Seen in this photo is a construction site of a new apartment complex in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap

A Korean household should not spend a single penny and save for 13 years if they want to buy a home in Seoul, a report showed Friday.

The report from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport was released as more Koreans are flocking to the country's capital for job opportunities, better quality of life and other reasons.

Housing prices in Seoul have continued to rise in recent years, including in 2023, when the ministry surveyed 61,000 households nationwide from June to December and compiled the data for the report.

During the June to December period last year, the median home price-to-income ratio stood at 13 in Seoul.

The ratio aims to measure how affordable houses are for homebuyers. The 2023 finding suggests median sale price for a home in Seoul was 13 times higher than the median household income.

"Simply put, a salaried worker must save every penny he or she earns for 13 years to get a home in the city," the report said.

The ratio for Seoul was the highest of all major cities and provinces.

Sejong, home of the government complex, had a home price-to-income ratio of 8.7, followed by Gyeonggi Province at 7.4 and Daejeon at 7.1

In two of the country's metropolitan cities, Busan and Daegu, the median home price-to-income ratio was identical at 6.7.

South Jeolla Province had the lowest ratio at 3.1

Concerning home ownership, the rate of those who own a house nationwide dropped from 61.3 percent in 2022 to 60.7 percent in 2023.

Over the same time period, the rate fell from 55.8 percent to 55.1 percent in the Seoul area, from 62.8 percent to 62.3 percent in metropolitan cities other than Seoul, and from 69.1 percent to 68.6 percent in provinces.

In the 2023 survey, 87.3 percent of the respondents said owning a home is necessary.