While the volume of apartment sales and jeonse (long-term deposit rental) and monthly rent transactions in Seoul has decreased this year, transactions for row and multi-family housing have increased.

A shift in demand from apartments to row and multi-family housing is becoming prominent, driven by a reduction in available apartment listings due to strict loan regulations and the designation of land transaction permit zones.

According to an analysis of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport real transaction data by the real estate information platform Dabang on July 16, the number of apartment sales in Seoul from January to May this year was 34,932, a 1.4% decrease compared to the same period last year (35,419).

Monthly rent transactions also fell by 3.9% during the same period, from 50,967 to 49,000.

In particular, jeonse transactions saw the largest decline, dropping 24.5% from 66,884 to 50,501.

In contrast, row and multi-family housing saw an increase in both sales and monthly rent transactions during the same period, excluding jeonse.

Sales increased by 45.8% from 13,215 to 19,273, and monthly rent transactions rose by 12.8% from 34,104 to 38,455.

Jeonse transactions for these housing types decreased by 3.0%, from 23,539 to 22,830.

However, the total volume of jeonse and monthly rent transactions for row and multi-family housing increased by 6.3% from 57,642 in the first five months of last year to 61,285 during the same period this year, indicating an intensification of the shift from jeonse to monthly rent (from 59.2% to 62.7%).

During the survey period, apartment sales transactions increased significantly in northern Seoul districts, including Geumcheon-gu and Dobong-gu (95.6%), Nowon-gu (85.0%), Jungnang-gu (78.1%), and Gangbuk-gu (70.7%).

In contrast, areas along the Han River belt, such as Seongdong-gu (-63.6%), Mapo-gu (-49.8%), and Gwangjin-gu (-43.2%), saw a sharp decline in transaction volume compared to last year.

For row and multi-family housing, sales transactions increased across all 25 autonomous districts in Seoul.