MLIT considers increasing house height limits
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) is considering extending the height limit of a wooden house in a revision to the Building Standards Act next year.
New hotel for Akasaka-Mitsuke
Mori Trust is planning a 26-story mixed-use hotel and office tower for the corner of the Akasaka-Mitsuke intersection in Tokyo. Construction is scheduled to start in August 2022 with completion expected by February 2025.
Apartment affordability ratios across Japan in 2020
In 2020, the average price of a 10-year old second-hand apartment nationwide was 5.92 times the average income, according to a report by Tokyo Kantei. Housing has become more expensive compared to 2019, which had a multiple of 5.52.
Wooden buildings on the rise in Japan
Japan is starting to see more mid-rise buildings constructed from wood materials. A revision to the Public Buildings Wood Use Promotion Act will go into effect on October 1, 2021, encouraging the use of domestic forest plantations planted after WWII not only in public buildings but also in privately developed buildings.
An apartment in Shinjuku for 99 Yen a month?
Who said living in Tokyo was expensive? IKEA Japan is offering a furnished rental apartment in Shinjuku for just 99 Yen (US 86 cents) a month.
50-yr old apartment building in Shinjuku to be refurbished
A former luxury rental apartment building in Shinjuku is undergoing a full refurbishment. Rather than follow the standard practice of demolishing and rebuilding from scratch, the 50-year old building will be stripped back to its concrete structure, retrofitted and renovated.
New apartment supply drops 38% in October
The supply of brand-new apartments released for sale across greater Tokyo for the month of October was 2,055 units, down 38.8% from last year and down 11.1% from the previous month. Unsold inventory dropped 16.9% from last year to 5,376 units.