Myeongdong Street in central Seoul bustles with people during lunch time in this photo taken on Oct. 13, 2021. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Nov. 17 (Korea Bizwire) — With home and jeonse rent prices skyrocketing and the scarcity of new homes on offer deepening in the South Korean capital of Seoul, the number of residents leaving the city has been accelerating for several years in a row.
The number of residents who moved from Seoul to other regions over the past six years totaled 3,414,397, according to the analysis of data from the Korean Statistical Information Service (KOSIS) by a real estate research firm RealToday.
On average, as many as 569,066 residents left the city per year during the period. In the January to September period of this year, the number of such residents totaled 434,209.
In particular, the share of those in their 20s and 30s among those who left the city during the past six years accounted for 46 percent of the total.
“As apartment sales and jeonse prices have jumped sharply over the past several years, it has become difficult for ordinary salary workers to purchase a home in Seoul with their wages alone,” RealToday said.
In contrast, the number of people living in the greater Seoul area has been increasing at a rapid pace year after year.
The population growth of the city of Hanam, Gyeonggi Province increased by 92.8 percent last year compared to the 2015 figure.
During the same period, the population growth of Hwaseong, Gimpo, and Shiheung rose by 55.5 percent, 45 percent and 33.8 percent, respectively.
J. S. Shin (js_shin@koreabizwire.com)
