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Southeast Asia courts Korean buyers, offering remedy to Seoul’s high apartment prices

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By Yi Whan-woo
  • Published KST
A cyclist takes a picture of Kuala Lumpur's cityscape, Malaysia, Jan. 2. EPA-Yonhap

A cyclist takes a picture of Kuala Lumpur's cityscape, Malaysia, Jan. 2. EPA-Yonhap

Southeast Asian real estate firms are seeking to attract Koreans to buy property, as soaring apartment prices in Seoul make premium homes abroad comparatively more affordable, industry officials said Friday.

PropEasy, a Malaysian developer, recently invited Seoul-based real estate brokers to Kuala Lumpur as part of a promotional campaign for residential projects currently under construction.

“The campaign was organized as a three-night, four-day tour,” an industry official said, noting that this marked the first time Korean brokers had been invited to participate in a group tour program.

Another official said developers from the Philippines and Thailand are also in talks with Korean counterparts to launch similar tours for domestic brokers.

“Tour schedules are currently being coordinated,” he said.

The outreach reflects a broader shift in strategy, as companies that previously focused on Japanese and American buyers are now expanding their attention to Koreans.

“Koreans are viewed as a new source of demand with strong purchasing power,” a third official said, adding that overseas properties remain far more affordable than those in Seoul.

The average sale price of an apartment in Seoul reached 1.5 billion won ($1.03 million) as of Dec. 15, 2025, just months after surpassing 1.4 billion won in July, according to KB Land, the property data tracker of KB Kookmin Bank.

In luxury neighborhoods such as Apgujeong, Banpo, Cheongdam, and Hannam, prices reached 20 million won per square meter, with individual homes costing tens of billions of won.

By contrast, foreign investors in Malaysia can enter the property market with a minimum investment of 1 million Malaysian ringgit ($246,000) in Kuala Lumpur and 600,000 ringgit in other areas.

Additional incentives include the absence of inheritance and gift taxes, as well as payment plans that allow buyers to make installment payments tied to construction progress, easing the upfront financial burden.

Condominiums in Kuala Lumpur also offer attractive rental yields of 4 to 6 percent, compared with 3 to 4 percent in Hong Kong and other major global cities.