About Locali
We're a small team in Seoul, fixing one specific problem.
Foreign visitors paying 3x hotel prices for 1-2 month Korea trips — because they can't access the Korean rental market locals use.
The story
In 2024, a friend visiting Seoul from the US asked us to help find an apartment for her 6-week stay. We discovered something embarrassing: the best short-term rentals in Korea — on platforms like 33m2 — are essentially invisible to foreigners. Korean phone verification, Korean credit cards, Korean-only host chat.
She ended up booking a hotel for $4,200. The same length stay on 33m2 would have cost her $1,400 in a nicer apartment in a better neighborhood.
We built Locali to bridge that gap. We're not building a coliving company or another Airbnb. We're a translation and trust layer between Korean rental hosts and foreign visitors who want to live like locals during their stay.
Who's behind Locali
Siwon Yang
Founder · Seoul-based
Designer turned founder. Spent the last few years working with Korean hospitality and design clients. Locali grew out of helping foreign friends navigate Korean rental platforms — and realizing the problem affected thousands of people every month.
Yes, that's a real photo. Yes, we're a real team. We answer DMs.
How we operate
Operated from Seoul
All operations handled by Korean speakers physically in Seoul. We can walk to most of our listings.
Transparent pricing
You see the rent (set by host), 33m2 platform fee, and our service fee separately. No hidden markup.
Real listings only
Every listing on Locali links back to its original 33m2 page. No fake apartments. Verify yourself.
Reply within 1 hour
During Korea business hours, we reply to all guest inquiries within 1 hour. KakaoTalk + Email.
No subscriptions, no traps
Pay once per stay. Service fee is upfront. No auto-renewal, no surprise charges.
Independent business
Locali is an independent business in Korea. We're not a side project. This is what we do.
Questions before you book?
Email us, message us on KakaoTalk, or send a question via the chat button (bottom right). We'd rather answer 100 questions than have you book uncertain.
hello@localiseoul.com