A fire destroys a neighbourhood in Itoigawa City, Niigata in 2016.

The government is in the process of making a potential revision to the Building Standards Act that could provide an extra 10% to the building footprint ratio in quasi-fire prevention districts. The goal of the revision is to encourage the reconstruction of older, non-fireproof buildings.

Under the proposed revision, if an older building in a quasi-fire prevention district is replaced with a fireproof or quasi-fireproof building, an extra 10% may be added to the footprint ratio (called the kenpeiritsu). This would mean that a building built on a 100 sqm block of land in a zone with a 60% footprint ratio could cover up to 70 sqm of the land instead of the original limit of 60 sqm. A ratio of up to 100% is already possible for fireproof buildings built in fire prevention districts in Commercial Zones.

This content is available to paid subscribers only.

Sharing information on Japan’s real estate market has been a long passion dating back 14 years. However, gathering and preparing this content takes hours and hours each week. By joining our monthly subscription service, you can access over 3,200 articles dating back 14 years. Best of all, you’ll be supporting us in our endeavor to continue to provide investors with on-the-ground, expert information.

To join our paid subscription service and access over 3,200 news articles on Japan's real estate market, please register here.

Already a paid member? Log-in using your details below.