Although land prices have been falling year on year in the popular resort town of Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture, property transactions have increased since the March 11 Tohoku disaster as the power conservation and fear of radiation led people to seek safer and cooler locations outside of Tokyo.

According to local real estate agents, following the March 11 disaster inquiries about renting vacation homes in Karuizawa increased 5-fold from the year prior. Sales revenue from second-hand vacation homes, or ‘besso’ properties, has increased by 1.5 times from 2010. One agent reported that a lot of buyers felt uneasy about having all of their assets in Tokyo, so they began looking at buying properties in other areas. Many other buyers were purchasing homes they plan to live in after retirement.

The electricity conservation measures over the summer resulted in an increase in tourists to Karuizawa who were looking to escape Tokyo’s heat. The number of tourists who visited in July was 10% higher than the previous year.

A real estate agent from Chino City in the Tateshina Kogen resort area said that vacation home inquiries had increased two-fold and the number of transactions were 1.8 times higher than the year before. The agent said that the best selling homes are second-hand properties priced between 10 and 35 million Yen (130~455,000 USD), but brand new homes are very difficult to sell.

Source:
The Shinano Mainichi Shimbun, September 21, 2011.

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