Seoul class A face rents rise 4.9% as CBD vacancy climbs to 7.0%

Seoul class A face rents rose 4.9 percent year over year in Q3 even as headline vacancy edged higher, Newmark's Q3 2026 Seoul Office Market Report said, as reported by IREI.

Headline vacancy across the class rose 0.2 percentage points quarter over quarter. The central business district's vacancy rate rose to 7.0 percent from 6.5 percent, Newmark reported, with earlier additions of prime supply and tenant relocations adding available space at major buildings.

"Headline vacancy rates and face rents only tell part of the story," said Judy Jang, Newmark executive director and head of research for Korea. She said outcomes are increasingly different at the individual asset level, driven by building quality, location and the lease terms landlords are willing to offer, and that new supply, particularly in the CBD, could create more choice and negotiating flexibility for occupiers.

Buyoung Taepyeong Building recorded a substantial reduction in vacancy, supported by the relocations of the Seoul Metropolitan Infrastructure Headquarters and McDonald's Korea headquarters, per the report. INNO88 improved occupancy after a refurbishment, drawing new demand that included the Constitutional Court of Korea. For context, the CBD's 7.0 percent vacancy rate sits below the 25.3 percent Los Angeles rate cited in this publication's September coverage of a South Bay refinancing, though the two figures describe different geographies, a CBD submarket against a metro.