Population mobility falls in July amid housing market slowdown

The number of Koreans who moved to new residences decreased in July from a year earlier amid a decline in housing transactions, data showed Wednesday.

Around 468,000 people changed residences in July, down 86,000 from the same one-month period in 2025, according to data from the Ministry of Data and Statistics. It was the lowest figure since 460,000 posted in July 2022.

The population mobility rate — the number of people relocating per 100 residents — fell 2 percentage points from a year earlier to 10.8 percent.

The Data Ministry said the decline apparently came as the number of homes traded in May and June, which is reflected in the July data, fell 0.9 percent on-year.

"There may also have been a base effect, as housing-related indicators were strong in July last year," a statistics official said.

By region, Seoul reported a net outflow of 6,108 people, while South Gyeongsang and the southeastern port city of Busan posted net outflows of 813 and 661 people, respectively.

In contrast, Gyeonggi reported a net inflow of 5,106 people, followed by Incheon, west of Seoul, with 2,547.

Yonhap