The real estate market in Korea, which suffered from a long slump, is showing signs of recovery after the government’s announcement of new stimulus measures in April.

The centerpiece of the measures is to give tax breaks to both home sellers and buyers so that real-estate transactions can be revitalized.

Market observers said that people expected to benefit most are those who purchase or sell small or old apartments in Gangnam, the most expensive district in Seoul.

This is because the new tax benefits are only applied to new properties or apartments valued at 600 million won ($519,000) or less, with a size no larger than 85 square meters.

In this sense, investors are showing interest in small and old apartments to be rebuilt in Gangnam.

Investment in old apartments which are subject to reconstruction had been profitable during the bullish real estate market in the past.

Currently, apartments built between the 1970s and the early 1980s can push for reconstruction with the approval of homeowners and their local government. When an apartment is reconstructed, local governments generally allow developers to build higher and larger apartments. This means that apartment owners can get larger homes without much investment.

According to a recent survey, average apartment prices in Gangnam rose 10 to 20 percent in May compared to a year earlier. During the same period, four districts in the Gangnam area recorded the highest price increase rate for apartments to be rebuilt.

After the April stimulus measures, market attention is being paid particularly to Shin-Banpo Apartment Complex 1, located alongside the Hangang River, which is pushing for renovation.

Some real estate experts said if the apartments in Seocho will be reconstructed, chances are that they will become the landmark around the Han River and that they will set the best example of success in rebuilding apartments.

Under the master plan to reconstruct the Shin-Banpo apartments, the 1,484-home developement would have 14 buildings with five to 38 stories and 51 to 240 square meters per household. Among them, 663 homes will be sold to ordinary investors in October.

The plan to reconstruct Shin-Banpo Apartment Complex 1 was initiated in 1994, but had rough sailing due to changes in the local government’s real estate policies.

Han Hyoung-ki, who heads the association to promote the reconstruction, said a few years ago, it promoted to rebuild the apartments into 60-story buildings in step with then-Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon’s “Hangang Renaissance” plan to change the landscape of the river. But with the inauguration of the new Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, the city restricted riverside apartment heights to 35 stories and lower.

“We got the city’s final approval on our reconstruction plan revised to limit the height to 38 stories,” Han said. The town was allowed to build three more stories because it was designated as a special reconstruction zone where the restriction is eased.

The city’s approval put an end to the 18-year-long controversy surrounding the reconstruction of Shin-Banpo Apartment Complex 1.

According to Han, the plan had experienced ups and down since it was initiated in 1994. The riverside Shin-Banpo region has been one of the major hubs of transportation in Seoul, which serves as a gateway to Gangnam.

But the city’s frequent changes in regulations on riverside landscape have left the area’s reconstruction plan adrift for a considerable time, according to association officials.

They recalled that the conflict with Seoul City and a series of lawsuits involved in the association put a brake on the push to build high-rise apartments along the Hangang River. And the association had suffered internal strife and its operation had been virtually paralyzed for nine years.

But the thing changed after Han took office as the head of the association early in the 2010s, association officials said. He reorganized the association with strong leadership and pushed ahead with the reconstruction plan. Thanks to his efforts, the officials said, the city finally endorsed the reconstruction plan only one and a half year after he was inaugurated.

In particular, he showed strong leadership when he organized a protest rally against Seoul City’s decision to indefinitely postpone its deliberation of the reconstruction plan in March last year. About 1,500 members of the association attended the demonstration and other similar associations supported the protest, according to the officials.

They said Han’s work experience at the nation’s major builders including Samsung and Daewoo must have helped the association achieve such a good result.

The association said the new apartment town also received an incentive from Seoul City, whose households are allowed to have a balcony of 3 pyeong to 12 pyeong (one pyeong equals 3.3 square meters). This was enabled as the town’s master plan won the prize of good design.

Association officials said the reconstructed Shin-Banpo town is expected to become one of the nation’s best apartment complexes as it will use best-quality products for the interior and have high-class community facilities. They will form an environment-friendly and energy-efficient apartment town.

In addition, the new apartment town will command a fine river view and there are several prestigious primary and secondary schools in and around the complex, including a foreign school.

The town’s location is also drawing much attention. It is located near the nation’s No. 1 Gyeongbu Expressway linking Seoul and Busan and there are three subway stations nearby. Also, Shinsegae Department Store in Gangnam, St. Mary’s Hospital in Gangnam, Seoul Arts Center and Express Bus Terminal are within a very short distance from the apartment town.

Inside the complex, there will be various facilities for the residential community. They include a swimming pool, a spacious fitness center, a spa and sauna, a library, a child care center, an indoor golf range, a conference room and a banquet hall.

In an effort to differentiate from other apartments and to provide convenience to residents, Shin-Banpo Complex 1 plans to install a battery charger system for electric vehicles, an automatic food waste conveyer system and a no-man security system.

To save energy, the new apartment town will use solar power to provide hot water, establish a rain reuse system, and install LED street lights inside the complex and an automatic home ventilation system.

Association chief Han said he is feeling happy as the project, which had faced a breakdown, has been put back on track, and expressed gratitude to the apartment owners’ support for him.