Tokyo Apartment Sales in December 2016
The following is a selection of apartments that were sold in central Tokyo during the month of December 2016:Read more
Niseko luxury condominium/hotel opens this month
AYA Niseko, a luxury ski-in ski-out condominium/hotel located on the Grand Hirafu Resort ski slope, opened its doors this month. The 79-unit building is already almost 90% sold out, with the final few apartments expected to sell over the ski season.
The majority of apartments were in the 88 ~ 90 sqm range and priced from 100 ~ 400 million Yen (approx. 850,000 ~ 3.4 million USD), while a 370 sqm penthouse, which has already sold, was priced at 600 million Yen (approx. 5.1 million USD). Apartment prices are similar to what can be found in central Tokyo.Read more
More details on proposed changes to annual property taxes
More details have been released on the proposed revision to the annual fixed asset taxes for high-rise apartments.
Current tax valuations for the building are based on the size of the apartment, which means an apartment on the 40th floor would have the same fixed asset value as the same-sized apartment on the 1st floor, despite market prices being vastly different.
Under the proposed revision, apartments on higher floors will be more heavily taxed, while apartments on lower floors will have lower taxes. For a 40-storey apartment building, the difference in tax value between a 1st floor and 40th floor apartment could be around 10%. If the annual tax was 200,000 Yen, the apartment on the 1st floor might end up with a tax bill of 190,000 Yen, and the apartment on the 40th floor might have a tax bill of 210,000 Yen. For a 50-storey building, the difference might be 12 ~ 13%.
If approved, the new tax calculation method would apply to brand-new apartment buildings delivered to buyers from 2018 onwards. The target of the tax revision is brand-new buildings over 60 meters tall (over 20 storeys). It will not apply to existing buildings delivered to buyers before this date.
Sources:
Jiji Press, November 25, 2016.
The Nikkei Shimbun, November 26, 2016.
Japan’s first zero energy apartment building coming in 2019
Developer Sekisui House is planning Japan’s first net-zero energy condominium-type apartment building in Nagoya City. Construction is scheduled to start in mid-2017 with completion by early 2019.
The 3-storey building will contain 12 apartments. Solar panels on the rooftop will be capable of producing up to 4kW per apartment, or up to 50kW for the building. Each apartment will have its own Ene-farm fuel cell which comes with a remote control display screen so that residents can monitor electricity usage and emissions. Both the solar panels and fuel cells can provide back-up power in the event of a power outage. Insulation is also a priority with argon gas double-glazed windows.Read more
Average apartment rent in November 2016
According to Tokyo Kantei, the average monthly rent of a condominium in greater Tokyo was 2,738 Yen/sqm in November, up 1.5% from the previous month and up 4.3% from last year. This is the fifth consecutive month to see a month-on-month increase in rents. The average apartment size was 59.12 sqm and the average building age was 20.0 years.
In the Tokyo metropolitan area, the average monthly rent was 3,312 Yen/sqm, up 1.9% from the previous month and up 1.7% from last year. The average apartment size was 56.78 sqm and the average building age was 18.1 years.Read more