Osaka's most expensive apartment sold during first round of sales

Osaka’s most expensive apartment building went on sale on February 19, with 2,523 applications made on the 146 apartments offered for sale  in the lottery. That included a 2.5 billion Yen penthouse on the 46th floor that received several applications. An average of 17 applications were made per apartment, with the most popular apartment receiving 95 applications.Read more


Rents fors larger apartments reach record high in January

Advertised apartment rents in Tokyo have been on a noticeable increase since around mid-2022, but it’s the larger apartments that have been seeing the highest rate of rental growth.Read more


Thinking of converting multi-family to short-term furnished rentals?

With cap rates on some multi-family buildings in Tokyo now in the 3% range, furnished or short-term say rentals in Tokyo are an appealing tactic for investors looking to squeeze out some higher rents. We have sourced a few of these options recently that are available for purchase while still under construction.Read more


Harumi's office market woes continue

News broadcaster NHK has now picked up on the struggling office market conditions around Tokyo Bay, particularly Harumi island. Of interest is the Harumi Island Triton Square office complex. The landmark project was completed in 2001 with a shopping mall inspired by Southern Europe. Above, there are four office blocks with a total floor area of 383,300 m2 (4.1 million sq.ft).

Office occupancy was great up until five years ago, with some of the towers fully leased up. Now, there is around 10,000 tsubo or 33,000 m2 of vacant space. One of the office towers has a vacancy rate of 20%.Read more


Nozawa Onsen’s housing shortage

A shortage of housing in Nozawa Onsen is creating headaches for new residents. The bustling hot spring and ski resort village had entered into a decline in the 1990s and 2000s as the domestic ski boom waned, but has seen a recovery since the 2010s as foreigners descended on the mountainous destination, opening up tourism and accommodation businesses.Read more


Almost 80% of young renters want an apartment building less than 20 yrs old

AtHome conducted a nationwide survey of renters in their 20s to find out what they’re looking for when renting an apartment.Read more


Apartment rents in Tokyo reach record high in 2023

Renewed population growth in Tokyo has resulted in rents in the 23 wards increasing by 8.0% to a record high of 4,152 Yen/sqm in 2023. Average rents are now 30% higher than they were in 2014.

Rising property prices are also causing a growing number of would-be buyers to turn to the rental market instead, adding extra pressure on the demand side. 

All major urban centers surveyed by Tokyo Kantei saw annual rental price growth in 2023, although some have seen growth at a higher pace than others. Tokyo’s 23 wards saw the highest year-on-year increase of 8.0%, followed by Saitama City (+7.6%) and Kobe City (+7.4%). Osaka City saw a 3.9% increase after a 7.7% increase in 2022.

The data provided by Tokyo Kantei is based on the advertised rent of condominium-type apartments recorded in Tokyo Kantei’s database and is limited to family-type apartments (excluding apartments under 30 sqm in size, office and retail space).

Source: Tokyo Kantei, January 17, 2023.