It’s been nearly a year since we moved into our first house. Most house hunters will have saved enough to put down a hefty deposit on a new house in Japan, but in our case, we had to find a mortgage to cover the whole cost of the house. Mortgages in Japan usually run for 35 years, which is actually longer than the lifespan of a Japanese house. Typically, after 15 years you’ll need another loan to get the place “reformed” so it will last another 15 years. Wash, rinse and repeat.
Furthermore, cheap mortgages aren’t easy to come by for foreigners in Japan. UFJ was the only bank that even considered giving me a mortgage, so I wasn’t exactly able to choose the cheapest. On top of this, unlike most countries, Japanese houses depreciate in value so we won’t even be able to get our money back. On the bright side however, houses here are dirt cheap compared to those in the U.K now, and our mortgage repayments are quite reasonable.
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Yeah Real Estate is has really become expensive in a lot of western countries…. Especially with in the past 10 years.. Here in Canada, I think you can actually get 40 year mortgages which is insane! I wonder if it’s a bubble and if so, when it will burst…
I have a question. What is a fair house price in Japan. I am new to your site and liking it. I lived in Japan while in the Navy. I know what I paid in rent but never looking into buying anything.
I am curious about the price of a house in Japan….you can be general if you like as I think that would be best.
-David
I’d say a nice new house costs around 30-40 million yen, and a second-hand house around 20 million. If you can navigate the Japanese, have a look at Yahoo’s real estate page.
WOW, that’s a lot!
About $280K USD!
I just got 2000 Square Feet for $224K or YEN-24,100,000.
But hey it’s the price of living in Japan, and I think I would rather some days to be there than here. To be in a country where I can just be me. Japan is very neat. Good luck and thanks for the info. You have another reader.