Domestic Loan Restrictions Led to Surge in Suspicious Foreign Property Deals, With Chinese Nationals Accounting for Half

The number of real estate transactions by foreigners flagged for suspected illegal activities and reported to relevant authorities has more than doubled in a year, centered around the Seoul metropolitan area and high-priced properties.

According to data submitted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to Representative Kim Jong-yang of the People Power Party on the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, the number of suspicious foreign real estate transactions reported in Seoul surged from 64 in 2024 to 135 last year.

The upward trend was particularly prominent in high-priced transactions.

Transactions involving properties valued at 3 billion won or more more than doubled from 29 to 62 over the same period, while those in the 1 billion to 3 billion won range increased from 18 to 28.

By nationality, Chinese nationals accounted for the largest share.

Out of 383 reported cases categorized by nationality last year, Chinese nationals accounted for 184, nearing half of the total, followed by U.S. nationals with 107.

Suspicious transactions refer to deals selected for investigation due to abnormal signs in transaction amounts or fund-raising methods.

If investigations reveal suspected illegality, such as illegal entry of funds from abroad, fraudulent gift tax avoidance, or false reporting, the cases are referred to relevant authorities.

Foreign-owned land in South Korea is also steadily expanding.

The number of land plots owned by foreigners increased by 18.6% at the end of last year compared to 167,725 plots at the end of 2021.

The officially assessed land value of foreign-owned properties also rose by 6.5% over the same period, growing from 32.0554 trillion won to 34.1431 trillion won.

In particular, land owned by Chinese nationals jumped 32.8% from 64,171 plots to 85,237 plots over the same period, with its officially assessed value increasing 31.0% from 3.2845 trillion won to 4.3033 trillion won.

Meanwhile, domestic loan regulations have been significantly tightened recently, raising concerns over the fairness of funding conditions between domestic buyers and foreigners.

According to housing fund-raising plans submitted for Seoul between February and April of this year, 52.2% of foreigners did not report any loans from financial institutions.

Because foreigners can secure funds from overseas, they are relatively less affected by domestic lending restrictions.

Reported by Kim Jiuk | Video by Lee Eui-sun | Graphics by Lee Jung-ju | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.