Number of people changing residences up 3.1 pct in Sept.

The number of South Koreans who moved to other regions in the country rose 3.1 percent on-year in September, data showed Wednesday, as more people relocated to outside Seoul in search of more affordable housing. Around 463,000 people changed residences in September, compared with 450,000 tallied a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea. The population mobility rate, which means the percentage of those relocating per 100 people, inched up 0.4 percentage point on-year to 11.1 percent in September. The increase apparently came as more people moved from Seoul to surrounding regions amid the soaring property costs in the capital city. According to a separate report from the Korea Real Estate Board, the number of houses traded in August came to 60,648, up 17.6 percent from a year earlier. By region, Seoul saw a net outflow of 4,300 people in September, while Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds the capital, and the northwestern port city of Incheon posted net inflows of 4,659 and 1,809, respectively. In 2023, the number of people who changed residences fell to the lowest level in about 50 years amid demographic changes and a housing market slump. Source: Yonhap News Agency