Seoul City Guide

Seoul is the financial, technological, and cultural engine of South Korea, concentrating roughly half of the nation's economic output within its metropolitan region and hosting the global headquarters of Samsung, Hyundai, LG, and SK. For property investors, the capital pairs deep, liquid demand with one of Asia's most acute structural undersupply problems: limited new housing relative to household formation has continued to compress vacancies and push prices higher across the city's marquee districts. The luxury benchmark remains Gangnam, where prime apartments command KRW 25-40 million per square metre, alongside the riverside towers of Seocho and the redeveloping Yongsan district anchored by the International Business District. More accessible entry points exist in Mapo, home to the Hongdae creative cluster and Yonsei University, and in eastern districts such as Seongdong, where the Seongsu-dong tech and design scene has driven rapid gentrification. Citywide average prices sit near USD 9,272 per square metre, with Seoul homes averaging close to KRW 1.4 billion - roughly three times the national figure. After apartment prices rose approximately 8.7% in 2025, the fastest annual gain in nearly two decades, the Bank of Korea and macroprudential lending curbs have moderated the trajectory into 2026, leaving Seoul a high-conviction capital-growth market underpinned by scarcity rather than yield.