CLT could soon be incorporated into Japan’s building code
Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) could soon become more popular as a building material in Japan. While it is already possible to construct a building using CLT, current regulations require additional structural consideration and specific approval from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT).
The government has been working on introducing legislation that will provide clear and concise standards under the Building Standards Act, and these changes could be introduced as early as this year. According to a white paper issued by the MLIT and the Forestry Agency in 2014, CLT production is estimated to reach 50,000 cubic meters in 2016. By 2024, it is hoped that annual production will reach 500,000 cubic meters (Europe produces approximately 700,000 cubic meters annually).Read more
Plans for Japan’s largest hotel on island in Okinawa
Hotel and restaurant operator Unimat Precious is planning a 3,400-room resort for Miyako-jima Island in Okinawa. The project will be an extension to the resort they currently operate on Miyako-jima. When complete, it is said that this will become the largest hotel/resort in Japan.
Shigira Resort is currently comprised of four different hotels, villas and condominiums located on a 3.3 million sqm beachfront estate. In addition to the 585 rooms currently under operations, there is also a golf course and hot spring facilities.Read more
90-year old town hall to be demolished
The 90-year old former Kano Town Hall in Gifu City will be demolished this year as repairs have become too costly and the building is at risk of collapse.
The 2-storey, reinforced concrete building was built in 1926 as the town hall for Kano Town (now part of Gifu City). The modernist building was designed by architect Goichi Takeda (1872-1938). It managed to survive the Gifu Air Raid of July 9, 1945, which destroyed 5 square kilometres of the city and killed 800 residents. For a brief time after the war it was used by the occupying forces. Read more
Tokyo apartment asking prices increase for 18th consecutive month
According to Tokyo Kantei, the average asking price of a 70 sqm (753 sq.ft) second-hand apartment in greater Tokyo in December 2015 was 32,690,000 Yen, down 0.2% from the previous month but up 12.8% from the previous year. This ends a 15 month streak where prices were increasing on a month-by-month basis. The average building age was 22.1 years.
In the Tokyo metropolitan area, the average price was 46,230,000 Yen, up 1.6% from the previous month and up 17.1% from the previous year. This is the 18th consecutive month to record a month-on-month increase.
In Tokyo’s 23 wards, the average price was 51,430,000 Yen, up 1.6% from the previous month and up 17.4% from the previous year. This is also the 18th month in a row to see a month-on-month increase. The average building age was 21.6 years.Read more
Apartment prices along Tokyo’s Chiyoda Line
The following data from Tokyo Kantei shows the change in apartment prices along the Chiyoda Subway Line. The first half this subway line runs through several high-end residential neighbourhoods in central Tokyo, before making its way north and terminating at Kita-Ayase in Adachi Ward.
Also, the line feeds into other lines including the JR Joban Line and Odakyu Odawara Line, and is one of the most used subway lines in Tokyo. Ayase Station, for instance, is the second most used station on the Metro with an average of 437,000 daily passengers changing trains, while Yoyogi Uehara has 250,000 daily passengers.
Otemachi, Nijubashi-mae, Hibiya, Kasumigaseki, and Kokkaigijido-mae Stations have been left out of the data. These stations are in the political and corporate headquarter districts of Tokyo and have very few residential properties.
The average price across all stations on the Chiyoda Line was 891,000 Yen/sqm in 2015, up 32.1% from 2014. The average building age was 20.5 years, down from 21.7 years in 2014. The average apartment size was 59.88 sqm (644 sq.ft), down from 63.08 sqm in 2014.
December 2015 rental data and annual average
According to Tokyo Kantei, the average monthly rent of a condominium apartment in greater Tokyo was 2,628 Yen/sqm in December 2015, up 0.2% from the previous month and up 2.6% from the previous year. The average apartment size was 59.84 sqm and the average building age was 19.7 years.
The average monthly rent in Tokyo’s 23 wards was 3,311 Yen/sqm, up 0.2% from the previous month and up 3.6% from the previous year. The average apartment size was 56.62 sqm and the average building age was 17.4 years.