Marriott to open W Hotel in Osaka in 2021

January 16, 2018Japan real estate,japan real estate market,Japan Hotel News,Japan Real Estate News,Osaka Real Estate MarketReal Estate News,All,Osaka,Hotel News

On January 10, Sekisui House and Marriott International announced plans for Japan’s first W Hotel. The 337-room W Osaka will open in the Shinsaibashi district in 2021. Room rates have yet to be decided, but it is expected that this will be one of the priciest hotels in Osaka city.

The building will be 117 meters tall with 27 floors and will be designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Tadao Ando.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Kyoto property prices pushing younger buyers out of town

January 15, 2018Real Estate News,All,Kyoto

Recent population data provided by Kyoto City is showing a growing trend of younger residents moving out of the city to surrounding districts. If this trend continues, the city could see a net outflow of residents in the 30-year old age bracket.

The average price of an apartment in the city in 2016 was about 20 ~ 50% higher than the top 10 cities that these younger residents are moving to, leading some to say that Kyoto has become unaffordable for the younger generation. With surging hotel development creating a shortage of residential development sites, the average apartment price in central Kyoto has reached around 1,000,000 Yen/sqm (approx. 835 USD / sq ft), close to double the price in other districts. In 2016, Kyoto City was the second most expensive district in Japan, second to Tokyo, for new apartments with an average price of 52,960,000 Yen.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Our Japan Property Market Report for 2017

January 12, 2018Japan real estate,japan real estate market,tokyo real estate,Tokyo apartment prices,Tokyo real estate market,Japan Real Estate NewsReal Estate News,Market Information,All

Our annual property market report for the past year can be downloaded in PDF format below.

We continued to see property prices rise in 2017, while transactions hit new highs. The luxury residential market in Tokyo has been a star performer and developers are starting to increase their offerings of high-end apartments to cater to demand.

Supporting the real estate market this year were record high foreign tourist numbers, record low office vacancy rates, a surging share market, improving economic conditions and low unemployment figures.

We have compiled our market insights into the following report:Read more

by Zoe Ward

How much does earthquake insurance cost in Japan?

January 11, 2018All

When buying a home in Japan you may want to consider earthquake insurance. As at the end of 2016, approximately 30% of Japanese households had earthquake insurance. Insurance premiums will vary depending on (1) the location of the property and (2) the type of construction, while payouts will vary depending on the level of damage.

Payouts are between 30 ~ 50% of the insured value of the fire insurance policy, and cannot exceed 50 million Yen (approx. 440,000 USD) for the property and 10 million Yen (approx. 88,000 USD) for contents. For example, if the fire insurance coverage is 20 million Yen, the earthquake insurance coverage will be between 6 ~ 10 million Yen.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Supply of new apartments in greater Tokyo to increase in 2018

January 10, 2018Real Estate News,Market Information,All,Osaka,Tokyo,Kyoto

According to a forecast by the Real Estate Economic Institute, a total of 38,000 brand new apartments are expected to be released for sale across greater Tokyo in 2018, up 4.4% from 2017 and the second year in a row to see an increase. Depending on demand for buyers eager to purchase before the consumption tax rate increase in October 2019, supply could reach as high as 40,000 units.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward to impose strict rules on short-term rentals

January 9, 2018All,Laws and Lawsuits,Tokyo

Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward has announced plans that could require hosts of minpaku-style short-term rentals required to either live in the property with the guests or within close proximity. The new rules could be introduced in June to coincide and override the national regulations set to go into effect this year.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Tokyo Apartment Sales in December 2017

January 8, 2018Japan real estate,japan real estate market,tokyo real estate,Tokyo apartment prices,Tokyo real estate market,Japan Real Estate NewsReal Estate News,Market Information,All,Tokyo

The following is a selection of apartments that were reported to have sold in central Tokyo during the month of December 2017:Read more

by Zoe Ward