Seoul homebuyers sell stocks, crypto and property as lending curbs tighten

Asset switching is spreading in Seoul’s housing market despite the government’s tough lending curbs, with buyers selling existing real estate and financial assets such as cryptocurrencies to purchase homes, Maeil Business Newspaper reported in an exclusive. According to the report, citing an analysis by South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport based on home purchase financing plans submitted to the office of People Power Party lawmaker Kim Jong-yang across 17 cities and provinces, proceeds from sales of stocks, bonds and cryptocurrencies accounted for 7.6% of home purchase funds used by individual buyers in Seoul from January through May, up from 2.9% in 2021. Funds from gifts and inheritances also rose to 6.4% from 3.8%, while proceeds from real estate sales accounted for 32.6%. The share funded by loans from financial institutions stood at 22.7%, with little change in recent years.