Budongsans (부동산) are commonly known as Korean real estate agencies. Sometimes can be referred to as budongsan-junggyeso.

Given the small size of Korea and the competition for space among the 42 million Koreans living here, and not to mention that almost half of that population resides in Seoul and the surrounding area, the real estate market is a massive industry and with seemingly every Kim, Lee, and Park in the country opening up a budongsan agency to try to capture a sliver of the amount of brokering fees that come with real estate transactions. Living in Korea, you'll see that Korean restaurants seem to be every second business, while walking down a street. And the 부동산 signs can almost seem to fill up the rest of frontage. Although that may be a touch of an exaggeration, once you know the Korean symbol for budongsan, you'll start to notice it everywhere in your travels around the urban sprawls of Korea.

Budongsans cater almost exclusively to Korean clients and a budongsan license isn't terribly difficult to get for someone with an educational background that didn't see much english exposure, so with that in mind, don't expect to come across a lot of english-speaking budongsans around Korea. And considering the stakes involved and the crookedness that the industry tends to have for itself, clear communication is key. So unless your Korean is spotless, make sure you have a bilingual speaker with you, when going over details and contract particulars.

English-speaking budongsans are quite common around US military bases, so if you're looking for english help, try finding the nearest base and wandering around the streets surrounding it, which will be full of english-speaking business and services that cater to the GIs and GS contractors who work on the base. And it doesn't matter if your budongsan is on the other side of the city from where you are looking for accommodation. Or even if it's in another city. As they make their money from commission and have contacts with other budongsans, they'll get on the horn with another agency in the area that you are looking and they'll act as an intermediary, for a share of the broker commission. Commissions can often revolve around 3% of the yearly rental amount. Unless agreed upon otherwise, payment of the commission is shared between the landlord and the tenant.

[edit] Seoul budongsans

• My Home Finding. 02-2070-0075
• Jung Realty. 02-566-3931
• Chung Hwa Realty. 02-797-9800
• Crown Realty. 02-790-2100
• ERA Korea. 02-6003-5000
• Nice Rent. 02-793-8866
• Midas Real Estate. 02-792-7890