Successful Idol-Turned-Actress Revealed To Be “Rich In Buildings,” Triggers Bitter Reactions
On June 1, 2025 (KST), News1 confirmed that idol-turned-actress Hyeri of Girl’s Day now owns two buildings in the affluent neighborhoods of Samseong-dong and Yeoksam-dong in Gangnam, Seoul. And her being “rich in buildings” has since triggered some bitter reactions online.
According to Building Road Real Estate Brokerage Firm, Hyeri closed on an old multi-family housing building in Samseong-dong in August 2022 under a family corporation name. This building is said to have cost her ₩7.75 billion KRW (about $5.60 million USD) at the time.
Hyeri then demolished the building and built a new one with two basement floors and six above-ground floors. The idol-actress-landlord is now “seeking a tenant for the new construction with a deposit of ₩400 million KRW (about $289,000 USD) and rent of ₩30.0 million KRW (about $21,700 USD).” The brokerage firm director noted that if this building is to be sold in three years, a capital gain of over ₩3.00 billion KRW (about $2.17 million USD) is expected.
This isn’t the only building Hyeri owns. In December 2020, she purchased another old residential building in Yeoksam-dong under a corporation she established. At ₩4.39 billion KRW (about $3.17 million USD), this building was also demolished and rebuilt—its current market value estimated to exceed ₩10.0 billion KRW (about $7.23 million USD).
The news of Hyeri’s estimated profits from real estate has not been too well received by her fans. While some argued “It’s her money, she can do what she wants with it,” others frowned upon the fact she used tax-cutting loopholes, like establishing corporations, to invest in real estate.
- “Who cares? She didn’t do anything illegal.”
- “As long as it’s not tax evasion, I don’t see why she should be criticized in advance. Not just Hyeri—same goes for others too.”
- “Sigh… It’s funny how people reacted so differently when it was Ryu Jun Yeol.”
- “Celebs make tons of money and still speculate on real estate, and then people defend them too. Must be nice having life on easy mode.”
- “Celebs really have a different investment playbook.”
- “It’s not even illegal, so what’s the problem?”
- “Sure, it’s a common way to make money, but it really gives me a different impression of her.”
- “Lost all affection for her…”
- “As expected. What a sweet deal.”
- “Never trust a celebrity’s image. I really didn’t think Hyeri would be like this, LOL.”
- “Maybe she learned it from Ryu Jun Yeol.”
- “Impressive.”
- “Celebs are all the same—birds of a feather.”
- “Since when were corporations used as a tax shelter for real estate speculators? The law seriously needs to change.”
- “It sounds like she hasn’t even sold either property yet—so she hasn’t cashed out the profit.”
- “A family corporation, huh? Lmao.”
- “Ohhh so this is what ‘birds of a feather’ means.”
- “Isn’t buying under a family corporation basically a loophole to pay less acquisition and capital gains tax? Didn’t TVXQ‘s Yunho and Ryu Jun Yeol get tons of hate for this?”
- “Obsessed with money.”
- “Being a celebrity really seems like the easiest way to make money.”
- “Celeb life is honestly such a sweet gig. Super jealous.”
Her past relationship with actor Ryu Jun Yeol was also brought up, as he, too, faced heavy backlash for his real estate speculation.
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