New apartment price across Japan reaches record high in 2018
According to the Real Estate Economic Institute, a total of 80,256 brand-new apartments were released for sale across Japan in 2018, up 3.7% from 2017, and the first time since 2014 to see supply exceed 80,000 units. Greater Tokyo saw a 3.4% increase in supply, while the Kinki, Chubu and Tokai regions saw increases of over 7%. Another 80,000 new apartments are expected to be supplied for sale in 2019. This is still below the recent peak of 105,282 units supplied in 2013.
Japan land prices increase in 97% of locations, setting new record
On February 15, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) published their quarterly LOOK Report for land prices in Japan’s major cities in the fourth quarter of 2018.
According to the report, land prices increased in 97 of the 100 surveyed locations. This is the highest share in the history of reporting, beating previous records set in recent quarters. It is also the fourth consecutive quarter to see increases in over 90% of locations.
Greater Tokyo apartment sale prices down in January, ending 72-month streak
According to REINS, 2,667 second-hand apartments were reported to have sold across greater Tokyo in January, down 10.7% from the previous month but up 1.0% from January 2018. The average sale price was 32,940,000 Yen, down 2.5% from the previous month and down 1.9% from last year. The average price per square meter was 514,600 Yen, down 1.8% from the previous month and down 0.3% from last year. This ends a 72-month streak of year-on-year increases in sale prices.
Apartment rents in Tokyo increase by 5.3% in 2018
The average rent for an apartment in Tokyo’s 23 wards saw a 5.3% year-on-year increase in 2018 - the highest annual percentage increase in over 10 years. This was due in part to the fact that over 10% of the listings in the first half of the year were new construction. Newly built apartments tend to command higher rents than older ones, and can pull up the average. Average rents in Tokyo are now up 16% from their bottom in 2012.
Tokyo Apartment Sales in January 2019
The following is a selection of apartments that were reported to have sold in central Tokyo during the month of January 2019:
Central Tokyo apartment asking prices reach record high in December
According to Tokyo Kantei, the average asking price of a 70 sqm (753 sq.ft) second-hand apartment in greater Tokyo was 37,290,000 Yen in December 2018, up 0.5% from the previous month and up 3.2% from December 2017. The average building age was 24.3 years.