Apartment in Osaka to be tsunami evacuation point

October 15, 2011TsunamiReal Estate News,All,Osaka

An apartment building currently being constructed in Osaka's Yadogawa-ku has been designated as an evacuation site in the event of a tsunami.  This is the first new building in Japan to be designated prior to the beginning of apartment sales.

"Mikuni no Kawabe no Mori River Garden" is located alongside the Kanzakigawa River. The 15 story building with 197 apartments will be completed in January, 2013. The common hallways from the 3rd floor (7 meters high) and above can accommodate approximately 1000 evacuees in an emergency.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Land and apartment prices continue to fall [Nomura]

October 12, 2011Tokyo Land Prices,Tokyo apartment pricesReal Estate News,Market Information,All

Nomura Real Estate Urban Net published the results of their survey on residential land and apartment price movements on October 1, 2011. According to the data, bearish patterns continue for residential land prices in greater Tokyo (Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba).

Between July and September, residential land prices fell 1% in greater Tokyo. Of the surveyed areas, 5.7% had an increase in land prices, 64.3% had no change and 30% had a fall in prices. Meanwhile, land prices in Tokyo's 23 wards saw no change over the past 12 months while Saitama and Chiba Prefectures both saw a decline of 1.9%. Read more

by Zoe Ward

Steps towards reducing discrimination against foreign tenants

October 12, 2011Hyogo Prefecture,Kobe apartments for rentReal Estate News,Rental Market,All

Many foreigners may have experienced some kind of discrimination when trying to rent an apartment in Japan. Landlords not only discriminate against foreign residents, but also the elderly, disabled and even families with small children.

Hyogo Prefecture, has introduced a new relief system for rental housing that targets the elderly and foreigners who are frequently turned down by landlords when trying to rent an apartment.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Kobe Bay Sheraton Hotel Sold

October 11, 2011Japan Hotels,KobeReal Estate News,Sold Properties,All,Hotel News

The Kobe Bay Sheraton Hotel and Towers on Rokko Island will be sold to a hotel and ryokan (Japanese-style hotel) operator called Hotel New Awaji. The hotel name will not be changed and will continue to operate as normal.

The Bay Sheraton was opened in June, 1992. Up until 2005 it was owned by a subsidiary of JTB Corporation, however the long-lasting effects of the 1995 Hanshin earthquake and economic recession made the hotel unprofitable and it was sold to the American investment company, Lone Star Group. It is currently being operated by a subsidiary of Lone Star. Hotel New Awaji will also purchase the subsidiary and will continue to operate the hotel without any disruptions.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Housing starts in Tohoku up 18.5% and 59.3% in Fukushima

October 10, 2011Fukushima real estate,TohokuReal Estate News,Market Information,All

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), the new housing starts for the 6 prefectures in Tohoku had increased by 18.5% to 4523 units in August, compared to the same month in 2010. This is the second continuous month of increases.Read more

by Zoe Ward

[Foreclosed] Christy Homes Nishiazabu

October 8, 2011Foreclosed Tokyo,Japan Foreclosed Properties,Nishiazabu apartmentsForeclosed Properties,All

Court Evaluation: 364,770,000 Yen (4.73 million USD)

*Update: The winning bid was 488,800,000 Yen (6.3 million USD). A total of 16 bids were made on the property and the winning bidder was a corporate buyer. By 2013, the building had been demolished.

Christy Homes Nishiazabu is a 3-storey apartment building located right next-door to the Azabu Catholic Church in Nishiazabu 3 Chome. This apartment building looks like a high-end expat apartment building from the outside, but there are some serious flaws behind the surface which would, and mostly likely have, put off most buyers.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Nakagin Capsule on display at Roppongi Hills

October 7, 2011Mori Building,Mori Art Museum,Kisho Kurokawa,Nakagin Capsule TowerOther News,All

As part of Mori Art Museum's latest exhibition called "Metabolism, The City of the Future", a Nakagin Capsule is currently on display outside Mori Crosspoint along Roppongi Dori avenue. The capsule is identical to the ones used in the Nakagin Capsule Tower Building in Ginza. Read more about the apartment building here. There is also a display capsule at the bottom of the Nakagin Capsule Tower.Read more

by Zoe Ward