Tokyo's population reaches record high
Tokyo’s population has risen to a record high for the past 4 months in a row, reaching 14.09 million in August. This is the population of the Tokyo metropolitan area which includes the densely populated 23 wards, along with the cities to the west and island communities.Read more
Luxury hotel in Sapporo now a casualty of rising construction costs
Plans for a luxury hotel to crown the top of a high-rise project in front of Sapporo Station in Hokkaido have been scrapped due to rapidly rising construction costs. The upper floors will, instead, be office space to cater to the high demand from office tenants in central Sapporo.Read more
New high-rise development announced for west side of Shinagawa Station
On August 29, Keikyu Corporation and East Japan Railway Company released details on the Shinagawa Station District Redevelopment Project that will see three buildings on a 3.3 hectare site on the western side of the station.Read more
Apartment-hotel sells for 69 million Yen per key
Daiwa House REIT Investment Corporation has acquired the trust beneficiary rights to a 74-room hotel in Tokyo for 5.114 billion Yen (approx. US$35 million). The appraised NOI yield was 4.0% (3.5% after depreciation).Read more
Tokyo looks to eliminate 8,600 hectares of wooden homes by the 2040s
This month marks the 100th anniversary of the 1923 Great Kanto earthquake that struck the greater Tokyo area. That disaster saw approximately 105,000 lives lost, of which around 91,000, or 87%, were due to firestorms that quickly spread through neighborhoods filled with densely crowded wooden homes.Read more
50-yr old office building converted into share space
An old building in Jimbocho Book Town has been converted into a multi-use share space. Osaka-based construction company, Keyman Inc., took a 50-year old building with a GFA of 288m2 and carried out earthquake retrofitting and upgrades. And they didn’t do it alone - they worked with Souzou Kei Fudosan for consulting and Aki Watanabe Architects for design.Read more
Historic home in Kagoshima finds new owner
A local equipment leasing company has stepped in and saved a historic home in Kagoshima from demolition. The former Fujitake Residence had been owned and operated by the Kagoshima Prefecture Education Center Preservation Foundation since 1960 and used as a staff dormitory. The foundation was no longer using the home and struggling with maintenance costs. Read more