"Fewer regulations and lower prices in the provinces"... Home purchases by Seoul residents in other regions surge 92% [Seoul flooded with listings]

"About 30% of the people who come to view homes are from the Seoul metropolitan area. Many of them are genuine buyers in their early 40s," said a certified real estate agent identified as A in Haeundae District, Busan Metropolitan City.
After the Oct. 15 real estate measures made apartment transactions more difficult in Seoul Metropolitan City and parts of Gyeonggi Province, purchases by Seoul-based buyers in provincial areas have been on the rise. Although these regions are physically far from the Seoul metropolitan area, there is a steady stream of people who travel on weekends to view properties in person. In particular, data show that apartment purchases in other regions by residents of Seoul Metropolitan City have jumped more than 92% this year compared with a year earlier.
According to the real estate industry on the 23rd, there has been a marked increase since the beginning of the year in so-called "expedition buying" of provincial apartments by residents of Seoul Metropolitan City and the broader Seoul metropolitan area. The apartment complexes drawing their attention share several traits: they are located in provincial cities, are newly built, and are large-scale developments.
As of the 20th, Daemyeong Xi Grand City in Nam District, Daegu Metropolitan City ranked first nationwide in apartment transaction volume this year. A certified real estate agent identified as B near the complex said, "We held a pre-inspection for move-ins last month, and overall feedback was very positive," adding, "There were also many people who had come from other regions such as Seoul Metropolitan City and the Seoul metropolitan area." Daemyeong Xi Grand City is a large complex with 2,023 units and includes community facilities under GS Engineering & Construction Corp.’s Xi apartment brand.
At Doosan We’ve the Zenith Ocean City in Nam District, Busan Metropolitan City, more than one out of every ten recent visitors has been from the Seoul metropolitan area. According to a nearby real estate office, even on the 20th there were at least two separate groups who had come from Seoul Metropolitan City to view units. The complex is a large-scale development with 3,048 units and currently ranks second nationwide in apartment transaction volume this year.
At Le El River Park Centum in Haeundae District, Busan Metropolitan City, more than 30% of visitors are residents of Seoul Metropolitan City or the Seoul metropolitan area. The complex has 2,070 units and sits along the so-called Centum Line, a prime residential belt. A local real estate agent identified as C noted, "Normally, demand from out-of-town buyers peaks in the summer, so it was surprising to see it increase this winter and early spring." Move-in at Le El River Park Centum is scheduled for May 2030.
Industry observers say the growing demand among Seoul metropolitan area residents for new large-scale complexes in provincial cities is mainly due to two factors: relatively low prices for the location and the fact that these areas are largely free from heavy regulations. The biggest draw is the lower price compared with the Seoul metropolitan area. For example, at Le El River Park Centum, located on prime land in Haeundae, actual transaction prices for a standard 84-square-meter unit are in the 1.2 to 1.4 billion won range. That works out to around 40 million won per pyeong, or only about 30–40% of prices in Gangnam and Seocho District, where prices per pyeong easily exceed 100 million won.
Lighter regulation is another key reason. A real estate industry official explained, "Some people who have grown weary of restrictions on apartment transactions in Seoul Metropolitan City and the Seoul metropolitan area, such as the Land Transaction Permit System, may have started looking to provincial markets instead," adding, "Because there is less regulation in the provinces, there is demand from buyers who want to purchase at what they see as the bottom." According to data from the Korea Real Estate Board (KREB)’s R-ONE Real Estate Statistics Information System, the number of transactions in which Seoul Metropolitan City residents bought apartments outside Seoul in January this year was 2,855. That is a 92.5% surge compared with 1,483 cases in the same month last year. Market participants believe that if the scope is expanded to include Gyeonggi Province, the figure is likely to be even higher.