Seo Hyun-Jin loses billions in Gangnam rental scam, villa auction fails to recover full deposit

Seo Hyun-Jin loses billions in Gangnam rental scam, villa auction fails to recover full deposit

Popular South Korean actress Seo Hyun-Jin has reportedly become a victim of a major jeonse (rental deposit) scam, which may result in her losing billions of Koreans won. According to a June 2 report by NewsPirit, the Supreme Court’s auction data revealed that Seo had to file for a court-led auction in April 2025 after her landlord failed to return the rental deposit for a luxury villa in Gangnam, Seoul.

Seo signed the lease agreement for the property in April 2020 with a hefty deposit of 2.50 billion KRW (approximately $1.81 million). The lease was later renewed in 2022, with the deposit increasing to 2.65 billion KRW (around $1.92 million). Despite having registered her leaseholder rights, her landlord did not return the deposit after the lease expired. Seo officially completed the leasehold registration in September 2024 and moved out of the villa.

With no sign of repayment, Seo initiated an auction process in an attempt to recover her losses. However, the villa has been classified as a “kkangtong house” — a term referring to properties where the market value has fallen below the combined total of outstanding loans and deposits. The first round of auctions failed to attract any bidders. The minimum bid has since been lowered to 2.30 billion KRW (around $1.66 million), which is significantly less than Seo’s original deposit.

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Real estate professionals and analysts are now raising alarms over the property’s plummeting value. With market prices stagnating or falling, experts suggest Seo may face significant financial losses despite the auction process. The situation highlights growing concerns in Korea about the vulnerability of even high-profile individuals to real estate fraud.

Seo Hyun-Jin, widely acclaimed for her roles in dramas such as Another Miss Oh, Dr. Romantic, The Beauty Inside, and Why Her, most recently starred alongside Gong Yoo in The Trunk. She is set to return to television with the upcoming K-drama Love Me. Despite her professional success, the recent incident casts a shadow over her financial security.