30% of old buildings in Tokyo at risk of collapse in strong earthquake
On March 29, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government released data from earthquake resistance inspections on public buildings built to the old ‘kyu-taishin’ earthquake codes (pre-May 1981). A total of 251 kyu-taishin buildings, representing a third of the total, were determined pose some risk of collapse in the event of an earthquake producing a seismic intensity scale (shindo) of a 6-upper or above. Of those, 156 were found to be at high risk of collapse.
The publication of this data is the result of a revision to the Act for Promotion of Renovation for Earthquake-Resistant Buildings that was introduced in November 2013. Under this revision, public buildings used by an unspecified number of people, such as hotels and commercial facilities, with a floor area over 10,000 sqm and built to the old kyu-taishin earthquake codes are obligated to carry out earthquake resistance inspections, the results of which are made public. This also applies to old buildings located alongside emergency roads. Although the revision requires building owners to carry out inspections, there are no obligations or requirements to conduct the retrofitting.Read more
Tokyo's latest flood map puts a third of city in risk zone
On March 30, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government issued a new flood map based on a super typhoon hitting the nation’s capital. Approximately a third of Tokyo’s 23 wards, representing 212 square kilometers, could be at risk of being flooded by a storm surge. Almost all of the flood risk zones are located in the eastern part of Tokyo which is a low-lying district. Central Tokyo, with the exception of some of the waterfront districts, and the western side of Tokyo is on elevated ground and outside of the risk area.
If levees are breached, some areas in eastern Tokyo could see flood waters with a depth of over 50cm covering an area up 84 square kilometers for a week or longer. The maximum flood depth could exceed 10 meters in some zones. Sumida and Koto wards could see an average flood depth of around 7 meters.
The 1 in 1,000 ~ 5,000 year worst-case flooding scenario is based on the scale of the 1934 Muroto Typhoon that made landfall in Muroto, Awaji Island and Kobe. It caused tremendous damage in Osaka. Over 3,000 people lost their lives and 200,000 were left homeless. The typhoon brought a tide of 3 ~ 4 meters which inundated 49 square kilometers of Osaka City. The simulation is also based on the speed of Typhoon Vera, or the Isewan Typhoon, which struck the Tokai region in 1959.Read more
Apartment prices take a dip in Tokyo Bayside island district
According to data compiled by Tokyo Kantei, the average asking prices of second-hand apartments in several districts on the manmade islands in Tokyo Bay have declined over the past two years. This is despite the hype from the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which will see several facilities and the Athletes Village constructed on these islands. The report covered family-type apartments listed for sale between June and August 2017, comparing them to average asking prices in 2015 and 2016.
Kokusai-tenjijo Station Area:
Serviced by the Rinkai Line, this station is about 450 meters from the Tokyo Big Sight exhibition hall and opposite the Ariake Tennis Courts and Ariake Colosseum. A 1500-unit large-scale apartment complex is currently under construction not far from this station with completion scheduled in early 2020. Apartments in this new project have an average price of around 1,000,000 Yen/sqm. Meanwhile, the average asking price of a second-hand apartment in this district was 679,000 Yen/sqm, down 5.9% from 2016 and down 8.9% from 2015.Read more
Tokyo Apartment Sales in March 2018
The following is a selection of apartments that were reported to have sold in central Tokyo during the month of March 2018:Read more
Commercial land prices in Japan’s regional areas increase for first time in 26 years
On March 27, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) released the Chika-Koji assessed land prices for 2018. According to the data, nationwide land prices across all uses increased by 0.7%, a 0.3 point improvement from 2017 and the third year in a row to record a year-on-year increase.Commercial land prices increased for the third year in a row with a 1.9% increase in 2018. Residential land prices increased by 0.3% in 2018. In 2017, residential land prices increased by 0.022%, showing the first increase in 9 years.
Notably, commercial land prices in Japan’s regional areas increased by 0.5% - the first increase since 1992. Residential land prices in regional areas dropped by 0.1%, although the rate of decline has reduced.
The most expensive land in Japan is the site of the Yamano Music Building in Ginza, Tokyo. The land had an assessed value of 55,500,000 Yen/sqm (approx. 48,800 USD/sq.ft) in 2018, up 9.9% from 2017 and the fifth year in a row to record an increase. This land has increased in value by 275% since 2002.Read more