As South Korea's population ages and interest in wellness grows, "care-focused housing" that combines living space with medical and health management services is emerging as a new trend. What services residents can enjoy after moving in has become a new competitive edge for housing products, going beyond location, floor plans and community facilities, and builders and hotel operators are rolling out related offerings one after another. Services once found only at senior living communities or hotels — hotel-style concierge and housekeeping, meals, health screenings and professional health care — are spreading into mainstream housing.
A leading example is Parkroche Seoul One, unveiled by HDC Hyundai Development at its Seoul One project in Wolgye-dong, Nowon-gu, Seoul. The premium private rental housing complex spans four basement levels and up to 49 floors above ground across two buildings, with a total of 768 units of 70 to 80 square meters of exclusive floor area. Move-in is scheduled for July 2028. Unlike welfare housing for older adults, it has no age restrictions for residents. HDC Hyundai Development directly owns and operates the property, providing medical, dining and daily living management services based on deposits, monthly maintenance fees and memberships. Rental deposits start at 1.01 billion won for 70-square-meter units, 1.06 billion won for 73-square-meter units and 1.19 billion won for 80-square-meter units.
What sets it apart is that health care has been brought inside the housing service itself. Linked to the Asan Medical Center health screening center within Seoul One, the complex will support everything from health screenings to prevention and follow-up care, with registered nurses on site around the clock. Wearable devices and in-unit sensors will monitor heart rate, activity levels and sleep, and a system will connect residents to outside hospitals in emergencies. In a subscription round in June this year, 4,469 applications were filed for the 768 units, for an average ratio of 5.8 to 1 and a high of 20.5 to 1.
Similar changes have begun at conventional apartment complexes. Hyundai Engineering & Construction (000720) plans to apply life care services drawing on its operating expertise from The Classic 500, a premium senior living community, to the Apgujeong districts 3 and 5 in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, where it won construction rights this year. Working with Konkuk University Medical Center, it will provide health management services covering fall prevention, cognitive decline and anti-aging, and bring wellness programs that manage overall daily rhythms — sleep, meals and exercise — into the multi-unit housing complex.
Some projects combine general housing and senior housing within a single complex. At Baegunhosu Prugio Forest Morning in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province, 536 of the 1,378 total units are rental senior housing for residents aged 60 and over, while the remaining 842 are general-purpose officetels — studio units used as either homes or offices. The senior housing includes a concierge and a medical center offering meals prepared by a dedicated nutritionist, housekeeping such as cleaning and laundry, and scheduling assistance. It differs from a conventional senior living community in that it is a "multigenerational coexistence" model, allowing parents and their adult children to choose different types of homes within the same complex.
Hotel operators are also expanding into residential services. At Soyo Hannam by Parnas in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Parnas Hotel handles hotel service operations, providing 24-hour concierge service, dedicated butlers, housekeeping and hotel-style dining. Chaum and Cha Health Care will handle health care, offering round-the-clock health management through health care consultants assigned to each unit, along with referrals through a network of specialty hospitals and physicians.
Industry watchers expect the trend to spread further as population aging, growing interest in health management and rising consumption of residential services converge. An official at HDC Hyundai Development said the biggest feature is that digital health care has been built into living spaces so that health management happens naturally in daily life, adding that the company plans to keep expanding residential services closely tied to daily living using various AI and smart technologies.
