[News Space=Reporter seungwon lee] Apartment donations are rapidly increasing in Seoul. From January to November 2025, 7,436 applications for transfer of ownership registration for gift purposes in Seoul multi-family buildings (apartments, officetels, villas, etc.) were tallied.

This represents a more than 25% increase compared to the same period last year (5,934 cases), marking the largest increase in the past three years. While gift transactions are increasing nationwide, approximately 93% of the increase in Seoul's gift transactions occurred in Seoul.

Donations are concentrated in popular areas, centered around the three districts of Gangnam.

By region, the number was 651 in Gangnam-gu, 546 in Yangcheon-gu, 518 in Songpa-gu, 471 in Seocho-gu, 367 in Gangseo-gu, 350 in Mapo-gu, 343 in Eunpyeong-gu, and 329 in Yeongdeungpo-gu.

The three Gangnam districts (Gangnam, Seocho, and Songpa) alone accounted for 21.6% (approximately 1,452) of all donations, meaning one in five donations in Seoul occurred in these three districts. Notably, the number of donations in these districts more than doubled compared to the same period last year, reaching 898 between January and May 2025, a 3.2-fold increase compared to the same period in 2023 (279 donations).

Background to the surge in donations: The combined impact of regulations, taxes, and rising prices.

Experts cite tightening loan regulations, tax burdens, and rising housing prices as factors behind the increase in gifts. Kim Hak-ryeol, director of SmartTube Real Estate Research Institute, explained, "Even considering the gift acquisition tax, the steep rise in housing prices is leading to a growing number of people deciding it's more advantageous to gift as soon as possible." He added, "In particular, with housing prices in some areas like Gangnam soaring, making it impossible for children to purchase a home with their own income, more people are opting for gifts."

Kim Hyo-seon, senior real estate advisor at Nonghyup Bank, also explained, "As pension payments approach, people naturally begin to consider transferring assets. Popular areas with a clear future value tend to be chosen as gift destinations."

The National Tax Service is conducting a comprehensive review of over 2,000 cases of expensive apartment gift certificates.

The National Tax Service is closely examining tax evasion in the gifting of expensive apartments, focusing on key areas such as the four Gangnam districts (Gangnam, Seocho, Songpa, and Gangdong) and Mayongseong (Mapo, Yongsan, and Seongdong). Specifically, between January and July 2025, 2,077 apartment gifts occurred in the Gangnam and Mayongseong districts alone. While gift tax reports have been completed for 1,699 of these cases, the remainder are subject to further investigation.

The National Tax Service plans to focus its scrutiny on fraudulent gift practices, including generation-skipping gifts, split gifts, gifts to minors and those without cash resources, declaring gifts at a lower price than the market value, and burdensome gifts using loans or rental deposits.

Oh Sang-hoon, Director General of the National Tax Service's Asset Taxation Bureau, stated, "Until the real estate market stabilizes, we will continue to conduct comprehensive verification and block speculative activities by investigating the source of funds," adding, "We will identify all acts of accumulating wealth without a proper tax burden and tax them thoroughly."

Gifts to minors also exceed 200 cases.

Between January and October 2025, the number of apartments gifted to minors in Seoul reached 223, the highest in three years. This figure is being cited as a key indicator of the controversy over wealth polarization. The National Tax Service plans to intensively verify the source of funds and actual residency in gifts to minors.

As such, gifting of apartments in Seoul is rapidly increasing due to the combined effects of regulations, taxes, and rising housing prices. The government is strengthening comprehensive investigations and verification of the source of funds to prevent tax evasion and fraudulent gifting. This trend of gifting in popular areas and increased government oversight are expected to continue.