32 million Yen lawsuit filed against illegal Airbnb hosts in Osaka apartment building
The owners association of a condominium in Osaka’s Minami district have filed a lawsuit with the Osaka District Court seeking 32,670,000 Yen (approx. 300,000 USD) in damages from hosts providing illegal overnight accommodation in the building.
According to the association, 5 of the 100 apartments in the 10 year old building have been rented out to overnight guests using online booking sites, contravening the building management bylaws. The association made attempts to have the hosts, who also owned the apartments, stop the activity by imposing fines of 50,000 Yen per day and putting up posters in the building. However, their attempts were ignored.
Sales start in 50-storey high-rise in Osaka
Off-the-plan sales in the 50-storey Branz Tower Umeda North condominium began over the weekend, with the most expensive unit in the building - a 145 square meter three-bedroom penthouse - priced at 270 million Yen (approx. 2.37 million USD). A total of 218 apartments were offered for sale in the first round, representing a third of the total units in the building. Sale prices ranged from 36 to 270 million Yen and sizes ranged from 42 ~ 145 sqm (452 ~ 1,560 sq ft).
The 653-unit building is due for completion in November 2019 with apartments delivered to buyers from February 2020 onwards.