Knowledge Industry Centers See Downturn After Brief Rebound... Q2 Transaction Value Plummets to 200 Billion Won Range [Real Estate AtoZ]

From 858 Cases in Q1 to 560 in Q2
Transaction Value Also Down from 369 Billion to 217.9 Billion Won
Volume and Value Drop 35% and 41% from Previous Quarter
Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeonggi Account for Over 90%

The nationwide knowledge industry center sales market in South Korea experienced a brief recovery in the first quarter of this year, but declined again in the second quarter. Both transaction volume and transaction value dropped significantly, indicating that the market has not emerged from a prolonged downturn.

View of Knowledge Industry Center in Gyeonggi area. Goyang Special City

According to the '2026 Q2 Nationwide Knowledge Industry Center Sales Market Trend Report' released on September 8 by Real Estate Planet, the transaction volume for knowledge industry centers across the country during this period stood at 560 deals, down 34.7% from the previous quarter's 858 deals. Compared to the same period last year (837 deals), this represents a 33.1% decrease.

During the same period, the total transaction value was KRW 21.79 billion, which is a decrease of 40.9% from the previous quarter's KRW 36.9 billion, and a 40.0% drop compared to the same period last year (KRW 36.34 billion). This is the first time since the fourth quarter of 2022 (KRW 28.85 billion) that the transaction value per quarter has fallen into the KRW 20 billion range.

The average price per 3.3 square meters (based on exclusive area) at knowledge industry centers nationwide was recorded at KRW 15.22 million. This is a drop of 3.7% from the previous quarter (KRW 15.81 million) and a decrease of 3.2% compared to the same period last year (KRW 15.73 million).

Quarterly nationwide sales transaction volume and transaction value of knowledge industry centers from 2022 to 2026. Real Estate Planet

Both the metropolitan area and non-metropolitan markets could not avoid a contraction in transactions, but the decline was more pronounced in non-metropolitan areas. In the second quarter, the metropolitan area (Seoul, Incheon, and Gyeonggi) recorded 506 transactions and a transaction value of KRW 20.02 billion, which are decreases of 31.9% and 34.1% compared to the previous quarter, respectively.

In contrast, the non-metropolitan area saw only 54 transactions, a sharp decline of 53.0% from the previous quarter's 115 transactions. The transaction value in non-metropolitan areas also shrank by 72.9%, coming to KRW 1.77 billion compared to KRW 6.53 billion in the previous quarter.

However, in terms of the average price per 3.3 square meters, the metropolitan area price dropped 6.2% from the previous quarter (KRW 16.51 million) to KRW 15.50 million, whereas in the non-metropolitan area, the figure rose 12.1% from KRW 11.29 million to KRW 12.66 million over the same period.

In Seoul, the second quarter recorded 125 transactions with a transaction value of KRW 7.43 billion. When compared to the first quarter (206 transactions, KRW 13.7 billion), the number of deals fell by 39.3% and the total value dropped by 45.8%. By district, the highest number of transactions took place in Geumcheon District (39), Gangseo District (23), and Guro and Yeongdeungpo Districts (20 each). In terms of transaction value, Yeongdeungpo District ranked highest at KRW 1.59 billion, followed by Geumcheon District (KRW 1.57 billion) and Gangseo District (KRW 1.55 billion).

The average price per 3.3 square meters in Seoul was KRW 24.03 million, down 4.0% from the previous quarter (KRW 25.03 million). By district, Yeongdeungpo District held the highest price at KRW 34.26 million, followed by Songpa District (KRW 32.43 million) and Seongdong District (KRW 31.15 million).

In Gyeonggi Province, there were 349 transactions with a total value of KRW 11.74 billion, representing decreases of 28.6% and 23.5% compared to the previous quarter, respectively. The highest transaction volumes were in Seongnam City (39 transactions), Hanam City (36 transactions), and Yangju City (31 transactions). By transaction value, Goyang City led with KRW 1.6 billion, followed by Seongnam City (KRW 1.45 billion) and Hanam City (KRW 1.16 billion).

The average price per 3.3 square meters for knowledge industry centers in Gyeonggi Province was KRW 12.96 million, a drop of 4.3% from the previous quarter's KRW 13.54 million. By city, Goyang City recorded the highest average price at KRW 17.82 million.

Jeong Soomin, CEO of Real Estate Planet, said, "While knowledge industry center transactions contracted significantly nationwide in the second quarter, more than 90% of all transactions still took place in the metropolitan area," adding, "Demand continues to concentrate in the metropolitan region despite the stagnating market conditions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.