A Comprehensive Guide to Buying Property in Japan as a Foreigner
Cost of buying a real estate property in Japan | The purchase of a house/condominium
https://www.cntraveler.com/story/japan-digital-nomad-visa
Searching Japan's abandoned houses for the ultimate fixer-upper
2025-02-24 Mon:
- Starting April 2025, Japan will implement revised building codes and energy conservation standards as part of the 改正建築基準法 (Revised Building Standards Law) and 建築物省エネ法 (Building Energy Efficiency Law), which will require all new buildings, including renovations of akiya (vacant homes), to meet specific energy efficiency standards.
- These changes may negatively affect potential akiya buyers by increasing renovation costs, as they will need to comply with stricter energy efficiency and structural requirements, potentially making the purchase and renovation of these homes more expensive.
- For those interested in buying an akiya, the added costs of meeting these new standards could offset the initial affordability of these properties, especially since renovations already involve significant expenses for upgrades like insulation, seismic retrofitting, and modernizing plumbing and electrical systems.
2025-02-06 Thur - some great advice in this YouTube channel:
2024-05-07 CNN: Super-aged Japan now has 9 million vacant homes. And that’s a problem
Great resources for finding inexpensive Japanese homes for sale, or rent:
- https://www.facebook.com/TokyoGaijinMode
- https://www.facebook.com/cheaphousesjapan
- https://www.facebook.com/AkiyaHouseJapan
- https://www.koryoya.com/akiya/
- https://www.allakiyas.com/
- https://www.akiya-mart.com/
- https://www.akiyainaka.com/akiya-listings/
- https://www.akiyajapan.com/
- https://www.akiyabanks.com/
- https://cheaphousesjapan.com/buy-an-akiya-japan/
Interesting expat blogs and YouTube channels, about living in Japan:
This is the YouTube video that got me hooked on the idea of a
Japanese farm house...
We Bought an Abandoned House in Japan, Exterior | Tractor, 2 Cars,
Farm Tools Left Behind
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNFD9fKOWic
We Bought an Abandoned House in Japan, Interior, Everything Left
Inside
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgw_8fTkqNk
How We Bought Our Abandoned House in Japan | Process, Costs, Risks,
Finance, How to Find One
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwRjO3kHxU4
Some recent updates...on their progress...
Spring Garden Year 3 Update | Tokyo Llama
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZPv5UrvXko
35 Things We Still Need to Do on Our House | Abandoned House
Renovation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHIR5xhe0So
Their channel is filled with wonderful stories of their
journey...
https://www.youtube.com/c/TokyoLlama
Some other stories...
Aussie Turns 130 Year Old Japanese House into Cafe/Farm/School |
Tokyo Llama
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oF-ljp7plLg
Incredible Tiny House Off-Grid Homestead in Japan | SELF-BUILT
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgfrlRGxz5w
What A US$23,000 House Looks Like in Rural Wakayama, Japan
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp0cXfA1-Q4
Before & After - 6 months in a 120-year-old Japanese Kominka
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s19vS3BzmMY
Jaw-Dropping Traditional Small Japanese Home Renovation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36_6AnhQDT0
Some property listings in Japan...
(some better sites for finding the real bargains...)
https://realestate.co.jp/en/forsale/listing?prefecture=&city=&district=&min_cap_rate=&min_price=&max_price=10000000&min_meter=&rooms=&distance_station=&agent_id=&building_type=house&building_age=&updated_within=&transaction_type=&occupancy=&order=&search=Search
example: 5M Yen ~ $41.6K USD
https://realestate.co.jp/en/forsale/view/874273
(more expensive listings, in English...)
- https://www.japan-property.jp/en
- https://www.century21global.com/for-sale-residential/Japan/Kanagawa
Some info on different style/type of houses...
- https://www.toshihikoyamamoto.jp/kominka-renovation/
- https://www.tsunagujapan.com/simple-yet-beautiful-japans-traditional-homes-kominka/
- http://www.furusatokikaku.net/en/kominka/
- https://www.toki.tokyo/blogt/17/10/4/kominka
- https://blog.gaijinpot.com/buy-abandoned-house-in-japan/
- https://www.rethinktokyo.com/free-houses-japan-countryside
- https://www.rethinktokyo.com/2018/09/19/akiya-banks-abandoned-homes-japan
- https://resources.realestate.co.jp/news/akiya-bank-japan-vacant-house-database-to-now-include-govt-public-assets-ministry-of-land/
Kominka Houses
Traditional Japanese Countryside Houses
https://www.koryoya.com/kominka/index.html
Machiya Houses
Traditional Japanese Townhouses
https://www.koryoya.com/machiya/index.html
Akiya Houses
Abandoned or Vacant Old Houses
https://www.koryoya.com/akiya/index.html
Example: 4.5M Yen ~ $37.5K USD
https://maizuru-iju.com/akiya/%e4%b9%85%e7%94%b0%e7%be%8e%e3%81%ae%e5%ae%b6%ef%bc%88%e7%89%a9%e4%bb%b6%e7%95%aa%e5%8f%b7%ef%bc%9a%e6%9d%91135%ef%bc%89/
(other listing sites...)
https://taka-t28365.akiya-athome.jp/
https://www.akiya-athome.jp/
Example: 2M Yen ~ $16.6K USD
https://taka-t28365.akiya-athome.jp/bukken/detail/buy/%E5%A4%9A%E5%8F%AF%E9%83%A1%E5%A4%9A%E5%8F%AF%E7%94%BA%E5%A3%B2%E6%88%B8%E5%BB%BA%E4%BD%8F%E5%AE%85-21168
Example: 2.92M Yen ~ $24.3K USD
Example: 8.8M Yen - $73.3K USD
https://shiso-c28227.akiya-athome.jp/bukken/detail/buy/7872
https://www.homes.co.jp/akiyabank/
(using different search parameters...)
https://www.akiya-athome.jp/bukken/search/list/?freeword=%E5%8F%A4%E6%B0%91%E5%AE%B6&search_type=freeword&br_kbn=buy&sbt_kbn=house
https://www.akiya-athome.jp/
https://www.akiya-athome.jp/bukken/search/list/?freeword=%e5%ba%97%e8%88%97&search_type=freeword&br_kbn=buy&sbt_kbn=buy
https://inakanoseikatsu.com/
Japanese Carpentry:
YouTube Channels:
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