Blog

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Investing in Tokyo Real Estate: Where and When to Buy

By Jeff Wynkoop One of the biggest issues for buyers of both new and used condominiums in Japan is whether you can expect the property to appreciate in value, or at least retain its value when it comes time to... More

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Is an asset meltdown coming?: Population trends and housing prices in Asia

By Jeff Wynkoop Professor Chihiro Shimizu from the Institute of Real Estate Studies at the National University of Singapore recently made public the initial results of a project he is working on correlating population trends and the impact these trends... More

Rent

Glossary of Japanese Real Estate Terms: Keywords for Renting an Apartment

By Jeff Wynkoop The following is a list of important real estate terms for renting an apartment in Japan. 敷金 Deposit Shikikin. This is the deposit paid when renting out a property. For residences, usually 1-2 months’ rent is required,... More

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Glossary of Japanese Real Estate Terms: Selling and Purchasing

By Jeff Wynkoop The following is a list of important Japanese real estate terms for purchase and sale transactions. 1R One Room A one room apartment. Usually includes an en suite toilet/bathroom and kitchenette. LDK This is shorthand for the... More

News

Japan’s most expensive parcel of land for 30 years running

Japan’s National Tax Agency recently announced rosenka (路線価) Roadside Land Value data for January 1st, 2015. The key takeaways from the data are 1) nationwide land prices declined 0.4%, the seventh consecutive year of decrease, but the rate of decrease... More

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Major Changes Coming to Appraisal System for Residential Housing in Japan

By Jeff Wynkoop According to the Nikkei Shinbun, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism (MLIT) will implement a major change to the way residential housing is appraised with the aim of juicing the second-hand housing market. The new... More

Buy

Japanese Government to Consider Relaxing Rules for Internet-Based Residential Leasing

By Jeff Wynkoop The Nikkei Shinbun reports that Japan’s Ministry of Land Infrastructure Transport and Tourism (MLIT) will start allowing real estate agencies to do internet and videophone-based disclosure explanations to potential clients (known as the “Explanation of Important Matters”)... More

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Japanese Government Planning to Implement a U.S.-Style Multiple Listing Service (MLS)

By Jeff Wynkoop According to a recent report by the Real Estate Economic Institute, the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (the “MLIT”) is currently working with the city of Yokohama to put together a new real estate... More

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Real Estate Broker Agreements and Fees in Japan

When a person selling a property desires to use a broker to locate a buyer, there are three types of representation the person can choose from: (1) general (ippan), (2) exclusive (sennin), and (3) restricted exclusive (senzoku sennin). General Representation... More

Services

New Book on Legal Issues in Japanese Real Estate Investment

Explains the main legal issues in Japanese real estate. Most of the information appears in English for the first time.