Second-hand apartment transactions reach record high in 2021
According to REINS, a total of 39,812 second-hand apartments were reported to have sold across greater Tokyo in 2021, up 11.1% from 2020 and the highest level on record. Second-hand apartment transactions have exceeded those of new apartments, with the total supply of brand-new apartments in 2021 at 33,636 units. The myth of buyers only preferring new construction is well and truly ancient.
New apartment prices in Tokyo’s 23 wards still not at bubble high, but close
In 2021 the average price of a brand new apartment released for sale across greater Tokyo reached the highest level in history, beating a record high set during the asset bubble years of the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Abandoned hotel worries worsen in Nikko
Several dangerously dilapidated and abandoned hotels in Nikko’s Kinugawa onsen district have the city concerned.
The city has identified 16 abandoned hotels and ryokans in need of action. Three hotels have fallen into a dangerous level of disrepair, with the owners nowhere to be found. The 8 and 10-story concrete buildings are located on cliffside land between Kinugawa River and the national highway and have been closed for 10 ~ 20 years.
Tokyo apartment prices increase for 20th month
The average reported sale price per square meter for a second-hand apartment across greater Tokyo increased for the 20th month in a row in December. Last month, the average sale price was 641,700 Yen/sqm, up 5.3% from the previous month and up 11.6% from December 2020.
No buyers for abandoned hotels
Shuttered and abandoned, the Tenninkyō Grand Hotel in the Daisetsuzan National Park in Hokkaido is one of many dilapidated hotels across Japan that cannot even be given away.
Understanding the difference in earthquake codes for apartment buildings
Buyers often ask us about earthquake codes. For a country that lies alongside the Pacific Ring of Fire, it is a risk that we should all be aware of.
The most recent major change to the Building Standards Act for earthquake resistance occurred in 1981.
Why is this important?
US fund to acquire Ooedo Onsen Monogatari
Boston-based private investment firm Bain Capital announced the sale of Ooedo Onsen Monogatari to US fund Lone Star Group. The transfer of the management rights is expected to take place by the end of February.