Aju Economy Reporter Kwon Kyung-ryeol = Land prices nationwide have been rising for 41 consecutive months since November 2010. Transaction volume has also increased slightly. 

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 14th, land prices nationwide rose by 0.2% in March compared to the previous month. In particular, Seoul has been rising for 7 consecutive months since September of last year, and all 25 autonomous districts have risen.

The area with the highest increase rate nationwide was Gangnam-gu, Seoul, which rose by 0.51% compared to the previous month. As commercial real estate in Sinsa-dong, Yeoksam-dong, and Cheongdam-dong showed an upward trend, the price of the land on which the buildings were located also rose.

Shin Hee-sung, CEO of Remax Korea, said, "In the case of commercial and office buildings in Gangnam, the vacancy rate has increased somewhat due to the relocation of IT companies to Pangyo, but it is still an area that is in the spotlight as an investment destination."

Local real estate agencies say that among the wealthy, there is a high preference for buildings worth 5 to 10 billion won, and among REITs and real estate funds, prime offices with a floor space of over 10,000 m2 and worth over 200 billion won are in the spotlight.

The next place where land prices rose the most after Gangnam-gu was Sejong City, which rose by 0.51%. As the development project of the administrative complex city progressed smoothly, the prices of pure land and land attached to buildings rose significantly.

Naju-si, Jeollanam-do, where the Gwangju-Jeonnam Innovation City development project is nearing its final stages, also followed with a rise of 0.469% compared to the previous month.

In particular, the Gwangju-Jeonnam Innovation City has reached a construction rate of 95% and the real estate market is showing an upward trend as apartments are starting to be occupied.

Jeju Island also continued its strength by rising by 0.32%. This is because new income-generating real estate, such as condominium hotels, are being built one after another, and foreigners such as Chinese are continuing to buy due to the investment immigration system.

Accordingly, the transaction volume is also increasing. The nationwide land transaction volume in March was 227,128 lots, an increase of 25.6% from the same month last year (187,63 lots). The transaction volume of pure land, excluding transactions of land attached to buildings, also increased by 7.6% over the same period to 88,055 lots.

However, some point out that the continuous rise in land prices since 2010 is largely due to the impact of the publicly announced land price.

Professor Jeon Jong-cheol of Konkuk University's Real Estate Academy said, "As the standard land price has been criticized for being excessively low compared to the market price, land prices have naturally risen as this has become a reality," adding, "The actual market has been showing an overall recovery trend since the second half of last year."

Original link: http://www.ajunews.com/view/20140514152202963