Rentals

These articles contain an assortment of information useful for those renting a room in Japan. Topics covered include how to choose a room, what a lease agreement in Japan entails, things to be careful of when living in Japan, and more. These articles are a must read for foreigners who are living in Japan for the first time.

What is Act on Rental Housing Management Business (Act on Optimization of Rental Housing Management Business)?

Act on Rental Housing Management Business (Act on Optimization of Rental Housing Management Business, etc.) came into effect on June 15, 2021. With the enforcement of this act to optimize the management of rental housing, the former registration system required by the Ministry of Land, Infrastruct…

Guide to Japanese apartment layout terms

Since the space to be written on floor plans is limited, the descriptions are often written in English or by using English abbreviations, so you may not know what these would mean. We here, would like to explain the meaning of descriptions in floor plans as well as the difference between Japan and…

Webinar Announcement: Renting Homes in Japan

On November 29 (Tuesday), 2022 at 6:00 PM, Sumie Nakamura of PLAZA HOMES, Ltd. will give a talk on "Renting Homes in Japan" at an online seminar hosted by Real Estate Japan. Content of the Lecture ・Greeting your new neighbors ・Is it ok if I make holes to hang things on my apartment walls? ・Is…

Putting Holes in Rented Apartment Walls in Japan

You may be wondering if it is allowed to drill holes in the walls of rented properties in Japan, and if so, what size holes are permitted. Putting holes on the walls will enable you to hang posters, hang wall clocks, install shelves and many other decorative items however, you may or may not be re…

What are Off-Market Properties? - Are these good bargains, or really bargain properties?

When searching for properties for rent or sale, you may often see the messages such as "There are off-market properties!", "How to find off-market properties", etc. However, many people may have questions such as “Is there really a real estate that is not on the market in these days when we can e…

Seminar - Buying and Selling Real Estate for Foreigners in Japan

PLAZA HOMES presented a lecture on "Buying and Selling Real Estate for Foreigners in Japan" at Expat Expo Tokyo 2021. The presentation covers topics such as buying a property in Japan, mortgages, popular areas, taxes, and comparisons with renting. For Foreigners, How to Buy / Sell Real Esta…

Renting Property with a Pet in Japan

It is common practice that residential properties in Japan have very strict rules regarding the ownership of pets. These rules are decided and enforced by the building owner and or management. If you would like to have a pet or already have a pet that you would like to live with, starting your sea…

Renting vs Buying Which is better?

Which is better: living in a rental property and continuing to pay rent or buying a property for sale? This is a frequent question that many people are wondering about. It is very difficult to give you a clear answer because it depends on the person’s life plan, the way of thinking about his/her lif…

What is the definition of a “Jiko Bukken” property? Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism announces the guidelines.

What is the definition of a “Jiko Bukken” property? You may have heard before, but often do not know well. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has recently released “Guidelines for Disclosure of a Death that Occurred in a House by a Real Estate Broker”.These guidelines are…

Insurance for Flood Disaster (water damage) caused by heavy rain, typhoons, and others

Over the past few years, large-scale flood damages have frequently occurred in various parts of Japan due to typhoons and local heavy rains. Almost every year in some part of Japan there is heavy rainfall the likes of which is only seen once every few decades and due to this heavy rainfall, the ri…