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As Seoul’s jeonse market tightens, a “two-tier pricing” pattern is spreading, with large gaps in deposits even for the same complex and the same size unit. The split is most pronounced in high-priced complexes where home prices have surged and in complexes with a large share of public rental units that anchor cheaper jeonse deals.
According to the Transport Ministry’s real-transaction disclosure system, a new jeonse contract for an 84-square-meter unit in Eunpyeong New Town’s Gupabal 10 Complex (Building 1019, 4th floor) was signed on May 1 for 680 million won. A comparable 84-square-meter lease in the same for-sale section of the complex, signed last month using a tenant’s right to request a renewal, was 580 million won — a gap of about 100 million won.
The difference is sharper because the complex separates rental buildings from general-sale buildings. Of 100 jeonse transactions recorded in April for Buildings 1001 to 1028, only one new contract occurred in the general-sale buildings (1011 to 1019). In the rental buildings (1020 to 1028), 95 jeonse contracts were renewals, with 84-square-meter deposits around 25.117 million won, underscoring the internal split.
A similar pattern has appeared in complexes with high rental shares. In Gangdong-gu, a new jeonse contract for an 84-square-meter unit in Gangil River Park 10 Complex was signed in February for 640 million won, while renewal contracts last month remained around 385.87 million won. Of the complex’s 694 households, rentals account for 67.7% (470 households), including 377 long-term jeonse units. The rental supply effectively sets a low-end price floor, widening the gap with new contracts.
By district, the median deposit gap between new and renewed contracts in Gangdong-gu and Eunpyeong-gu was 100 million won each, well above the Seoul-wide gap of 55 million won. They ranked second in Seoul after Seocho-gu, which posted a 200 million won gap. The figures suggest the two-tier effect is intensifying in areas with expensive complexes or mixed public-rental developments.
Yang Ji-young, a specialist at Shinhan Premier Pathfinder, analyzed 74,407 apartment lease transactions in Seoul from Jan. 5 to April 30. Among 38,246 jeonse deals, the median deposit for new contracts (17,825 cases) was 585 million won, 55 million won higher than the median for renewals (19,166 cases), at 530 million won.
Gaps were also evident in key areas along the Han River where home prices rose sharply last year. Seocho-gu had the largest median difference at 200 million won, followed by Songpa-gu at 88 million won, Dongdaemun-gu at 75 million won, Seongbuk-gu at 60 million won, and Gangnam-gu and Seongdong-gu at about 50 million won each.
In Songpa-gu’s Helio City, a new jeonse contract for a 110-square-meter unit (Building 110, 24th floor) was signed on April 22 for 1.7 billion won. A unit of the same size on the 21st floor in the same building was renewed the same month for 1.33 billion won. With renewal increases capped at 5% by law, the gap between market-priced new leases and capped renewals widened to as much as 370 million won even under similar conditions.
Experts said volatility could increase as more tenants who have used up renewal rights are exposed to market prices. Yang warned, “From 2026 to 2027, when the first renewal cycle arrives for many newly built complexes, the market-price shock could begin in earnest.”
* This article has been translated by AI.
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