Apartment prices differ widely between Seoul's districts. If you are a foreign resident thinking about buying, a permit rule can also decide whether you can sign at all.
These figures come from Seoulstart's monthly processing of government sale reports. They are medians of reported contracts, not asking prices, and they cover apartments only.
Apartment prices by district
The table below ranks all 25 districts (gu, 구) by the median apartment sale price for August 2026. It updates when Seoulstart loads each new month of data.
| Area | Median sale price | Typical size | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gangnam-gu | ₩2.88b | 84.3 m² | 89 |
| Seocho-gu | ₩2.1b | 84.5 m² | 84 |
| Songpa-gu | ₩1.94b | 84.4 m² | 171 |
| Yongsan-gu | ₩1.87b | 84.8 m² | 43 |
| Seongdong-gu | ₩1.73b | 84.6 m² | 54 |
| Jung-gu | ₩1.55b | 84.8 m² | 29 |
| Dongjak-gu | ₩1.53b | 84.5 m² | 121 |
| Mapo-gu | ₩1.5b | 84.1 m² | 113 |
| Gwangjin-gu | ₩1.4b | 74.9 m² | 45 |
| Gangdong-gu | ₩1.34b | 83.1 m² | 164 |
| Yeongdeungpo-gu | ₩1.28b | 73.9 m² | 140 |
| Jongno-gu | ₩1.19b | 84.9 m² | 23 |
| Yangcheon-gu | ₩1.09b | 70.7 m² | 123 |
| Dongdaemun-gu | ₩1.05b | 84.6 m² | 135 |
| Seodaemun-gu | ₩1.01b | 75.2 m² | 123 |
| Seongbuk-gu | ₩940m | 79.6 m² | 178 |
| Eunpyeong-gu | ₩855m | 74.9 m² | 211 |
| Gangseo-gu | ₩840m | 60 m² | 260 |
| Gwanak-gu | ₩779m | 77.7 m² | 115 |
| Guro-gu | ₩710m | 71.1 m² | 205 |
| Gangbuk-gu | ₩700m | 83.7 m² | 75 |
| Nowon-gu | ₩670m | 59.4 m² | 524 |
| Jungnang-gu | ₩620m | 59.4 m² | 193 |
| Geumcheon-gu | ₩593m | 79.7 m² | 106 |
| Dobong-gu | ₩545m | 72.6 m² | 216 |
Medians of contracts reported in August 2026. Source: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport real transaction records (국토교통부 실거래가), processed by Seoulstart. Updated monthly.
A median is the middle sale: half of the reported sales in that district cost more and half cost less. It mixes old and new complexes, small and large homes, and low and high floors. So it tells you the level of a district, not the price of a particular home.
Each district has its own page on Seoulstart Housing. It shows rent and the sale median for that district, for example Gangnam-gu, Seocho-gu, Mapo-gu, and Dobong-gu. The page for the whole city is Seoul. If you want to choose an area by lifestyle before you look at prices, read the guide to where to live in Seoul.
Seoul compared with other cities
Here is Seoul next to Busan, Incheon, Daegu, and the national figure.
| Area | Median sale price | Typical size | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seoul | ₩873.5m | 72.3 m² | 3,540 |
| Busan | ₩361m | 79.9 m² | 2,180 |
| Incheon | ₩385m | 75 m² | 2,085 |
| Daegu | ₩338m | 84.7 m² | 1,409 |
| Korea | ₩370m | 76.8 m² | 33,559 |
Medians of contracts reported in August 2026. Source: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport real transaction records (국토교통부 실거래가), processed by Seoulstart. Updated monthly.
The same caution applies. These are apartment sales only, and a national median includes many small cities where homes cost far less than in any Seoul district.
What drives the spread between districts
The data shows how wide the spread is, not why. These factors change what a single sale costs:
- Age of the complex. A new building and a decades-old one in the same district sell at different prices.
- Size. A larger home costs more than a smaller one in the same complex.
- Floor and view. Floor and position inside a complex change the price of one home against another.
- Permit rules. In a permit zone, a buyer the zone covers needs approval first, and some must also live in the home. That can change who is able to buy.
To see the size of the homes behind a district's median, open its page on Seoulstart Housing. For a single complex, use the price explorer described in the last section.
Foreign buyer rules in 2026
Two permit zones cover all of Seoul for home buyers. Gangnam-gu, Seocho-gu, Songpa-gu, and Yongsan-gu also have their own older apartment zone. Both use the same system, the land transaction permit (토지거래허가).
Zone 1: the foreigner permit zone. MOLIT first set this zone on August 26, 2025, for one year. On August 20, 2026, it re-designated the zone in Notice No. 2026-1105. The zone now runs from August 26, 2026 to August 25, 2027. It covers all 25 Seoul districts, plus 23 Gyeonggi cities and counties and parts of Incheon. A permit is needed for detached houses, multi-unit houses, apartments, row houses, and multi-household houses. The permit applies when the land that comes with the home is over 6 m² in a residential area.
Zone 2: the Seoul-wide apartment zone for all buyers. MOLIT Notice No. 2025-1219 covers apartments in all 25 Seoul districts, for Korean and foreign buyers alike. The notice sets the period from October 20, 2025 to December 31, 2026. The Seoul Land Portal listed this zone as in force on October 17, 2026. Check the portal again before you sign, because the zone list can change.
If you sign a contract before a zone takes effect, you do not need a permit for that contract and you have no move-in duty.
How the permit works
- Get the permit before you sign. You and the seller apply together to the district head. The application includes a funding plan that shows where the purchase money comes from.
- Live in the home. A permit for your own residence comes with a 2-year duty to use the home that way, counted from acquisition.
- Fines if you break that duty. The district head can order you to comply, then charge a fine of up to 10% of the acquisition price, repeated once a year until you fix it. The decree sets 10% for a home left unused, 7% for a home rented out instead of lived in, 5% for a change of purpose without approval, and 7% for any other breach.
- Penalty for signing without a permit. The Seoul Land Portal says up to 2 years in prison, or a fine of up to 30% of the land price at signing.
Reporting the purchase
You must also report the real price of a purchase to the district office. The funding and move-in plan (자금조달·입주계획서) goes in with the report. You alone sign it, and you attach proof of where the money came from. If the money came from abroad, you also need foreign exchange proof, such as a foreign exchange declaration certificate.
A purchase is reported within 30 days of signing the contract. If a licensed agent (공인중개사) drew up the contract, the agent files the report. Ask the agent to confirm in writing that it was filed. The step-by-step process, including registration and the bank declaration for money from abroad, is in the guide to buying property in Korea. For loans, read the Korea mortgage guide.
Costs on top of the price
Acquisition tax
You pay acquisition tax (취득세) when you acquire the home. For a home bought by purchase, the Local Tax Act sets these base rates:
| Price of the home | Rate |
|---|---|
| ₩600 million or less | 1% |
| Over ₩600 million, up to ₩900 million | A sliding rate between 1% and 3% |
| Over ₩900 million | 3% |
You file and pay within 60 days of the acquisition date. A local education tax (지방교육세) also applies to a home purchase. If a company buys, or your household already owns other homes, the rates can be higher than the table. Ask a tax professional before you sign.
Brokerage fee
The agent's fee (중개보수) for a sale has a national ceiling set by the price. The Seoul ordinance sets rates within it. You and the agent agree the fee, up to the ceiling, and each side pays its own agent.
| Sale price | Ceiling rate | Cap |
|---|---|---|
| Under ₩50 million | 0.6% | ₩250,000 |
| ₩50 million to under ₩200 million | 0.5% | ₩800,000 |
| ₩200 million to under ₩900 million | 0.4% | none in the table |
| ₩900 million to under ₩1.2 billion | 0.5% | none in the table |
| ₩1.2 billion to under ₩1.5 billion | 0.6% | none in the table |
| ₩1.5 billion and over | 0.7% | none in the table |
A small percentage of a large price is still a large amount. Ask the agent for the exact fee in writing before you sign.
Rent or buy?
Buying means a large price, the taxes and fees above, and then yearly holding taxes. Renting in Korea runs on a deposit system that works differently from rent in most countries. Here are Seoul rent medians by home type:
| Home type | Monthly rent | Deposit | Jeonse deposit | Typical size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apartment | ₩1,000,000 | ₩100m | ₩630m | 58.1 m² |
| Officetel | ₩700,000 | ₩10m | ₩230m | 23.1 m² |
| Villa or row house | ₩550,000 | ₩40m | ₩230m | 30 m² |
Medians of contracts reported in August 2026. Rent figures are for new leases, the price someone moving in signs; where fewer than 10 new leases were reported, all leases are used. Source: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport real transaction records (국토교통부 실거래가), processed by Seoulstart. Updated monthly.
Two taxes matter for owners. Property tax (재산세) is a yearly local tax on the home. The comprehensive real estate holding tax (종합부동산세) applies to total assessed value above a deduction of ₩1.2 billion for a qualifying one-home household and ₩900 million for other individual owners (a company gets no deduction). The Korea property and car tax guide covers both.
To compare the two paths with your own numbers, start with the jeonse vs wolse tool and read how jeonse works. For current rents in the city, see Seoul rent on Seoulstart Housing. If you are comparing districts by rent first, the guide to average rent in Seoul covers that.
This guide gives information, not advice on whether to buy.
How to check the price of a specific complex
A district median does not tell you what one apartment is worth. Use three checks:
- Look up real sales. The MOLIT Real Transaction Price Disclosure System (실거래가 공개시스템) at rt.molit.go.kr shows reported contract prices. It has separate tabs for apartments, row and multi-household homes, detached homes, officetels, land, and other property types.
- Use Seoulstart's explorer. The sale view of the price explorer shows price trends and a complex's reported sales, month by month. The contracts view lists the individual reported contracts.
- Check the public price. The government sets a public price (공동주택 공시가격) for each apartment. The reference date is January 1, and the price is published by April 30 each year. Homes that are new or changed between January 1 and May 31 get a June 1 reference date and a September 30 publication. You can look it up on the Real Estate Public Price Notification site (부동산공시가격알리미, realtyprice.kr).
Compare the agent's asking price with the last reported sales of the same complex and home size. Reported sales can trail the market, because a contract appears in the data only after it is reported.