Residential yields in Minato-ku - November 2015
According to real estate listing site Homes, the average gross yield on an apartment in Minato-ku in Tokyo was 4.7% in November, up 0.2 points from the previous month but down 0.6 points from last year. The average gross yield across Tokyo was 6.3%, down 0.2 points from the previous month and down 0.6 points from last year.
The average asking price of a second-hand apartment in Minato-ku was 877,700 Yen/sqm as of November 1, 2015, up 0.7% from the previous month and up 9.3% from last year. The average asking price for land was 1,280,909 Yen/sqm, up 0.9% from the previous month and up 0.6% from last year.Read more
Tokyo apartment sales in October 2015
The following is a selection of apartments that were sold in central Tokyo during the month of October 2015:Read more
Apartment prices up in Okinawa
Several high-rise residential buildings in Okinawa have seen an increase in re-sale prices over the past few years.
One of the recent residential developments, called RYU:X TOWER, sold out prior to completion. The twin tower condominium contains 676 apartments over 30 floors. The first tower was completed in 2013, and apartments have already been selling on the re-sale market for 10 ~ 25% higher than their price when new. Apartments can currently be found on the resale market for between 670,000 ~ 1,125,000 Yen/sqm. The second tower was completed in May 2015 and has already sold out. The most expensive apartment was priced at around 130 million Yen (1.07 million USD). This has been the largest condominium development in Okinawa to date.
Urtore Mihama is a 19-storey resort condominium in Chatan, and just south of the Kadena Air Base. The 421-unit complex was completed in 2010 at a time when Japan’s economy and property market was in a slump. Sales were off to a bad start at first, but saw an unexpected turnaround after the 2011 Tohoku Disaster led to an influx of families looking to move as far away from the Fukushima nuclear plant as possible. All apartments were eventually sold.Read more
Central Tokyo apartment asking prices up 17%
According to Tokyo Kantei, the average asking price of a 70 sqm (753 sq.ft) second-hand apartment in greater Tokyo in September was 31,590,000 Yen, up 1.4% from the previous month and up 11.9% from last year. This is the 13th month in a row to see an increase. The average building age was 22.4 years.
In Tokyo’s 23 wards, the average asking price was 49,130,000 Yen, up 1.0% from the previous month and up 16.5% from last year. This is the 15th month in a row to see an increase in prices. The average building age was 22.2 years.
In Tokyo’s central six wards (Chiyoda, Chuo, Minato, Shinjuku, Bunkyo and Shibuya), the average asking price was 69,210,000 Yen, up 1.3% from the previous month and up 17.0% from last year. The average building age was 20.6 years.
Tokyo residential rents continue slow rise
According to Tokyo Kantei, the average monthly rent of a condominium in greater Tokyo was 2,647 Yen/sqm in September, up 2.2% from the previous month and up 2.8% from last year. The leading cause of the increase in the rent was due to a large share (60%) of properties located in the Tokyo metropolitan area. The average apartment size was 60.27 sqm and the average building age was 19.0 years.
In the Tokyo metropolitan area, the average rent was 3,182 Yen/sqm, up 0.2% from the previous month and up 3.2% from last year. The average apartment size was 57.51 sqm and the average building age was 17.3 years.
In Tokyo’s 23 wards, the average rent was 3,326 Yen/sqm, up 0.4% from the previous month and up 3.7% from last year. The average apartment size was 56.93 sqm and the average building age was 16.7 years.
Average rents in Saitama, Osaka, Kobe and Nagoya were all down from last year.
Foreign investment in Japan reaches 19-year high but still low by international standards
Investment by foreign-based funds and corporations in Japanese real estate has reached the highest level since 1996. Between January and September 2015, foreign funds acquired 706.5 billion Yen (5.91 billion USD) of property, an increase of 41% from the same period in 2014.
Meanwhile, some last minute transactions at the end of 2014 put the annual acquisition volume for 2014 at 981.8 billion Yen.
Some of the funds have been seeking capital gains, while others, including government-related funds, have been seeking high yields with a long-term view for holding their assets. In September, average office rents in central Tokyo increased for the 21st month in a row. The average spread between the office yield in central Tokyo and the long-term interest rate is around 3%, versus 1% in Singapore and Hong Kong.Read more
New apartment sales slow in September
Rising prices have caused some buyers to retreat from the new apartment market, causing developers to postpone sales of some projects. According to the Real Estate Economic Institute, 2,430 new apartments were released for sale in September, down 6.9% from the previous month and down 27.2% from last year. 1,604 apartments were sold, making the contract rate 66.0%, down 8.3 points from the previous month and down 5.6 points from last year. This is also below the 70.0% level said to indicate the line between good and poor market conditions.
262 apartments in high-rise buildings (over 20 storeys) were offered for sale, down 36.3% from last year. The contract rate was 66.8%.
The average price of a brand new apartment released for sale in greater Tokyo was 53,930,000 Yen, down 8.2% from the previous month but up 13.2% from last year. The average price per square meter was 761,000 Yen, down 7.6% from the previous month but up 14.4% from last year.
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