Peace talks ignite land buying frenzy on Koreas' fortified border

Demand for property in small towns and sparsely populated rural areas around the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) is surging on expectations of an influx of people and investment.

Kang Sung-wook, a 37-year old dentist in the South Korean border city of Paju, has bought eight separate lots of land in and around the DMZ since mid-March.

Five were purchased without ever setting foot on them, using only Google Earth satellite photos and maps, as areas inside the DMZ cannot not be accessed by the public.

Kang said buying interest jumped so sharply as relations between the former foes improved that he needed to move fast.

"I was out looking since North Korea-US summit news was announced in March, and it looked like all the good ones were gone already," said Kang. "I realized then that the market was on fire."

His investment along the border now totals 3 billion won ($2.8 million) for 49 acres (20 hectares) of land.

For decades, the DMZ has been a different kind of hot spot, the scene of sometimes deadly military provocations and daring defections from the North.

The zone, dotted with guard posts and strung with razor wire, was established after the 1950-1953 Korean War. The two Koreas still don't officially recognize each other and remain in a technical state of war because the conflict ended in a truce, not a peace agreement. Over a million landmines were laid in border areas including the DMZ and the Civilian Control Zone in the South, said Jeong In-cheol, a landmine expert at National Park Conservation

Network.