Television personality Kang Ho-dong's buyer for the Garosu-gil building in Sinsa-dong, Gangnam, Seoul, which he sold for 16.6 billion won last year, has been revealed to be singer MC Mong, who co-founded entertainment agency One Hundred, and Cha Ga-won, chairman of the PIAC Group.
According to the court registry documents on the 5th, MC Mong and Chairman Cha purchased the building, owned by Kang, for 16.6 billion won under the corporate name 'The Mu' on November 20 of last year. The transfer of ownership was registered on the 4th of last month. On the same day, a bank trust registration was also completed. Chairman Cha is the representative director and inside director of The Mu. MC Mong is also registered as an inside director.
The building was constructed in 1992. It has a land area of 192.1 square meters (58.11 pyeong) and a total floor area of 593.17 square meters (179.43 pyeong), with one basement level and five above ground levels. It is located in the center of Garosu-gil, within a 10-minute walk from Sinsa Station on Subway Line 3 and the Sinbundang Line.
Earlier, Kang purchased this building for 14.1 billion won after taking out a loan of 7 billion won in June 2018. It was a time when pedestrian traffic on Garosu-gil and the number of businesses increased significantly, driving up real estate prices. The fashion brand Metrocity had leased the entire building, and currently, all floors are vacant due to the expiration of the lease agreement. Recently, the main business district has shifted to Apgujeong Rodeo, and no new tenants have been found.
Kang's capital gain over six years is estimated to be around 2.5 billion won based solely on simple calculations. However, industry insiders believe he effectively sold the building without realizing a capital gain, considering transfer income tax, acquisition tax, and interest on loans. The estimated acquisition tax that Kang likely paid is around 648 million won, and the transfer income tax is about 1 billion won.