‘Tower Palace’ in Daechi-dong, Gangnam-gu, ‘Galleria Foret’ and ‘Acro Seoul Forest’ in Seoul Forest, Seongbuk-gu, and ‘L City’ in Haeundae, Busan are landmarks that symbolize the region. These high-rise complexes are symbolic and rare, showing a large increase in market price relative to the sale price, and have proven strong defense even during economic downturns.
In fact, the 69-story Tower Palace, which became the first high-rise residential-commercial complex in Korea, was sold for 7.9 billion won (79.69 million won per 3.3 square meters) in September of last year with 244 square meters (primary unit), even though about 20 years had passed. This is a surprising amount considering the sale price, which was in the range of 9.9 to 14 million won per 3.3 m2 at the time of sale.
Galleria Foret (45th floor) and Ac Seoul Forest (49th floor), residential and commercial complexes near Seoul Forest, are also high-rise complexes that are not missing from the list of expensive apartments in Seoul.
At the time of sale in March 2008, Galleria Foret had a sale price of 3.6 to 4.1 billion won for an exclusive 218㎡ unit, and Acro Seoul Forest was also criticized for its high sale price exceeding 3 billion won when it was sold in August 2017, but the current market price is around 10 billion won. It’s being recorded.
According to the actual transaction price of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the 198㎡ (sale price 3.77 billion won) 35th floor exclusively for Acro Seoul Forest was traded for 14.5 billion won last July. 218㎡ (sale price 3.04 billion won) exclusively for Galleria Foredo, which has entered its 13th year of completion, was traded for 10 billion won (43rd floor, February transaction).
The highest apartment building in Korea is in Busan, not Seoul. ‘L City The Sharp’, located in Jung-dong, Haeundae-gu, has a total of three buildings, including a landmark tower with a hotel, water park, and residential accommodations, and two apartment buildings. The apartment is on the 85th floor, 339m high, and has an exclusive area of 144~244㎡. When it was sold in 2015, it was controversial because of its selling price of 27.3 million won per 3.3㎡, the highest ever in Busan.
Last August, an exclusive 186㎡ unit was traded at a reported price of 4.9 billion won, and it has now become a landmark complex representing Busan.
Among the high-rise complexes currently on sale in Seoul and the metropolitan area, complexes worth considering include ‘The Sharp First World Seoul’ in Sangbong-dong and ‘The Platinum Sky Heron’ in Pyeongtaek.
‘The Sharp First World Seoul’, located on the site of the former Sangbong Terminal in Jungnang-gu, northeastern Seoul, is a complex with various infrastructure including apartments, officetels, commercial facilities, and cultural and assembly facilities.
It has 49 floors, the highest among apartment complexes in Jungnang-gu, and has a wide range of options from small to medium to large. It has a dense metropolitan transportation network, including Line 7, Gyeongui-Jungang Line, Gyeongchun Line, KTX, and the GTX-B line scheduled for the future. It is also equipped with commercial facilities such as Costco, Homeplus, and Enter6, as well as infrastructure such as Seoul Northern Hospital and CGV.
‘The Platinum Sky Heron’ will be built in Pyeongtaek. This complex has 49 floors, the tallest in the southern part of the metropolitan area, and consists of 784 apartments with an exclusive area of 84㎡ to 134㎡ (including pent-type apartments) and 50 officetels with an exclusive area of 113 to 118㎡.
For the first time in Pyeongtaek, a hotel-level concierge system including secretarial service, home meal delivery service, and door-to-door car wash service was introduced to increase residential convenience. In partnership with Jongno M School, which has confirmed its opening in the complex, residents will also receive free education for one year and a 50% discount for an additional year.
You can enjoy a premium area near Pyeongtaek Station, and the bus stop right in front of the complex has a transportation environment with over 40 city bus routes connected to it. With the extension of the GTX-A and GTX-C routes, it is possible to travel to Gangnam, Seoul in about 30 minutes, and with the opening of the KTX from Suwon in 2025, transportation infrastructure is being rapidly expanded around Pyeongtaek Station and Pyeongtaek Jije Station.
An industry insider predicted, “The reason high-rise landmarks are popular is because they are easily visible and equipped with convenient amenities for residents.” He added, “In particular, new high-rise complexes are likely to become landmarks in the region.”