The number of home purchases in Seoul by people in their 20s and 30s that involved money from gifts or inheritances has nearly tripled over the past three years. With home prices surging and the government tightening mortgage rules, whether parents can provide financial support has become a decisive factor in whether young adults can buy a first home.
Gifts or inheritances were listed in 10,477 Seoul home purchases by buyers in their 20s and 30s last year, up 2.9 times from 3,585 in 2022, according to housing funding plan filings submitted by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to the office of Rep. Yeom Tae-young of the Democratic Party of Korea on the 13th. As a share of all filings, such cases dipped to 23.2% in 2023 from 26.0% in 2022, then climbed to 29.3% in 2024 and 36.1% in 2025.
The pace has accelerated this year. From January through August, 13,548 Seoul home purchases by buyers in their 20s and 30s involved gift or inheritance money, already exceeding last year's full-year total. Their share of all filings jumped to 42.6%, up 16.6 percentage points from 26.0% in 2022. That means more than four in every 10 home purchases by young adults in Seoul drew on family money.
The impact was most pronounced among buyers in their 20s, who have had little time to build up savings. Of 3,179 home purchases by Seoul residents in their 20s from January through August, 1,598, or 50.3%, involved gift or inheritance money. Among buyers in their 30s, the figure was 11,950 purchases, or 41.8% of the total. Seoul buyers in their 30s used such funds in 9,360 purchases last year, 4.3 times the 2,175 recorded in 2022.
The sums involved ran into the trillions of won. Buyers in their 20s and 30s in Seoul tapped 2.5198 trillion won in gift and inheritance money from January through August. Adding 1.3808 trillion won in Gyeonggi Province, the combined total for the greater Seoul area reached 3.9006 trillion won.
Analysts say rising home prices and tighter lending rules are deepening the transfer of wealth across generations, turning gaps in parental assets into gaps among young adults. With less money available from banks, young buyers who receive a lump sum from their parents can purchase a home with a smaller loan, while those relying on wages alone face an even higher barrier to homeownership.
"For some, a home is something they cannot afford even after saving their entire lives, while for others it is an asset they can acquire at a young age through a gift from their parents," Yeom said. "We need to strengthen housing supply and housing support so that young people can have a chance at buying a home without leaning on their parents' wealth." He added that authorities "must also closely examine whether the sources of funds are being properly verified when minors acquire homes."