Buying Real Estate

Buying a very affordable condominium in Japan ?: Do the due diligence

Irresistible ?

I receive a number of inquiries about very affordable and yet old condominiums from foreign nationals.

They don’t know much about Japanese market.

Japan is facing serious social issues including ageing society and shrinking population.

And old condominiums are facing similar realities especially in the regional areas.

I am not saying all old condominiums are risky but please do not jump at the gun only because they are cheap.

You need to carefully investigate the property and check the potential risks.

Real estates are totally controlled by the market mechanism and they are cheap for a reason.

That said, if you carefully search, you could get a relatively good investment.

Read more

Do you need an inkan (seal, name stamp) to buy a property in Japan ?

(How to use inkan)

What kind of documents do you need to have for the registration of your property ?

After you acquire your property, you want to register your ownership with the officials here, right ?

If you don’t register your ownership(title), you can not legally argue that your property is yours.

You need the officially backing from the government.

Japan has the system called ‘Real estate registration’ (FUDOSAN-TOUKI 不動産登記)

Read more

Can foreigners get a MORTGAGE LOAN for home in Japan ? : Key Factors

Are you curious about the mortgage loan in Japan ?

Few individuals have enough savings or liquid funds to enable them to purchase property outright.

It is normal for home purchases to be funded by a mortgage loan.

A mortgage loan is used either by purchasers of real property to raise funds to buy real estate, or alternatively by existing property owners to raise funds

for any purpose, while putting a lien on the property being mortgaged.

The home mortgage loan is widely available in Japan, too.

The best referral source for obtaining a foreign national mortgage loan is a local real estate broker that works in Japan.

Read more

Fast track is available: Japan’s green card by the real estate investment ? : How long does it take and how ? (YouTube Part-2)

Part-2

Japan dramatically relaxed the green card regulations a few years ago.
Now you could get the green card by investing in Japan with 1 year stay.

Japan is not selling the green card but the real estate investment (or any other type of business

by establishing your entity here) should work very well.

Again the government is not selling the green card but you can
intelligently leverage the real estate investment for the preferential treatment.

I am discussing more practical strategy to get prepared and apply for the green card. 

There is even a fast track.

If you like Japan and want to contribute to my country in good ways, your investment should be

appreciated by the government.

Read more

Is it a good investment ? Due Diligence For high-rise condominium buyers : What You Need to Check

High-rise condominiums sometimes meet fierce resistance from residents who believe their neighborhoods are being overwhelmed by soaring glass towers.

In Japan, a number of rich and famous are living in those high rise condominiums.
But are they really good investment ? What are the potential risks ?

The higher that buildings can stretch into the sky, the more money that developers can command for sweeping views.

Those luxury condominiums are called ‘tower mansion’ in Japan.

I know it sounds very confusing.

In Japan mansions aren’t massive houses and estates for the rich and famous.

They are conventional apartments for regular people

(manshon ~ マンション).

Japanese mansions are the equivalent of condominiums.

People buy them to live in or rent out.

Read more

How many AKIYAS are there in Japan now ? : New survey was released

Truth to be told.

1 in 7 homes across the country is empty.

Around 5 million of Japan’s vacant homes are intended for future sale or rental.

The phenomenon is a function of a declining population and the continued pace of housing construction.

Despite being the world’s third-largest economy, Japan’s population has been shrinking since 2010.

The population is also getting older.

A new survey shows the problem is far greater than expected.

The government recently announced the new survey result about akiya (unused house)

According to the Housing and Land Statistics Survey in October 2018 announced by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, the ratio of akiya (unused house)  to the total number of dwellings in the country was a record high of 13.6%

,meaning 1 in 7 homes across the country is empty.

Read more