36 bidders swarm auction for apartment in Samsung's semiconductor backyard, offering 300 million won above asking

Homebuying demand is spreading beyond Seoul into major areas of Gyeonggi Province, and the auction market is following the same trend. Cases of apartments selling above their appraised value — with bid-to-appraisal ratios exceeding 100 percent — are mounting not only in regulated zones such as Anyang's Dongan-gu and Hanam, but also in unregulated areas including Guri and Yongin's Giheung-gu. Competition is especially fierce in areas backing the semiconductor belt: in Pyeongtaek's Godeok International New Town, where Samsung Electronics operates a semiconductor factory, more than 30 bidders turned out for a single apartment auction amid the broader semiconductor boom.

Auction data firm Gji Auction said Sunday that apartment auctions across major areas of Gyeonggi Province this month have drawn dozens of bidders each, reflecting a notable influx of buyers into the auction market.

A 93-square-meter unit at <style ref="s0">Hillstate Godeok Central</style> — the flagship complex in Pyeongtaek's Godeok International New Town, widely regarded as a key residential hub in Gyeonggi Province's "semiconductor belt" — went to auction for the second time on June 23 with a minimum bid of 568.4 million won ($368,000). It sold for 882.7 million won, or 108.7 percent of its appraised value of 812 million won. <style ref="s1">Thirty-six bidders participated</style> in the auction. The winning price surpassed the previous record actual transaction price of 860 million won, set in a sale on June 15.

<style ref="s2">A 85-square-meter unit at Suwon Station Central Urban City in Suwon's Gwonseon-gu</style> — a complex known as a "shuttle-oriented" development for its shuttle bus connections to transit hubs — drew <style ref="s3">32 competing bidders</style> at its second auction on June 17, with a minimum bid of 401.1 million won. The unit sold for 591.38 million won, or 103.2 percent of its 573 million won appraised value. In Hwaseong's Byeongjeom-gu, where apartment prices have been rising on the coattails of steep gains in the semiconductor belt city of Hwaseong's Dongtan-gu, a 85-square-meter unit at Sindongtan SK View Park drew 22 bidders at its second auction on June 19. With a minimum bid of 448.7 million won against an appraised value of 641 million won, the winning bidder secured the unit at 606.08 million won.

In Yongin's Giheung-gu, another shuttle-oriented area, a 60-square-meter unit at Geumhwa Maeul Jugong Greenville attracted 13 bidders at its first auction on June 24 and sold for 484.44 million won — 117 percent of its 414 million won appraised value.

While southern Gyeonggi Province areas are drawing attention from the semiconductor industry's spillover effect, the balloon effect in unregulated zones is also showing up in Guri. A 60-square-meter unit at Dongbang Apartment sold at its first auction on June 24 for 538.2 million won — 70.2 million won above its 468 million won appraised value, a bid-to-appraisal ratio of 115 percent. A 84-square-meter unit at Guri's Geombae Maeul SK Sinil Apartment also sold at its second auction on June 11, with 14 bidders competing, for 662 million won, a ratio of 104.4 percent.

Auction activity is also running hot in regulated zones, where buying through the auction market carries the advantage of bypassing land transaction permit requirements. A 85-square-meter unit at Indeogwon Central Prugio in Anyang's Dongan-gu went to its second auction on June 23 with a minimum bid of 807 million won; nine bidders submitted offers, and the unit sold for 1.11 billion won. In Hanam, a 85-square-meter unit at Misa Restia drew 13 bidders at its first auction on June 15, with an appraised value of 982 million won. The winning bidder paid 1.14 billion won — more than 160 million won above the appraised value.

The overheating in auctions for sought-after Gyeonggi Province locations and major complexes reflects homebuying demand — driven by rising Seoul apartment prices and a worsening jeonse and monthly rent shortage — spreading into key areas of Gyeonggi Province. Beyond areas such as Guri and Dongtan, which had already been experiencing the balloon effect in unregulated zones, news of bonus settlements at Samsung Electronics and SK hynix has concentrated purchasing power among high-income young buyers in southern Gyeonggi Province, drawing more people to apartment auctions as an alternative to the regular sales market.

Nam Hyeok-woo, a real estate researcher at Woori Bank, said most residential areas backing southern Gyeonggi Province's semiconductor corridor are posting strong price gains on expectations of a sustained semiconductor industry boom. "In unregulated areas of Gyeonggi Province, we are seeing tenants who are worn out by the jeonse and monthly rent crunch beginning to shift toward buying," he said. "The strength in regulated areas continues to persist, and demand is moving into unregulated areas that had been quiet until now — such as Suwon's Gwonseon-gu."

With bid-to-appraisal ratios running high across major Gyeonggi Province locations, the overall apartment auction ratio for Gyeonggi Province last month reached 89 percent — the highest level in nearly a year. That was up 2.7 percentage points from April's 86.3 percent and the highest since June last year, when the ratio stood at 89.7 percent.