Seoul apartment auctions overheat as successful bid ratio hits 3.5-year high

According to Financial News, the successful bid ratio for Seoul apartment auctions has reached its highest level in three and a half years. Analysts say shrinking supply and rising asking prices in the apartment sales market have pushed more demand into the auction market.
According to the Auction Trends Report released on the 5th by GG Auction, a company specializing in court and public auction data, 3,033 apartment auctions were held nationwide in January, up 1.5% from 2,989 in the previous month. The successful bid rate was 37.5%, 3.0 percentage points higher than December’s 34.5%. The successful bid ratio came in at 88.8%, up 1.8 percentage points from 87.0% a month earlier, marking the highest level since July 2022 (90.6%), or about three and a half years. The average number of bidders per case was 7.3, down 0.5 from 7.8 in the previous month.
In Seoul, 174 apartment auctions were held in January, about 37% more than the 127 cases in December. The successful bid rate rose 1.8 percentage points to 44.3%, from 42.5% a month earlier. The successful bid ratio jumped to 107.8%, up 4.9 percentage points from 102.9% in December. Compared with a year earlier (93.3%), this represents a sharp rise of 14.5 percentage points. By district, Dongjak District recorded the highest successful bid ratio at 139.2%, followed by Seongdong District (131.7%), Gwangjin District (129.0%), and Yeongdeungpo District (124.9%). The average number of bidders per auction was 7.9, up 1.2 from 6.7 in the previous month, the highest level since June last year, when it stood at 9.2.
In Gyeonggi Province, 687 apartment auctions were held, down about 9% from 753 in the previous month. The successful bid rate climbed 4.4 percentage points to 44.0%, from December’s 39.6%. The successful bid ratio edged down slightly to 87.3% from 87.5% a month earlier, but high winning bids continued to appear in regulated areas. Apartments in Gwangmyeong City posted the highest average successful bid ratio at 116.6%, followed by Bundang District, Seongnam City at 113.9%. Dongan District, Anyang City and Hanam City also showed strength, at 102.6% and 102.3%, respectively. The average number of bidders was 7.7, unchanged from the previous month.
In Incheon, 321 apartment auctions were held, about 14% fewer than the 372 cases in December. The successful bid rate rose 6.5 percentage points to 39.3%, from 32.8% a month earlier. This is seen as the result of bargain-hunting demand flowing into apartments whose prices had fallen after two or more failed auctions. The successful bid ratio was 77.2%, almost unchanged from December’s 77.3%, while the average number of bidders inched up to 5.5 from 5.1 in the previous month.
Among the five major metropolitan cities outside the capital region, Busan’s apartment successful bid ratio climbed 4.3 percentage points from 82.8% to 87.1%, marking its highest level in about three years. Daegu followed, with its ratio rising 3.7 percentage points to 86.8% from 83.1% a month earlier. Ulsan Metropolitan City recorded 92.1%, up 0.2 percentage points, maintaining a high level above 90% for the fourth consecutive month. Gwangju fell 2.5 percentage points to 81.4%, while Daejeon Metropolitan City also declined 1.9 percentage points to 84.3%.
Among the eight provinces, apartment successful bid ratios in North Gyeongsang Province and South Chungcheong Province rose 3.5 and 3.0 percentage points, to 80.6% and 83.7%, respectively. South Jeolla Province also gained 1.6 percentage points to 83.5%. Gangwon Province, however, plunged 10.2 percentage points from 86.8% to 76.6%, falling back into the 70% range for the first time in a year and four months. North Chungcheong Province dropped 6.0 percentage points to 83.1%, while North Jeolla Province and South Gyeongsang Province fell 3.5 and 1.6 percentage points to 86.3% and 75.7%, respectively. All eight apartment auctions held in Jeju failed to attract successful bids. In Sejong Special Self-Governing City, the apartment successful bid ratio rose 6.6 percentage points to 92.9%, from 86.3% in the previous month.
act@fnnews.com Choi Ah-young Reporter