Analysis has emerged that the A-grade office market in Seoul is maintaining a solid growth trend along with robust demand in the first quarter of this year.
On the 24th, global real estate services corporation Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) Korea stated in its '2025 Q1 trends of Seoul A-grade office market' report that the overall vacancy rate recorded a decrease of 55 basis points to 2.8% compared to the previous quarter, and the net absorption area has switched to a positive figure of 10,686 pyeong. Net absorption area refers to the figure obtained by subtracting the area of spaces vacated from the newly entered area into the market over a certain period.
According to JLL, the net absorption area in the Central Business District (CBD) was 2,809 pyeong, and the vacancy rate decreased by 37 basis points to 3.0%. The Yeouido area (YBD) had the largest net absorption area of 13,225 pyeong, with a vacancy rate dropping by 249 basis points to 4.3%. The Gangnam area (GBD) uniquely recorded a negative net absorption area of 5,349 pyeong, with the vacancy rate rising by 81 basis points to 1.4%.
Shim Hyewon, head of the research team at JLL Korea, noted that "The high net absorption area in the Yeouido region was mainly driven by the actual move-in of previously contracted tenants at sites like One Sentinal and Anchor One," adding, "This suggests that the office demand in the Yeouido area continues to be strong."
Rental prices are also generally on the rise. In the first quarter of this year, the monthly average effective rent for A-grade offices in Seoul was approximately 143,100 won per pyeong. This represents an increase of 1.3% compared to the previous quarter and 4.3% from the same period last year. Specifically, the Central Business District recorded 148,600 won per pyeong, the Yeouido area 123,900 won, and the Gangnam area 152,600 won.
In the first quarter, the transaction volume of domestic offices also saw an increase of approximately 14% compared to the previous quarter, reaching about 4.9315 trillion won. This appears to be due to two pre-purchase transactions closing in the Magok business district, which is emerging as a new office area in Seoul. Major transactions included 2.335 trillion won for the Magok district's One Grove (CP4) and 534.1 billion won for the Le West City Tower (CP1). In the Central Business District, there was a change in ownership for the Daishin Finance Center and Namsan Square.
Lee Gi-hoon, deputy minister of the Capital Markets Division, said that "The improvement in office investment sentiment due to interest rate cuts is increasing interest from foreign investors," and added, "Particularly, with active investments from institutional investors such as the National Pension Service and Korea Post preparing, competition for quality asset acquisitions is expected to intensify further due to improved liquidity in the future."