TAS Corp's rental market data for February

According to TAS Corp's latest report on the rental market for apartments, the average vacancy rate in Tokyo's 23-ku was 11.85% in February, up 0.15 points from the previous month and up 0.28 points from February 2013.

Apartments were advertised for an average of 3.02 months before finding a tenant.Read more

by Zoe Ward

1 in 8 households in Japan live in an apartment

According to Tokyo Kantei, 11.94% of households in Japan live in a condominium apartment. The Tokyo metropolitan area has the highest percentage with 25.90% of households living in apartments.

  • Tokyo: 25.90%
  • Kanagawa Prefecture: 22.17%
  • Osaka: 18.20%Read more

by Zoe Ward

Secondhand apartment prices in January - Tokyo Kantei

According to Tokyo Kantei, the average asking price of a 70 sqm (753 sqft) second-hand apartment in Tokyo's 23 wards was 41,080,000 Yen in January, up 1.0% from the previous month and up 4.2% from January 2013. The average apartment age was 20.6 years.

In central Tokyo's six wards (Chiyoda, Chuo, Minato, Shinjuku, Bunkyo and Shibuya), the average apartment price was 55,680,000 Yen, up 1.4% from the previous month and up 8.1% from last year. The average apartment age was 20.9 years.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Minamiaoyama land sold for 13 billion Yen

Meiji Jisho, a company affiliated with Cerberus Capital Management, has sold a 1,916 sqm block of land in Minamiaoyama 3 Chome to Shimizu Corporation. The deal is estimated to be around 13 billion Yen (6,785,000 Yen/sqm). 

The land is currently a parking lot and fronts onto Aoyama Dori Avenue.

An adjoining 2,500 sqm site was sold by the Urban Renaissance Agency (UR) in March 2013 for 5.6 billion Yen (2,240,000 Yen/sqm). It was reported that the buyer was City Index Seven - related to the Murakami Fund. UR's landholding is more scattered with private roads and a smaller street frontage.

Read more

by Zoe Ward

Possible new subway line to connect Harumi and Ginza

Tokyo bayside new subway line

Chuo-ku will soon begin investigating the possibility of creating a new subway line to link Tokyo's bayside areas, including Harumi, to the Ginza district.

The manmade islands are currently going through a construction boom with a number of high-rise apartment towers under construction. The Athletes' Village for the 2020 Olympics is  expected to boost the population by 12,000 after the Olympics are finished and the apartments are made available to the public.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Office vacancy rates in January - Miki Shoji

According to Miki Shoji's office report, the office vacancy rate in Tokyo's five central business districts (Chiyoda, Chuo, Minato, Shinjuku and Shibuya) was 7.18% in January, down 0.16 points from the previous month and down 1.38 points from January 2013. Vacancy rates have been decreasing for the past 7 months.

The vacancy rate in brand new buildings was 14.42%, down 0.08 points from the previous month and down 9.79 points from last year.Read more

by Zoe Ward

Park Mansion Akasaka Hikawazaka Sold Out

Park Mansion Akasaka Hikawazaka 2

All 36 apartments in Mitsui Fudosan's Park Mansion Akasaka Hikawazaka have now sold out. 

The two and three-bedroom apartments were priced from 164 ~ 680 million Yen. With an average price of 2,190,000 Yen/sqm (2,000 USD/sqft), this is among the most expensive apartment buildings in Tokyo. Read more

by Zoe Ward