"Pay 3.5 Million Won a Month, or Give Up": The Harsh Housing Reality for Seoul Newlyweds

01. One in Three Homeowning Newlywed Couples in Seoul Owns a Home Exceeding 600 Million Won

According to the "2024 Newlywed Statistics" released by the Ministry of Data and Statistics, there were 48,989 first-marriage newlywed couples residing in Seoul who owned homes. Among them, couples whose combined officially assessed housing price exceeded 600 million won numbered 15,368, or 31.4%. Looking solely at newlyweds who own homes in Seoul, this equates to roughly one in three couples.

In 2015, when the statistics were first compiled, the figure stood at 5.9%. At that time, among 88,500 homeowning newlywed couples, only 5,254 owned homes with an assessed price exceeding 600 million won. Over the course of nine years, the proportion grew 5.3 times, while the actual number of couples roughly tripled.

Looking at these figures alone might prompt a question: Have newlyweds in Seoul simply become that much wealthier? Looking at other figures in the same report paints a different picture.

02. The Number of Homeowning Newlyweds Dropped 44.6%

In 2015, there were 88,500 homeowning newlywed couples in Seoul. By 2024, that number fell to 48,989, marking a 44.6% decline over nine years. Conversely, couples owning homes assessed at over 600 million won increased from 5,254 to 15,368. In short, while the overall number of homeowning newlyweds shrank drastically, the number of couples owning relatively expensive homes actually increased.

Broadening the perspective to all newlyweds in Seoul makes this trend even clearer. In 2024, there were 143,820 first-marriage newlywed couples in Seoul. Of these, 65.9% did not own a home. This means that more than six out of ten couples are beginning their married lives in Seoul without owning their own home.

03. Why 'Assessed Value Over 600 Million Won' Does Not Automatically Mean 'Wealthy'

Owning a home with an assessed value exceeding 600 million won cannot simply be interpreted as being "wealthy newlyweds owning luxury housing." This is because housing prices across Seoul surged substantially over the past nine years. A considerable number of homes assessed below 600 million won in 2015 likely surpassed that threshold simply due to market-wide price appreciation. Furthermore, because the gap between assessed values and actual market prices varies across properties, it is inaccurate to uniformly convert an assessed price of 600 million won into an exact market price.

Thus, what the 31.4% figure indicates is not that "one-third of Seoul newlyweds have become rich." Rather, it reflects a reality where the total number of homeowning newlyweds in Seoul has dwindled, while the asset values of those remaining homeowners have escalated substantially.

04. Another Number Has Swelled Alongside Home Prices

Debt. In 2024, the median outstanding loan balance for first-marriage newlywed couples with debt was 179 million won. In 2016, it stood at 77.78 million won—a 130.1% increase over eight years. The share of indebted newlyweds carrying loans of 300 million won or more also jumped from 5.3% in 2016 to 24.0% in 2024, approaching nearly one in four couples.

The scale of debt was particularly massive among homeowning newlyweds. The median loan balance for homeowning newlyweds with debt was 228.24 million won—86.64 million won higher than that of non-homeowning newlyweds. The gap was also pronounced in the proportion of couples carrying 300 million won or more in loans: 33.2% for homeowners versus 16.7% for non-homeowners, an almost twofold difference.

However, this loan balance cannot be assumed to consist entirely of mortgage loans. The newlywed statistics encompass various types of credit across the financial sector. Consequently, one cannot definitively assert that "newlyweds went into debt by an average of over 200 million won solely to purchase a home."

What is clear, however, is that homeowning newlyweds shoulder far heavier debt burdens than their non-homeowning peers.

05. "Fearing We Might Never Be Able to Buy If Not Now"

A salaried worker in their 30s, identified as A, borrowed 660 million won earlier this year to secure a newlywed home in Seoul. Monthly principal and interest payments alone amount to around 3.5 million won, accounting for roughly one-third of the couple's monthly earnings. Still, A explained why they bought the home: "I had an overwhelming fear that if we didn't buy now, we might never be able to afford a home."

On the other side are couples who could not or chose not to buy. Person B and their spouse, married for three years, live in a jeonse (lump-sum deposit lease) apartment in Yeongdeungpo District, Seoul. They recently looked into apartments priced around 800 million won in Mapo and Seodaemun Districts but eventually gave up. Concluding that even with dual incomes, buying a home in Seoul is impossible without hundreds of millions of won in loans, they recently expanded their search to Gyeonggi Province.

Whether one can buy a home in Seoul has ultimately become a question not only of how much one earns, but also of how much existing wealth one holds and how much debt one can bear.

06. When Interest Rates Rise, the Divide Becomes Starker

The Bank of Korea raised its benchmark interest rate in both July and August. The benchmark rate currently stands at 3.0%. Five-year fixed mortgage rates at the five major commercial banks range from 4.90% to 6.88% per year, with the upper end nearing 7%. For newlyweds who have already borrowed heavily to buy a home, the interest burden is difficult to ignore. Conversely, for couples who have yet to buy, the barrier to entering the Seoul housing market using leverage has risen even higher.

Seoul apartment prices remain high as well. According to KB Real Estate, the median selling price of Seoul apartments in September reached 1,313.33 million won, surpassing 1.3 billion won for the first time. The average selling price stood at 1,624.69 million won. These price points are difficult to access solely on dual incomes without substantial existing assets or massive debt.

07. More Newlyweds Are Opting Not to Start in Seoul at All

Newlywed couples living in Seoul accounted for 19.0% of all newlyweds nationwide. Among homeowning newlyweds nationwide, the proportion residing in Seoul was even lower at 15.2%—the lowest level since relevant statistics began. Of course, this alone cannot conclusively prove that "high housing prices forced newlyweds to leave Seoul," as various factors, including regional marriage demographics, housing supply, and job locations, interact.

Yet putting all these numbers together shows that the housing situation for Seoul newlyweds is not moving in a single direction. The number of homeowning newlyweds has declined. Among those who do own homes, the share owning expensive properties has increased. And homeowning newlyweds carry heavier debt burdens. The divide between newlyweds who own homes in Seoul and those who do not is growing increasingly stark.


Deep Dive Q&A
Q1. Does this mean 31.4% of homeowning newlyweds in Seoul own "high-end housing"?

Not necessarily. The 31.4% figure represents the proportion of couples whose combined officially assessed housing price exceeds 600 million won. Over the past nine years, home prices in Seoul rose sharply across the board, and the relationship between assessed values and market prices varies by individual property. Therefore, it is inappropriate to interpret this figure directly as the "share of wealthy newlyweds."

Q2. Why is the 31.4% figure important?

Because while the total number of homeowning newlyweds fell 44.6% over nine years, the absolute number of newlyweds owning homes assessed above 600 million won roughly tripled. It demonstrates that the composition of homeowning newlyweds in Seoul has shifted dramatically.

Q3. Is the 228.24 million won debt of homeowning newlyweds all mortgage loans?

No. The loan balances captured in the statistics cannot all be assumed to be mortgage loans. Therefore, it is impossible to determine from this data alone exactly how much was borrowed specifically to purchase a home. However, it does show that the median debt of indebted homeowning newlyweds was 86.64 million won higher than that of non-homeowning couples.

Q4. Has the housing situation for Seoul newlyweds improved or deteriorated?

It is difficult to assess the overall housing situation of newlyweds as simply good or bad based on these statistics alone. However, we can observe that the number of homeowning newlyweds in Seoul has dropped sharply, while among those who do own homes, the proportion holding higher-priced housing and larger amounts of debt has expanded. That is why 65.9% is just as critical a figure in these statistics as 31.4%—a number showing that nearly two out of every three newlywed couples in Seoul do not own a home.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.