Seoul: The number of South Koreans relocating to new homes dropped by 11.5 percent in February compared to the previous year. This decline is largely attributed to the country's aging and shrinking population, along with the influence of the Lunar New Year holiday, which led to decreased moving activity, as revealed by recent data.
According to Yonhap News Agency, approximately 615,000 individuals changed their residences in February, marking a decrease of 80,000 from the same period last year. The data, sourced from the Ministry of Data and Statistics, highlights a continued long-term downward trend in the number of movers, influenced by the demographic changes within the country. Additionally, short-term factors such as housing transactions and the availability of newly completed apartments also play a role in the fluctuation of these numbers.
The Ministry further pointed out that the extended Lunar New Year holiday contributed to the decline in the number of people moving. The population mobility rate, which indicates the percentage of people relocating per 100 residents, decreased by 2 percentage points on-year to 15.7 percent, according to the data.