Investor appetite for sub-10,000-pyeong offices has been a defining theme this year. Transactions such as Hyundai Group’s Yeonji-dong headquarters, the Soonhwadong Orange Center (the “E-mart Tower”), and Premier Place in Mugyo-dong cleared above initial guidance despite tight liquidity.

Into this backdrop, Westgate Tower—a roughly 9,000-pyeong asset next to Seodaemun Station on Line 5—will be offered through a sale process on September 17, serving as a fresh test of depth for the mid-to-large bracket.

The sale matters for two reasons.

First, the asset sits precisely where the market has been most competitive: a manageable ticket size with CBD-fringe connectivity and a stabilized rent roll.

Second, the “NH angle” is in focus. At the end of 2024, NH Nonghyup REITs purchased D Tower Donuimun for ₩895.3 billion (about ₩34.32 million per 3.3㎡), laying the groundwork for an emerging “NH Town” cluster in Seodaemun.

Because Westgate Tower stands directly across the street, investors are watching whether NH rejoins the fray after earlier, unsuccessful bids for both the Orange Center and the Shilla Stay Seodaemun hotel.

Westgate Tower totals 31,126.5㎡ of gross floor area (about 9,113 pyeong), with an 88% office / 12% retail mix.

NH Nonghyup Bank is the anchor, occupying roughly 40% of the building. Other key tenants include Nestlé (15.5%), AIA Life (11.2%), and PR agency PR One (7.8%)—a line-up that underscores the building’s income stability.

The property was acquired in 2022 by Hines alongside Hyundai Investment Asset Management at around ₩25 million per 3.3㎡, then underwent a comprehensive capex program that effectively delivered a near-new product.

Since the works, effective net office rent (E.NOC) has climbed from roughly ₩200,000 to ₩280,000 per pyeong, and the long-vacant ground floor is being leased to Woori Bank at approximately ₩300,000 per pyeong.

Given the refreshed specification, the CBD-adjacent location, and demonstrable rent step-ups, local market chatter points to pricing above ₩35 million per 3.3㎡.

If achieved, that would reinforce a trend already visible in this year’s comps: investors are paying up for bite-sized, institutional-quality product with sticky, credit tenancy and minimal execution risk.

“Since early this year, offices around ~10,000 pyeong GFA, roughly sub-10 years from completion (or newly refurbished), and backed by reliable corporate tenants have been the bid magnets,” said one Korea-based asset-management executive. “Expect a crowded field at Westgate—especially from managers who narrowly missed out in recent tenders.”