Village Vanguard launches real estate site
Kitsch store and burger joint Village Vanguard has launched a real estate portal to feature the quirky and offbeat apartments that you might not normally see in the window of a typical agency.
Visitors to the site (http://vv-realestate.com) can search for rental apartments, homes, shops, carparks or offices and can narrow down their search with special keywords including:
- Retro / vintage style
- Industrial style
- Slow, organic west coast lifestyle
- Japanese tea room style
- Street art style
- A room inspired by Oasis' first album (see below) Read more
Former Yakuza arrested for squatting
A former Yakuza leader was arrested by police after allegedly squatting in an apartment in Tokyo's Itabashi-ku for 14 months. In early 2012, the 36-year old suspect had asked a real estate agency to view the apartment, which was advertised for rent, and was given a key to inspect it himself. He never returned the key, nor signed a rental contract.
Gas and electricity were connected by the suspect, and he had even installed a security camera.Read more
The last Dojunkai to be demolished in June
While the 84-year old Uenoshita Apartments in Tokyo's Taito-ku may have miraculously survived the Great Tokyo Air Raid in 1945, it is not immune from re-development as the wrecking ball is set to swing on the apartment building next month.Read more
Saitama's "Johnson Town" resembles US suburb
While Hokkaido has its own version of a Swedish village, Saitama has 'Johnson Town' a small neighbourhood of American-style homes built to house the US forces during the Korean War in the early 1950s.
Although much of Johnson Town's atmosphere can be attributed to it's re-development in the 1950s, the history of this enclave dates back even further.Read more