People looking at a miniature of Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co.’s The H apartment buildings at a show house in Seoul. (image: Hyundai Engineering & Construction)
SEOUL, Feb. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — In the wake of the spread of the novel coronavirus infection, also known as Wuhan pneumonia, events that attract massive crowds are being cancelled.
Meanwhile, the construction industry is having to deal with a difference in opinions between those in the Seoul metropolitan area and provincial areas over the opening of model homes.
Out of five sites, two in the Seoul metropolitan area will see model houses be replaced by cyber model homes that offer prospective buyers the opportunity to experience the new dwellings online.
Because complexes in the Seoul metropolitan area are very popular, construction companies believe that there is no problem attracting prospective buyers without opening a model home.
In addition, the social atmosphere of refraining from holdings events that attract many people to prevent the spread of the virus also served as a backdrop to replace model homes with more accessible online versions.
However, new construction projects in rural areas face a different set of circumstances. The market is not as hot as in the Seoul metropolitan area, so model homes play a crucial role in attracting interest among prospective buyers.
“Although it is good for construction companies to open real-life model homes, we decided that cyber model houses are more reasonable given the current social environment,” a construction company official said.
In fact, apartment complexes being built in Geumsan County in South Chungcheong Province, Yangju in Gyeonggi Province and Seogwipo on Jeju Island are preparing to open model homes Friday as scheduled.
D. M. Park (dmpark@koreabizwire.com)
