According to the Real Estate Economic Institute, 2,921 new apartments were released for sale in October, up 20.2% from the previous month but down 6.5% from last year. This is the second month in a row to see a decline in supply from the previous year and has been attributed to both an increase in prices as well as the discovery of a faulty condominium in Yokohama last month which has caused turmoil in the real estate industry. Before news broke of the construction mishap, the Institute were predicting 3,500 apartments to be offered for sale in October. Although Autumn is typically a period of heavy sales activity by developers, the sales of several projects were delayed due to the uncertainty following the Yokohama apartment scandal. Only one large-scale project (a building containing over 100 units) went on sale in October, down from four large-scale projects last year.
A researcher from the Institute said that visitor numbers to apartment show rooms were relatively flat, and it is possible that developers will continue to delay sales until consumer confidence in the new apartment market improves.
2,010 apartments were sold, making the contract rate 68.8%, up 2.8 points from the previous month and up 5.5 points from last year.
475 apartments in high-rise buildings (over 20 storeys) were offered for sale, up 36.5% from last year. The contract rate was 79.8%.
The average price of a brand new apartment released for sale in greater Tokyo was 53,640,000 Yen, down 0.5% from the previous month but up 17.6% from last year. The average price per square meter was 759,000 Yen, down 0.3% from the previous month but up 19.0% from last year.