Foreign students struggle in Korea's opaque housing market

“The real estate agencies didn’t accept me as a customer, so, in the end, I had to rent an Airbnb for what was left of my exchange," said a 25-year-old Yonsei University student who asked to remain anonymous...

An advertisment for Hongil Real Estate on Facebook that targets foreigners. [HONGIL REAL ESTATE]

“The real estate agencies didn’t accept me as a customer, so, in the end, I had to rent an Airbnb for what was left of my exchange," said a 25-year-old Yonsei University student who asked to remain anonymous.

Finding housing is often a problem for foreigners living in Seoul. As the size of the international community increases, many foreign residents say that there is still not a proper housing system geared toward international. From BTS to Bong Joon-ho, the explosion of Hallyu has caused Korea to become a significantly more appealing country for exchange students every year, but they experience the same problem when they first arrive: Finding proper housing for a reasonable price.

Since Korea is not an English-speaking country, the reality is that not all real estate agents offer services in English, including platforms like Zigbang or Dabang. In this context, foreigners claim that they are left with very little and not-so-cheap options.

A studio apartment on sale by Hongil Real Estate in Shillim-dong in Gwanak District, southern Seoul. [HONGIL REAL ESTATE]

No English For foreigners, finding a real estate agent that offers English services can be quite a challenge. Most expats find those agencies based on recommendations from friends or acquaintances that had previously rented an apartment from them.

Some of these real estate agents, however, can charge slightly higher prices just for speaking English.

“I ended up paying around 350,000 won [$270] because of the English services,” said Alex Gómez, a 21-year old student who goes to Seoul National University.

However, Kim Si-young from Ziptoss, a Korean real estate company that offers services in Korean and English, claims that there is no need for real estate agents to charge fees for offering services in English.

“The commission fee for real estate services is subject to a cap set by the Real Estate Brokerage Act, so it is not necessary to pay additional commission,” Kim said.

Many foreigners tend to bring a Korean friend that can translate for them when looking at apartments.

“I was able to find a reasonable price for my one room because my Korean friend came with me to the real estate meeting,” says Inés Terrados, a 22-year-old exchange student from Sungkyunkwan University.

Bringing a Korean person with you does not only help with translations, but also to get better deals. This reporter has experience in getting offered better deals when bringing Korean friends when finding a home.

The housing sector is not the only field where this situation happens.

Lara Benito, a lifestyle influencer living in Korea, said she got better job offers when she brought her husband to job interviews than when she went alone. Unfortunately, not everyone is close with the locals — especially if it is the first time they have traveled to Korea. So this option, despite being the easiest, does not work for everyone.

An advertisement at one of Ziptoss’s offices targeted to foreigners. [ZIPTOSS]

Why is it hard to find English-speaking real estate agents?

Korea is not an English-speaking country, and foreigners are still not the main target of these companies.

A representative of Ace Rent Realty, a Korean real estate company located in Yongsan, central Seoul, that offers both English and Korean services, told the Korea JoongAng Daily that “the percentage of foreign renters in real estate contracts in Korea is expected to be less than 5 percent.”

Moreover, for some agencies it can be “inefficient to study enough English to conduct business with less than 10 percent of customers [...] Korea's real estate market is not frozen to the point where you need to study another language to conduct business with very few foreigners who are also looking for low-profit rental contracts."

However, Kim agrees on the fact that “offering more English services could attract more foreign customers to real estate agencies in Korea, ultimately resulting in increased profits.”

A Ziptoss Suyu branch in Gangbuk District, northern Seoul. [ZIPTOSS]

Housing companies and landlords refuse to work with foreigners

“All the real estate agents I went to in person in my neighborhood rejected me, even when I brought my Korean-speaking friend to help with translation issues,” said a 25-year-old student from Yonsei University, who asked to remain anonymous.

The most common housing Korean apps do not offer an English version, and most landlords do not speak Korean and some even refuse foreigners in the first place.

Marina Fernández, a 26-year-old exchange student from ChungAng University, says she found the housing process very tedious because she “kept being rejected by the landlords from the apps for being a foreigner.”

Lucia Castillo, a 21-year-old exchange student from the University of Seoul, also went through a similar situation.

“Despite speaking Korean,” she said, “many residences didn’t allow me to live there because I was a foreigner.”

A copy of a lease contract in English that some real estates offer to their customers. [ZIPTOSS]

But why do some housing companies still refuse to work with foreign customers?

Real estate agents admit that, despite the language barrier, there is a possible scenario that depends on “the personality of the landlord,” says Ace Rent Realty, but that it also happens the other way around.

“Some foreign clients look for areas where they are less likely to meet people from specific ethnicities.”

However, Kim says that “the Korean Rental Protection Act thoroughly guarantees tenants' housing rights, regardless of nationality.”

Ace Rent Realty also explains there could be a change in the trust that a customer offers when they are an exchange student.

“Landlords or licensed real estate agents may perceive them [exchange students] as low-profit and high-risk customers if there is a risk of sudden return to their home country [...] This can be a loss for the landlord, and some dislike such risks," the representative said.

Regarding this issue, Kim adds that “Korean students typically have larger security deposits due to their parents' support, even if they may pay a lower monthly rent than international students.”

The Shillim branch of Hongil Real Estate in Gwanak District, southern Seoul, with a Zigbang logo. [HONGIL REAL ESTATE]

In this context, what is left for foreigners?

As the most conventional ways of finding an apartment can be difficult, foreigners are left with the easy, yet not cheap, options of going to an Airbnb or a student residence. After being rejected for being a foreigner, the unnamed student from Yonsei University “ended up renting a shared Airbnb, and now the landlord wants to raise the prices.”

Other Korean housing websites that target foreigners sometimes offer pricier deals since they are more focused on share houses or so-called “communities,” in which students live in a shared apartment and are offered a calendar of activities organized by the landlords. The community option is not inexpensive, yet a viable one if you are looking to make friends easily.

“My university is in Suwon, but I really wanted to make friends in Seoul. I know the community can be a bit pricey, but it has helped me to make a lot of new friends” says Adriana Pérez, an exchange student from Kyonggi University living in Hongdae, western Seoul.

Lack of help from universities and administrations

All of this comes with little to no help from university administrators.

“Looking for an apartment was a very chaotic experience; landlords rejecting us for being foreigners, a lot of communication issues and the university not taking any responsibility for it,” says Fran Gómez, a 21-year-old student form Sejong University.

“My partner and I were almost victims of a scam. We would have liked to have some kind of orientation, some sort of reference of trustworthy places to look for an apartment and even help with communication.”

Some universities do not offer any help and do not point students toward reliable off-campus options. This, however, does not happen with foreigners who come to Korea to work. Ace Rent Realty says that “companies that employ foreigners make every effort to solve their employees' housing problems.”

BY STUDENT REPORTER MIREIA MARTINEZ [kjd.kcampus@joongang.co.kr]