Apartment 'jeonse' deals in Seoul hit 9-year low in July

SEOUL, Aug. 3 (Yonhap) -- Apartment lease contracts in the South Korean capital of Seoul sank to a nine-year low in July amid tighter rules, municipal data showed Monday.

The number of apartment lease contracts, called "jeonse" here, stood at 6,304 in July, the lowest monthly level since data tracking began in 2011, according to the data from the Seoul city government.

The July reading amounted to 46 percent of this year's monthly high of 13,661 recorded in February.

Jeonse is a home rental arrangement unique to South Korea, in which tenants pay a large sum of money as a deposit instead of paying monthly fees.

The number of apartment jeonse and monthly lease contrasts in Seoul also sank to 8,344 last month from 19,232 in February.

Gyeonggi Province surrounding the capital also saw the number of apartment jeonse and monthly lease deals more than halve from February to 12,325 in July.

The tumble in Seoul's apartment jeonse contracts came as the National Assembly passed two far-reaching real estate bills in late July, which are aimed at enhancing tenants' rights amid skyrocketing home prices.

Soaring property prices have fanned public discontent with the Moon Jae-in government despite its desperate efforts to make homes more affordable, especially in the capital Seoul.

In its latest action to cool the white-hot property market, the government also announced a set of measures to restrict jeonse contracts for certain types of apartments on July 10.

In contrast to the sagging leasing market, apartment transactions in Seoul soared to 15,589 cases in June, the third-largest monthly tally, according to the data.
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