A notice seeking jeonse listings posted at a real estate agency in Songpa-gu, Seoul, last month. [Yonhap]
A notice seeking jeonse listings posted at a real estate agency in Songpa-gu, Seoul, last month. [Yonhap]

As jeonse prices across the Greater Seoul area continue to rise, the deposit gap between new contracts and renewals within the same apartment complex has been widening. The share of renewal contracts in Seoul has also climbed, surpassing new contracts for the first time.

Real estate platform Zigbang analyzed apartment jeonse transactions in the metropolitan area from January through June and found that the deposit difference between new and renewal contracts for 59-square-meter units (exclusive use area) in Seoul more than doubled — from 35 million won ($22,500) in January to 77.5 million won in June. The analysis covered cases where both new and renewal contracts were concluded within the same complex and unit size, with deposit figures compared using the median transaction value for each complex and size category.

For 59-square-meter units in Seoul, the new-contract deposit rose from 500 million won in January to 547.5 million won in June, while renewal deposits edged up only modestly over the same period — from 465 million won to 470 million won.

The gap was even wider for 84-square-meter units. The difference between new and renewal deposits expanded from 43.75 million won in January to 80 million won in June. New-contract deposits climbed from 656.25 million won to 700 million won, while renewal deposits rose only marginally — from 612.5 million won to around 620 million won — making the divergence in appreciation between the two contract types increasingly pronounced.

"New contracts quickly reflect current market prices, while renewals are still anchored to the terms of the previous agreement," said Kim Eun-seon, head of Zigbang's big data lab. "That is why the deposit gap between new and renewal contracts is widening even within the same complex and unit size."

Gyeonggi Province also showed growing pressure on new-contract tenants. For 59-square-meter units, the deposit gap between new and renewal contracts edged up from 20 million won in January to 22 million won in June. For 84-square-meter units, the gap widened sharply over the same period — from 10.5 million won to 51 million won. New-contract deposits rose from 400 million won to 450 million won, while renewal deposits climbed only from 389.5 million won to around 399 million won, further stretching the divide.

In Incheon, new contracts also commanded higher deposits than renewals, but the gap widened far less than in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province. As of June, the deposit difference stood at 9.5 million won for 59-square-meter units and 7.12 million won for 84-square-meter units — the smallest margins in the metropolitan area.

Transaction data confirmed a gradual shift toward renewals. In Seoul, the share of new contracts fell from 52.6 percent in January to 45.0 percent in June, while the renewal share rose from 47.4 percent to 55.0 percent, overtaking new contracts from April onward. Gyeonggi Province saw a similar trend, with the renewal share rising from 38.6 percent to 45.4 percent over the same period.

"The deposit burden for new contracts has grown amid a shortage of jeonse listings and rising prices, and tenants are increasingly factoring in moving costs and brokerage fees when deciding to renew," Kim said. "With the renewal share consistently rising in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province, the widening deposit gap between new and renewal contracts — and the preference for renewals — looks set to continue for now as long as jeonse prices remain strong."


hwshin@heraldcorp.com