Bed bugs in goshiwon — how common honestly?

Real but not typical. It is a building problem, not a goshiwon problem, and it is checkable in about sixty seconds.

Context: Korea had a noticeable bed bug scare in late 2023 that got a lot of coverage, which is where most of the horror stories you have read come from. The response was aggressive — nationwide inspections and treatment programmes — and the situation now is much closer to normal. Most students never encounter one.

What you are more likely to meet in an older building: small cockroaches, especially near shared kitchens and in summer. Annoying rather than serious, and a well-cleaned building does not have them.

How to check when viewing, and this takes a minute:

1. Pull back the bed sheet and look at the mattress seams and the corners, especially at the head end. Bed bugs leave small dark spots along the seams. This is the definitive check and you should do it in every room you view.
2. Look at the wall behind the bed head and along the skirting.
3. Ask directly: "방역 얼마나 자주 해요?" — how often is pest control done. Buildings do schedule it, and a confident answer is a good sign.
4. Check the shared kitchen at night if you can. That is where cockroaches show.

What to do if you are worried anyway:
- Do not put your suitcase on the bed, ever. Use the floor or a rack. This is the single habit that prevents most transfer.
- Buy a mattress encasement (about 20,000 won) if it would let you sleep. It is cheap and it settles the question.

If you do find them after moving in: tell the operator immediately and in writing. Korean law puts pest control on the operator, treatment is standard and they will arrange it. Do not try to handle it yourself and do not stay quiet — one untreated room becomes the whole floor, and operators know that and act.

And the practical filter: newer buildings and well-run buildings do not have this problem. It correlates with the same things as everything else — how well the place is maintained. The 8am viewing tells you that too.