Apartments in neighborhoods anchored by cram-school clusters sell for as much as 2.6 times the average price in their broader region, with the gap widening over the past year in areas such as Pyeongchon and Bansong.
In Daechi-dong in Seoul's Gangnam district, apartments sold for an average of 105.3 million won per 3.3 square meters last month, or 6.8 million won more than the Gangnam average of 98.5 million won, according to Real Estate R114 on the 21st. For a single 84-square-meter unit, that works out to a difference of about 231.2 million won. In Mok-dong in Yangcheon district, the price was 66.3 million won per 3.3 square meters, 11.23 million won higher than the Yangcheon average of 55.07 million won, translating into a gap of about 380 million won on the same basis.
The pattern held in Gyeonggi Province. Pyeongchon-dong in Anyang's Dongan district averaged 36.41 million won per 3.3 square meters, 7.56 million won or 26% above the Anyang average of 28.85 million won. Bansong-dong in Hwaseong, home to the cram-school cluster of the Dongtan 1 new town, came in at 23.35 million won, 17% above the Hwaseong average of 20.03 million won. On an 84-square-meter basis, Pyeongchon-dong commands a premium of about 260 million won and Bansong-dong about 110 million won.
The gap has grown wider over the past year. From September last year to September this year, Pyeongchon-dong rose 5.47 million won per 3.3 square meters, or 1.72 million won more than Anyang's average increase of 3.75 million won. Bansong-dong gained 2.95 million won, outpacing the Hwaseong average of 2.32 million won. In other words, already expensive cram-school neighborhoods climbed faster than their regions as a whole.
Outside the greater Seoul area, the gaps are larger. Beomeo-dong in Daegu's Suseong district averaged 30.79 million won per 3.3 square meters, 2.6 times the citywide average of 11.85 million won. The difference comes to about 643.96 million won for an 84-square-meter unit, exceeding every case in the capital region.
Industry watchers say demand from parents who prioritize access to cram schools is propping up home prices around the clusters. As the practice of personally driving children to and from after-school classes has become commonplace, proximity to a large cram-school district has turned into a key condition in choosing where to live, they said.
The cram-school premium, in short, is not confined to Seoul but also shows up in Gyeonggi and Daegu. On an 84-square-meter basis, homes in the capital region run about 110 million to 380 million won above their regional averages, while in Daegu the gap tops 600 million won.