Cheats and tricks in real estate advertising
Japan has rules that regulate real estate advertising to consumers, but they are self regulated by nine organizations across the country. One of those organizations is the Real Estate Fair Trade Council of greater Tokyo. According to the Council, the number of illegal advertising tricks by real estate companies is increasing online. The most common of these tricks is bait-and-switch and misleading advertisements.Read more
Prices down, yields up in Nakagin Capsule Tower
Prices of 'capsules' in the Nakagin Capsule Tower have fallen significantly over the past four years, but rents have remained relatively stable, leading to a boost in rental returns.
In 2008, capsules were priced as high as 6 million Yen each. Now they can be bought for between 2 and 3 million Yen (21,000 ~ 32,000 USD) each. The average monthly maintenance, repair fund and land rent fees (the building is on leasehold land) totals approximately 17,300 Yen for each unit.Read more
Nationwide land price declines shrink in 2012
On September 20, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) announced the results of the nationwide survey of land prices (chika-chosa). The average residential land price fell 2.5% (compared with a 3.2% fall in 2011), and the average commercial land price fell 3.1% (compared with a 4.0% fall in 2011). The rate of decline was smaller than normal this year, indicating that the market is heading towards a recovery. However, this is the 21st year of continual decreases in residential land prices, and the 5th year of continual decreases in commercial land prices.Read more
Original Nikko Kanaya Hotel and Samurai House Foreclosed
*Update: The property sold to a private buyer for 33,000,000 Yen. They were the only bidder. It was then carefully restored, and registered as a Tangible Cultural Property in 2014. From 2015 onwards it has been open to the public.
The original 350+ year old Nikko Kanaya Hotel has been foreclosed on and is up for auction with a minimum bid set at 25 million Yen (320,000 USD). The house was originally built as a samurai residence in the Kan'ei era (1624-1644). At the beginning of the Meiji era, James Curtis Hepburn, a Christian missionary who created the Hepburn romanization system for Japanese, stayed at the home, which was then the residence of Zenichiro Kanaya. Mr. Hepburn suggested that the owner use his home as an inn for foreigners. The house soon became a popular spot for foreign guests and became known as "Kanaya Cottage Inn" and was later re-named "Kanaya Hotel."Read more