Tokyo apartment discounts in July
The median discount on an existing apartment sold in Tokyo’s 23 wards shrunk for the 4th month in a row, with 1.4% seen on transactions in July. This is 0.4 points lower than the median seen in July 2019. Buying activity continued to improve in July, with transaction numbers that may be on par with last year.
Commercial real estate transactions emerge from slump
There are already signs that some sectors of the real estate market are emerging from the pandemic-induced slump, with the total commercial transaction value in June recovering by a considerable amount from the record low seen in May.
Some short-term hosts pivot to day-use office rentals
With inbound tourism essentially sitting at zero, some ‘minpaku’ or Airbnb-type accommodation operators are either closing up shop or pivoting into offering telework options in a last-ditch effort to stay afloat in a challenging market.
Harajuku has best apartment resale value in 2019
According to an annual report released by Tokyo Kantei on July 2nd, apartments around Harajuku Station had the highest resale value over a 10-year span. The report ranks 515 stations in the greater Tokyo area by the average difference in the resale value of a 10-year old apartment compared to its price when brand new.
Job losses in Niseko putting pressure on rental market
International travel bans and a state of emergency have seen the highly tourist-reliant ski towns in Niseko and surrounding towns suffer from a steep fall in employment and a sharp uptick in vacant apartments.
Showroom closures see new apartment supply hit 47-year low
The supply of brand new apartments released for sale across greater Tokyo in June dropped 31.7% from last year to 1,543 units. This is the 10th month in a row to see a year-on-year drop, although it is a four-fold increase from the units supplied in May.
Tokyo apartment discounts in June
The real estate industry kicked back into gear in June as both businesses and individuals began to pick up activity after the end of the state of emergency. Transactions of existing apartments, while not back to last year’s numbers, have improved significantly in June, following two months of drastic falls. In Tokyo’s Minato ward, transactions are only 2.4% below the number reported in June 2019. What about discounts? Is it a negotiation frenzy?