Housing Pension Payments Rise 20% in Seoul but Decline in Sejong City, Daegu and Elsewhere... "Home-Price Gaps Becoming Retirement-Income Gaps"

[Financial News] As home prices have risen sharply, particularly in Seoul, the gap in housing pension payments between Seoul and areas outside the capital region has also widened. Seoul's average monthly housing pension payment increased by 20%, while payments declined in Sejong City, Daegu, North Chungcheong Province and Busan. Calls are growing for improvements to the system, as differences in home prices are translating into gaps in retirement income.
On the 23rd, data submitted by the Korea Housing Finance Corporation (HF) to Kim Jae-seop, a People Power Party lawmaker on the National Assembly's Political Affairs Committee, showed that the nationwide average monthly housing pension payment rose 2.4%, from 1.515 million won in 2021 to 1.552 million won in July 2026.
As home-price growth varied by region, so did the growth rates of average monthly housing pension payments. In Seoul, the payment rose 20.2% over the same period, from 2.017 million won to 2.425 million won. Gyeonggi Province and Incheon posted increases of 4.1% and 9.9%, respectively.
Some regions saw their payments decline instead. In Sejong City, the average monthly payment fell 16.5%, from 1.716 million won to 1.437 million won. Payments declined by 6.2% in Daegu, 5.7% in North Chungcheong Province and 3.2% in Busan. Of the nation's 17 major cities and provinces, payments increased in 13 regions but decreased in four.
Differences also emerged among Seoul's autonomous districts. In Gangnam-gu, where home prices are high, the average monthly payment rose 35.2%, from 2.23 million won in 2021 to 3.016 million won this year. Seocho District saw a 30.5% increase, from 2.351 million won to 3.069 million won. By contrast, payments rose 12.3% in Nowon District, from 1.863 million won to 2.093 million won, and 11.9% in Dobong District, from 1.696 million won to 1.898 million won. Even as Seoul's overall average monthly payment increased, the extent of the increase varied by district depending on home prices and the characteristics of pension subscribers.
Kim Jae-seop said, "If differences in home-price growth rates between regions accumulate, they can lead to disparities in the collateral value and monthly payments when people join the housing pension program, further widening retirement-income gaps based on where people live. We need to develop measures to improve the system, including strengthening income support for older people who own low-priced homes, so that regional differences in home prices do not become entrenched as retirement-income gaps."

[email protected] Lee Hae-ram Reporter