The Kospi and Kosdaq indexes are displayed on a board at Hana Bank's dealing room in Jung-gu, Seoul, on June 12. [Yonhap]
The Kospi and Kosdaq indexes are displayed on a board at Hana Bank's dealing room in Jung-gu, Seoul, on June 12. [Yonhap]

Some 3.7 trillion won ($2.42 billion) raised through stock and bond sales has flowed into the housing market so far this year, with roughly two-thirds going toward home purchases in Seoul, new data show. The figures run counter to expectations that a more active stock market would absorb capital away from real estate — instead, equity gains appear to be feeding directly into property buying.

The data come from funding-plan declarations compiled by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and obtained by Rep. Kim Jong-yang of the People Power Party, a member of the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee. From January through April, stock and bond sale proceeds totaling 3.7255 trillion won were used to purchase homes.

Of that amount, 65.5 percent — or 2.4396 trillion won — went toward properties in Seoul. Gangnam-gu led all districts with 370.69 billion won, followed by Songpa-gu at 353.15 billion won and Seocho-gu at 290.38 billion won, making the three Gangnam-area districts the top destinations for the funds.

The share going toward high-end homes priced at 1.5 billion won or more has also surged. That segment held steady at around 4 percent of stock and bond sale proceeds used for home purchases throughout the five years from 2021 to 2025. This year, however, the figure nearly doubled to around 9 percent in the first quarter before climbing further to 13.2 percent in April.

By age group, buyers in their 30s accounted for the largest share, deploying 1.2592 trillion won in stock and bond proceeds toward home purchases from January through April. Those in their 40s followed at 1.1087 trillion won, then those in their 50s at 802.21 billion won, those 60 and older at 489.32 billion won, those in their 20s at 65.94 billion won, and buyers under 20 at 108 million won.

Analysts say the trend reflects investors cashing in on gains from the recent Kospi rally and redirecting the proceeds into the premium housing market.

"President Lee Jae-myung has called for a more vibrant stock market as an alternative investment channel to ease the concentration of money in real estate, but the reality is that people are selling stocks to buy homes," Rep. Kim said. "The government must take seriously the movement of capital from financial markets into real estate and reconsider the direction of its housing policy."


paq@heraldcorp.com