The average price of apartments in Seoul surpassed 600 million won ($536,400) for the first time in March led by uptrend in redevelopment sites, nearly doubling the nationwide value, according to KB Kookmin Bank on Tuesday.

The bank said in its housing price statistics report that the median price of apartments in Seoul came to 600.17 million won in March, up 1.56 million won from the previous month’s 598.61 million won. It is the first time that the median apartment price in Seoul has topped 600 million won since KB Kookmin Bank started compiling related data in December 2008.

The median price of apartments in Seoul remained in the lower and mid-500 million won range in between 2008 and 2010 and dropped under the 500 threshold in 2013. Apartment prices picked up after the South Korean government eased various property-related regulations in August 2014 to stimulate the real estate market.

Prices recovered the 500 million won level in May 2015 before topping 600 million won in 22 months last month.

The price surge was mainly led by apartments in the city’s southern area on hopes for redevelopment. The average price of apartments in the 11 districts located on the south of Han River was 723.43 million won as of end of March, up 0.6 percent from 719.12 million won in the end of December. The average apartment price of apartments in the 14 districts on the north of Han River also rose 0.55 percent from 452.92 million won to 455.39 million won over the same period.

Across the nation, apartment price averaged 319.49 million won. The median housing price in six major cities outside Seoul was 200 million won.

By Yong Hwan-jin

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]