The number of South Koreans who moved to different residences in the country reached the highest level in three years in July amid rising housing transactions, data showed Wednesday.

Around 512,000 people changed residences last month, up 6.2 percent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea.

It is the largest figure for any July since 2021, when the figure came to 563,000.

The population mobility rate, which means the percentage of those relocating per 100 people, rose 0.7 percentage point on-year to 11.8 percent last month.

The growth came as the number of home transactions rose in May and June, though the country has largely seen a decrease in the number of people changing residences amid population aging, according to the agency.

By region, Seoul saw a net outflow of 5,440 people in July, while Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds the capital, and the northwestern port city of Incheon posted net inflows of 7,186 and 1,917, respectively.

In 2023, the number of people who
changed residences fell to the lowest level in about 50 years amid demographic changes and a housing market slump.

Source: Yonhap News Agency