The average sales price of apartments in Seoul has surpassed the 600 million won ($537,000) mark for the first time, data showed Tuesday, due to reconstruction projects in the affluent Gangnam Ward in the southern part of the capital city.
The average sales price of apartments came to 600.17 million won as of Tuesday, up 1.56 million won from a month earlier, according to data compiled by KB Kookmin Bank, a flagship unit of South Korea's leading banking giant KB Financial Group Inc.
The bank said the latest tally is the highest reached since it began compiling related data in December 2008.
A typical house for South Koreans is an 82 to 109 square meter apartment.
The price hike is driven by large-scale projects to tear down old apartment buildings in Gangnam Ward and build new ones.
The average sales price of apartments in Gangnam Ward stood at 723 million won at the end of March, up 4.31 million won from the end of last year.
In comparison, the average sales price of apartments across the country came to 319 million won.
Kim Kyu-jung, an analyst at NH Investment & Securities Co., said the sales price of apartments in Seoul could go up due to the Gangnam reconstruction projects and limited supply of apartments. (Yonahp)
