An apartment complex covered in snowfall (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Dec. 5 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s household wealth gap widened last year, driven largely by sharp gains in real estate values, according to a nationwide financial welfare survey released on Thursday by the Bank of Korea, the National Data Policy Office, and the Financial Supervisory Service.
As of March 2025, the average household’s net assets stood at 471.4 million won (about $350,000), a 5 percent increase from a year earlier. Total assets rose nearly 4.9 percent to 566.8 million won, buoyed by property gains that outpaced the rise in household debt, which increased 4.4 percent.
Net-asset inequality climbed to its highest level since statistics began in 2012. The top 20 percent of households held net assets roughly 45 times larger than those of the bottom 20 percent — up from a 42-to-1 gap the previous year. The net-asset Gini coefficient rose to 0.625, signaling deepening disparities.
A view of a high-rise apartment building (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
Property Gains Drive Wealth Growth — and Divergence
Physical assets, mainly real estate, accounted for 75.8 percent of total household wealth and rose 5.8 percent year-on-year. Nonresidential real estate posted the fastest growth, up 7.5 percent.
The wealthiest households — those aged 50 and older and self-employed families — remained the most property-heavy, with average assets exceeding 600 million won. Meanwhile, households headed by people under 40 had average assets of 314.9 million won.
Regional divides also sharpened. Seoul’s average household assets climbed above 836 million won, 48 percent higher than the national average and reversing last year’s brief overtaking by Sejong. Jeonnam ranked lowest, at 367 million won.
Despite growing property values, nearly half of respondents (46.7 percent) expect no major change in home prices next year, while 17.5 percent anticipate increases.
A view of an apartment complex in Seoul surrounded by forest (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
Debt Growth Concentrated Among Middle- and High-Income Households
Average household debt rose to 95.3 million won as of March, fueled largely by a 10 percent jump in rental deposit loans — the fastest pace on record. Mortgage debt also increased 5.5 percent, while unsecured credit loans declined nearly 12 percent amid higher borrowing costs.
Debt loads varied widely. The lowest two income groups saw their average debt decline, while middle- and upper-income households posted increases of up to 9.9 percent. Households headed by people in their 40s carried the highest debt burden, averaging 143.3 million won.
Households with financial debt reported that 64.3 percent felt burdened by debt repayment, though this figure fell slightly from a year earlier. The share of households fearing they would be unable to repay debt dropped to 3.8 percent.
Apartments seen from Namsan in Seoul (Yonhap)
Savings Preferences and Investment Behavior
More than half of households (56.3 percent) preferred to channel surplus money into savings or financial investments, while one in five favored real estate purchases. Deposits remained the overwhelming favorite financial investment vehicle (87.3 percent), far outpacing stocks (9.6 percent).
The ratio of financial debt to savings edged down to 68.2 percent, while the overall debt-to-asset ratio fell slightly to 16.8 percent.
The findings reflect a post-pandemic economy marked by rising property prices, an aging population holding disproportionate real estate wealth, and households adapting to higher borrowing costs — all contributing to a widening wealth divide across regions and income groups.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
