Neighbourhood changes name to avoid playground taunts
A residential neighbourhood in Kitanagoya City, which is 10km north of Nagoya, has successfully applied to change the reading of the area’s name to something less embarrassing.
徳重土部
While the kanji characters remain the same, the reading of the last two characters has been changed from ‘dobu’ to ‘tsuchibe’. The pronunciation of ‘dobu’ can mean drain or ditch, which does not exactly have positive connotations. Schoolchildren often made fun of the name, and local residents believed it to have a negative effect on property values.Read more
Sales start on Omotesando’s latest luxury condo next month
Mitsubishi Jisho Residence have announced details on their latest ‘The Parkhouse Gran’ series of condominiums. The Parkhouse Gran Minamiaoyama is currently under construction just 400 meters south-east of Omotesando Station and 200 meters from the Prada Boutique. This is a site we have been watching for some time now.
Sales are scheduled to start in early June. Of the 101 apartments, only 20 will be made available for sale, with 81 going to landholders and participants of the project. Given the very prestigious and exclusive location, and the extremely limited supply of apartments, we are expecting this project to see a same-day sellout. The sales schedule has yet to be announced, but we would expect apartments to be offered for sale under a lottery-type system where interested buyers submit applications during a short sales campaign, with lucky buyers selected from a raffle at the end.
Pricing has yet to be announced, but going by other recent luxury developments in central Tokyo, we are expecting apartments to be priced between 2 ~ 3 million Yen/sqm (1,530 ~ 2,300 USD/sq ft). A 23-year old residential building further down the street has refurbished apartments listed for around 1.8 million Yen/sqm, while 30 ~ 50 year old apartments in the Omotesando area can start from around 1 million Yen/sqm.Read more
Secondhand apartment prices remain bullish in April
According to Tokyo Kantei, the average asking price of a 70 sqm (753 sq ft) apartment in greater Tokyo in April was 29,690,000 Yen, up 0.4% from the previous month and up 4.5% from last year. This is the 8th month in a row to see a month-on-month increase. The average building age was 21.9 years.
The rising cost of brand new apartments is thought to be a contributing cause to the increase in the price of second-hand apartments. Rising prices in central Tokyo are pulling up the average, while suburban areas fall behind. In Chiba City, for example, the average apartment price is down 4.1% from last year.
In Tokyo’s 23 wards, the average asking price was 45,630,000 Yen, up 0.6% from the previous month and up 10.0% from last year. This is the 10th month in a row to see a month-on-month increase and is 3.5% below the previous peak in February 2008. The average building age was 22.2 years.
In central Tokyo’s six wards, the average price was 64,920,000 Yen, up 0.4% from the previous month and up 13.4% from last year. The average building age was 21.5 years.
In Chiyoda-ku, the average asking price was 89,720,000 Yen, up 1.6% from the previous month and up 10.5% from last year.
Supply in central areas is very limited which is putting more pressure on prices. Tokyo Kantei believes prices will continue to increase in central Tokyo. One trend that is becoming particularly noticeable is that sellers, such as developers, are holding off on selling properties now in anticipating of selling them in the future for even higher prices.Read more
Additional fire risk areas identified in Tokyo
Last month an additional 1,030 hectares in 9 wards in Tokyo were added to the city’s list of densely packed, high fire risk neighbourhoods. Old houses in these designated districts may be eligible for financial assistance for demolition costs.
The 13 newly designated areas are located within Tokyo’s 23-ku, including Shinagawa, Adachi and Setagaya.
In Adachi ward, a total area of 645.4 hectares has been designated as being a high-risk fire hazard. The area is primarily around the west side of Nishiarai Station. Many areas have a high risk of fire and building collapse, which can be reduced by the widening of roads and the construction of newer and safer homes.Read more
Historic 84-year old apartment building in Chuo-ku under demolition
The historic Shokin Apaato in Chuo-ku, Tokyo, is being demolished to make way for a 13-storey mixed-use office and residential building.
Shokin Apaato was built in 1931, around the same time as the Dojunkai apartments. The 5-storey, reinforced concrete building was occupied by tenants up until 2013. The owner decided to rebuild as the building does not meet earthquake-resistant standards and has become too costly to maintain.Read more