth rates than the previous quarter (0.24% and 0.75%, respectively).

As supply in the Seoul apartment jeonse and monthly rent market decreases and prices remain strong, rental demand is shifting toward officetels—specifically mid-to-large-sized units for jeonse, and units near subway stations, which are favored by university students and office workers, for monthly rent.

Notably, the northwest (1.33%) and southeast (1.12%) regions of Seoul saw particularly strong growth, with monthly rent increases exceeding 1% in the second quarter.

Nationwide, the decline in officetel sales prices narrowed from -0.41% in the first quarter to -0.30% in the second quarter.

Jeonse prices turned to an increase, rising 0.09% in the second quarter from -0.09% in the first, while the rise in monthly rents grew from 0.66% to 0.71%.

The jeonse-to-monthly rent conversion rate, applied when converting a jeonse deposit into monthly rent, stood at 6.62% nationwide in June, up from 6.45% in March, while Seoul also saw an increase to 6.06% in June from 5.96% in March.

By region, as of June, Sejong had the highest rate at 9.05%, followed by Ulsan (7.51%) and Gwangju (7.21%), while Seoul (6.06%) recorded the lowest.

 Q2 National Officetel Price Trends

[Courtesy of Korea Real Estate Board. Resale and DB distribution prohibited]