Banpo Acro River Park's 84㎡ unit hits record 6.3 billion won ($4.56 million)
Record highs also logged in Cheongdam, Apgujeong and Gaepo
Cash-rich buyers absorb regulatory shock
Home prices in Seoul's Gangnam area are stirring again despite the government's sweeping real estate regulations. Mortgage lending on homes priced above 2.5 billion won is capped at 200 million won, but buyers with deep pockets are absorbing the regulatory shock and driving prices to new records.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's actual transaction price disclosure system, an <style ref="s0">84-square-meter unit at Acro River Park in Banpo-dong, Seocho-gu sold for a record 6.3 billion won last month</style> — 300 million won above the previous high of 6 billion won recorded in April and 1 billion won above this year's low of 5.3 billion won, also set in April. Earlier, <style ref="s1">an 84-square-meter unit at Raemian One Bailey in Banpo-dong changed hands for 7.2 billion won in December, setting a record for a standard-sized unit</style>.
Record highs are also being set in Cheongdam, Apgujeong and Gaepo. A <style ref="s2">59-square-meter unit at Sinbanpo Xi in Jamwon-dong, Seocho-gu sold for a record 3.89 billion won on May 8</style> — the first transaction since February last year, when the same unit sold for 3.065 billion won, a gain of 825 million won.
<style ref="s0">An 84-square-meter unit at Acro River View Sinbanpo also sold for 6 billion won in April</style>, up 1.27 billion won from its previous transaction of 4.73 billion won in March 2025.
Elsewhere, an 84-square-meter unit at Cheongdam Le El in Cheongdam-dong, Gangnam-gu recently sold for 6.7 billion won, approaching 200 million won per pyeong (1 pyeong equals 3.3 square meters) based on total floor area. A 108-square-meter unit at Hyundai 13th Complex (Buildings 208–211) in Apgujeong-dong sold for a record 5.85 billion won last month — the first transaction since April 2024, when it fetched 4.15 billion won, a surge of 1.7 billion won. An 84-square-meter unit at Raemian Blestidge in Gaepo-dong also hit a record this month at 3.45 billion won.
<style ref="s0">Gangnam apartment prices had been under pressure for some time amid a string of government measures</style>. Under the Oct. 15 package announced last year, mortgage lending is capped at 500 million won for homes priced at 1.5 billion won or below, 400 million won for homes between 1.5 billion and 2.5 billion won, and 200 million won for homes above 2.5 billion won. <style ref="s1">Prices also pulled back in March and April as listings temporarily increased ahead of the May 9 expiration of the capital gains tax surcharge exemption for multi-home owners.</style>
Since the capital gains tax surcharge resumed, however, listings have dried up and asking prices have climbed, spurring a run of record transactions centered on Gangnam's prime neighborhoods. <style ref="s0">Korea Real Estate Board data for the week of May 11 — the second week after the surcharge resumed — showed Gangnam apartment prices rose 0.19 percent, reversing a 12-week losing streak.</style>
Buyers of high-end homes priced above 2.5 billion won have also been relatively insulated from lending restrictions, analysts say, given their strong cash-generating capacity.
Ham Young-jin, head of Woori Bank's Real Estate Research Lab, said Gangnam homeowners had long been targets of government regulation and had decided early on whether to sell, gift or hold their properties. "Current buyers are predominantly end-users with strong cash flow who want to own a single, prime property," he said.
He added that prices are rising in established Gangnam neighborhoods on reconstruction expectations, while new developments command a premium due to scarce supply. "These assets are seen as the last ones owners would ever let go of, which gives them strong price resilience," he added.
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