The prices of premium apartments being built in Sinuiju, North Pyongan Province, are skyrocketing as they approach completion at the end of this year or early next year, Daily NK sources have reported.
“Even premium apartments with only their exteriors completed are going for USD 120,000 to USD 150,000,” a North Pyongan Province-based source said on Monday. “The apartments will likely cost from USD 180,000 to USD 200,000 when the interiors are finished.”
Premium apartments in Sinuiju’s Ponbu District, considered by development planners to be the city’s central district, were as low as USD 50,000 to USD 100,000 in May 2018.
After North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s visit to Sinuiju in November 2018 to conduct on-the-spot guidance of the city’s development plans, apartment prices spiked by around 30% to 40%.
“Full-fledged buying and selling of the apartments hasn’t started yet, but donjuLiterally "masters of money," donju refers to people who hav... More (North Korea’s nouveau riche) are expecting prices to rise further even though the apartments aren’t finished yet,” the source added.
North Korean authorities typically place apartments on the market that have incomplete interiors, so prices tend to increase drastically once the interiors are completed.
After international sanctions on North Korea were intensified in 2017 and until October last year, Sinuiju apartment prices continued to fall. Sinuiju is located on the border with China and its real estate market tends to be strongly impacted by the level of cross-border trade. Housing prices typically rise during high trade periods and fall when inter-border trade tapers off.
A major draw to the new premium apartments among the elite centers on electricity supply.
For example, elites have shown a great deal of interest toward the Chohohwa Apartment complex, which features 180 square meter apartments and elevators along each hallway of the buildings – and a guaranteed electricity supply.
“All areas of North Korea suffer from shortages of electricity, but premium apartments in Sinuiju are reportedly going to provide residents with electricity all year round,” another Daily NK source in the province said. “Apartment complexes such as the Chohohwa Apartment complex even have gas-powered generators to keep the electricity going when there are power outages.”
While many of the elite are interested in buying premium apartments in Sinuiju, most are still hesitant to do so.
“While there is some buying and selling going on, most of the elite have not moved forward because they are afraid of drawing attention from the authorities,” the source said. “Buying an apartment that costs more than USD 100,000 is sure to get the attention of the state and may even lead the authorities to begin surveillance on you.”
The apartments will be quickly bought up and prices will skyrocket again when the elite no longer feel the need to tread so carefully, the source predicted.
During his visit to Sinuiju in November 2018, Kim Jong Un emphasized that the development of the city was a “legacy” of his predecessors Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung and called Sinuiju the “gateway city of the country.”
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