A view of apartment and villa complexes in Seoul seen from the Seoul Sky observatory at Lotte World Tower in Songpa-gu [Yonhap News file photo]

Seoul apartment prices surged by 2.5% in June, marking the largest monthly increase in five years, according to data.

Due to the impact of loan regulations, transactions for small to mid-priced homes by end-users increased, with trades under 1.5 billion won accounting for over 80% of the total. Jeonse (lump-sum deposit rental) prices also continued their sharp upward trend, rising by over 1% for the fourth consecutive month.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government released this analysis on the 21st, based on the June 2026 apartment actual transaction price index and transaction statistics published by the Korea Real Estate Board.

The actual transaction price index for home sales is calculated by analyzing all transaction data reported within 30 days of the signing of a sales contract, using prices from November 2017 as a base index of 100 to reflect monthly fluctuation rates.

In June, the actual transaction price of Seoul apartments rose by 2.50% compared to the previous month. This is the largest increase in five years since June 2021 (2.44%). Compared to June of last year, Seoul apartment prices have skyrocketed by 13.79% in just one year.

Trends in Seoul apartment actual transaction price index and fluctuation rates over the past 5 years [Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]

By region, most areas saw significant increases of over 2%, including the Northeast (2.74%), Northwest (2.73%), Southeast (2.52%), and Southwest (2.41%) regions, while the city center area (0.57%), which includes Jongno, Jung, and Yongsan districts, saw the lowest growth rate.

By housing size, mid-to-large apartments (exclusive area of 85–135㎡) showed the steepest rise at 3.05%. This was followed by small (40–60㎡) at 2.67%, mid-sized (60–85㎡) at 2.53%, and micro-sized (40㎡ or less) at 1.99%, while large apartments (over 135㎡) saw a decline of -0.33%.

The actual transaction price for Jeonse in Seoul apartments rose by 1.28% in June, continuing a streak of over 1% growth for four consecutive months.

By region, the Northeast recorded the highest increase at 1.56%. By size, prices rose across all categories, with mid-sized apartments showing the highest growth rate at 1.48%.

Proportion of transactions under 1.5 billion won by district in July 2026 [Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]

As of the 18th of this month, the proportion of apartment transactions under 1.5 billion won last month (July) was 81.2%, up 4.9 percentage points from the previous month (76.3%).

The Seoul Metropolitan Government analyzed that while the proportion of transactions under 1.5 billion won had decreased between April and May due to an increase in high-priced home transactions for tax-saving purposes ahead of the end of the capital gains tax relief for multi-home owners, the trend has since shifted. As the concentration of high-priced home transactions subsided and demand for small to mid-priced homes by end-users increased due to loan regulations, the proportion of transactions under 1.5 billion won has expanded once again.

In July, the volume of Jeonse transactions for Seoul apartments was 8,204, a 0.2% decrease from the previous month, while monthly rent transaction volume was 8,082, a 20.2% decrease from the previous month.

The proportion of monthly rent within total lease transactions was 49.6%, down from the previous month (55.2%).

The proportion of contract renewals within Jeonse transactions was 53.8% in July, an increase from both the previous month (52.8%) and the same month last year (44.8%).

The usage rate of the right to request contract renewal was 53.5%, lower than the same month last year (60.1%).