Korean Job Discussion Forums

[jetbundle]

Hi,

I'm moving to Seoul this summer/fall for a postdoc job (2 years, probably), so first thing I'll be doing when I arrive is house hunting for a small 10-20 pyung apartment and I wondered about three questions - any suggestions are welcome!
1) since I have some flexibility when to start: when is the best time for house hunting, or which time to avoid (like e.g. it's impossible to find an apt. in an American college town in late August)?
2) Which area is nice/lively and affordable, but not a ghetto? I'll be working at Sogang Univ. in Mapo-gu, but I don't mind to commute a bit.
3) What order of magnitude can I expect to pay for some very basic and small place that's not a complete dump or basement if I put some energy into househunt? My University offered me on-campus accommodation (a tiny studio/bachelor for a rent of ~1 milion won/month), but they also give me 5 milion as wolse deposit if I live off-campus.

Thanks a lot!

[Cohiba]

1/ I don't think there is any good or bad time. Many people
don't like moving in winter, but that doesn't apply to you.

2/ I would recommend anywhere around the Itaewon area. Near
the Volvo Building there are some nice places. It is away from the
"Ghetto", but close to civilization.

3/ 5 million won should get you a shoebox. I live just outside
of Seoul and paid 40 million plus rent for a two bedroom. They
originally wanted 70 million.

[michaelambling]

[seoulsucker]

There's a group of apartments/officetels clustered around the Sinchon Rotary (major intersection, 2 minutes from Sogang Uni) called LeMellieur (can't quite remember the Romanized spelling) or 르메이에르, pronounced ruh may ee ay ruh that offers decent 10-15 pyung apartments.

It's pricey, but the location is awesome. You might have to bump your rent up a bit, but you could probably get away with dropping 5 million on key money. With building fees you'd still be under a million a month for total housing expenses.

You're on the inner city loop, close to the interstate, Sinchon, Hongdae, Ewha, City Hall, Jongno, and only a 20 minute bus ride to Itaewon. I lived in building 3 in 2006 and was very happy with the place.

[jkelly80]

If you're working at Sogang just look for something around there. Mapo, Hongdae, Sinchon, it's all pretty nice and modern with a ton of crap to do.

[jetbundle]

Thanks a lot!
I guess I'll stay in rollerblade distance then from Sogang - after far too long in a boring Canadian town, I can't wait to get back to life and civilization .

Before I forget: is there any advantage/disadvantage for househunting before the end of the month, or in the beginning of the month (in my case second half of August vs. beginning of September), or does it not matter?

[rumdiary]