[On-the-ground report] “Samsung employees are flocking to 85-sq.-m. apartments” ... Samsung bonus fervor spreads to Yeongtong

[Financial News]“Inquiries from Samsung Electronics employees looking for apartments with exclusive areas of 85 square meters or less have increased noticeably.” (A certified real estate agent in Dongtan)Inquiries from prospective buyers are continuing in southern Gyeonggi Province’s real estate market as Samsung Electronics’ plan to pay special performance bonuses to its semiconductor division takes shape. Interest is centering on apartments near Samsung Electronics workplaces, with the expansion of low-interest employee loans adding to expectations of bonuses worth several hundred million won.
On the 9th, real estate agents across Dongtan were busy receiving clients. They agreed that inquiries about home purchases had increased since the Chuseok holiday, coinciding with the launch of Samsung Electronics’ employee loan program. Interest was particularly concentrated on complexes close to Samsung Electronics workplaces and well served by transport and everyday amenities, including the pilot district in Dongtan 2 New Town and the area around the Metropolitan Business Complex. An A real estate agent added, “There is also demand from people looking to trade up within Dongtan.”
Local real estate agents say that buying interest in Dongtan had cooled after the area was designated a land transaction permit zone in July, but inquiries have begun to rise again since employee loans—relatively unaffected by government lending restrictions—were introduced in September.
On September 1, Samsung Electronics launched a housing stability support program for employees without homes, offering loans of up to 500 million won at an annual interest rate of 1.5% to buy a home. In the capital region and metropolitan cities, eligible homes must have an exclusive area of 85 square meters or less and a sale price of no more than 2.5 billion won.
Expectations of special performance bonuses worth several hundred million won have added to the interest. Samsung Electronics’ Device Solutions Division (DS Division) notified employees of the details of its special semiconductor performance bonus plan on the 7th. The Samsung Group Enterprise Labor Union Samsung Electronics Branch estimates that bonuses for an employee with an annual salary in the low 80 million won range would be about 750 million won for the Memory Business Division, 530 million won for common organizations, and 240 million won for the System LSI and Foundry divisions. One Samsung Electronics employee said, “A lot of people seem to think that even if they take out a loan, they can pay it off by living there and working flat out for about three to four years.”
Dongtan apartment prices have risen steeply this year as Samsung Electronics employees continue to show interest in buying. According to the weekly apartment market trends published by KB Real Estate of KB Kookmin Bank, apartment sale prices in Dongtan-gu, Hwaseong City, rose 0.76% from the previous week in the first week of October, based on a survey conducted on the 5th.
Transaction volumes have fallen since the area was designated a land transaction permit zone, but some complexes continue to see record-high sales. According to actual transaction price data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, a 72.35-square-meter unit at Dongtan Station Central Sangnok Apartment in Yeongcheon-dong, Hwaseong City, sold for 1.315 billion won on the 18th of last month, setting a new record. That was 35 million won higher than the 1.28 billion won paid for a unit of the same size on June 30, about three months earlier.
However, the market’s heat has not spread evenly across Dongtan. Inquiries are concentrated on popular complexes near Dongtan Station and the lake park, while some areas remain subdued. The limited number of homes available for owner-occupancy, along with asking prices that have risen sharply in a short time, is also weighing on buyers.
Buying interest in Dongtan appears to have spread recently to Yeongtong in Suwon. Both areas share the advantages of being close to Samsung Electronics workplaces and having access to low-interest employee loans, but real estate agents say some buyers are turning their attention to Yeongtong because home prices in Dongtan have already risen substantially.
According to KB Real Estate’s monthly housing price trends, apartment sale prices in Yeongtong-gu rose 4.3% in September from the previous month, the highest increase in Gyeonggi Province. That was about 1.5 times Suwon City’s overall increase of 2.84% over the same period. The average apartment sale price in Yeongtong-gu also rose from 763 million won early this year to 892 million won as of the 28th of last month.
A B real estate agent in Dongtan said, “Dongtan can be described as being in a lull at the moment, while prices in Yeongtong have been rising steeply recently,” adding, “People in the field are even saying Yeongtong is hotter than Dongtan.”
[email protected] Choi A-young Reporter