"You Should Own at Least One Home in Seoul"... Half of New Homeowners Are Non-Residents
45.5% of Increase Over Eight Years Attributed to Non-Residents—Nearly Three Times the National Average
Acquisitions Driven More by Investment Than Actual Residence
Government Considering Real Estate Tax Reform Focused on Actual Residence
Nearly half of the increase in privately owned homes in Seoul over the past eight years has been attributed to owners who reside outside the city. Analysts suggest this indicates that a significant portion of the new housing was acquired for investment or asset-holding purposes, rather than for actual residence.
According to a report by Yonhap News on June 28, citing the National Statistical Portal (KOSIS) of the Ministry of Data and Statistics, the number of privately owned homes in Seoul reached 2,736,773 last year. This represents an increase of 201,166 units compared to 2016, when the data was first compiled.
Most of this increase is believed to result from new housing supply. Of the additional homes, 91,617 units—or 45.5%—were owned by individuals whose resident registration is outside Seoul. If owners who are registered in Seoul but reside in a different district from where their property is located are also included, the figure rises to 51.7%, exceeding half of the total increase. This suggests that a considerable portion of newly acquired homes in Seoul may have been purchased for holding purposes rather than for primary residence.
The share of homes in Seoul owned by non-residents was also higher than the national average. Nationally, 16.2% of the increase in privately owned homes during the same period was attributed to owners living outside the respective region, while Busan, which ranked second after Seoul, recorded a rate of 27.8%. In contrast, Gyeonggi Province, which saw the largest absolute increase in privately owned homes, had only a 6.8% share of non-resident ownership.
The proportion of non-resident ownership among all privately owned homes in Seoul has been steadily rising. It increased from 14.7% in 2016 to 17.0% last year, and when including owners who live in a different district within Seoul, the figure surpassed 30% for the first time.
This separation between ownership and residence aligns with the government's ongoing efforts to reform real estate taxation to focus on "actual residence." The government is reviewing changes to the system that would place greater weight on the period of actual residence rather than the holding period when granting tax benefits. Possible revisions include reducing the deduction rate for holding period in the long-term capital gains tax, amending the long-term holding tax credit for the comprehensive real estate tax, and revisiting the special capital gains tax exemption for cooperative rental housing, which is set to expire at the end of this year.
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However, the government clarified, "While we are preparing the 2026 tax law amendment, no final decisions have been made regarding possible revisions to the comprehensive real estate holding deduction or the long-term holding special deduction for capital gains tax." The final plans will be released in the tax amendment proposal to be announced at the end of next month.
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