Luxury apartment ad sparks criticism for inciting classism

The wording of an advertisement for an apartment complex in southern Seoul sparked criticism on Wednesday for inciting classism.

The ad for a residential complex called The Palace 73 read: “We've built this for those who've always dreamt of an unequal world."

The builder said the apartment aspires to be South Korea’s own version of Central Park in New York, establishing a new standard for luxurious living space for centuries to come.

As the ad came under attack online, the developer delivered an apology, saying “We should’ve been more careful."

Internet users who had come across the ad reportedly expressed displeasure, arguing that the builder contributed to promoting classism among the wealthy while aggravating a sense of deprivation among the less fortunate.

“The ad effectively depicted the problematic situation South Korea in a single sentence,” one online user pointed out, adding, “The copywriter could have at least used ‘differentiated’ (instead of unequal).”

The selling price of a new apartment unit of the complex in Seocho-gu, one of Seoul’s most expensive districts, is reportedly estimated at between 10 billion to 40 billion won ($7.6 million-$30 million), depending on the size. Meanwhile, the average price of a Seoul apartment unit was 1.34 billion won in March, according to Statistics Korea.