Quote:
Originally Posted by imiss
Another question is how long do you plan on staying in Japan for? I mean if you want to stay for a few month, or for a year... well, huge difference in terms of what you'd be looking at then.
Last year, I lived in Japan for 3 month, just outside of Nagoya, and ended up in an apartment from a company called 'Leopalace21'. Thanks to Nyororin btw for all the help she gave me. Liked it quite a bit, and since I was staying for so little all the utilities were included in the rent so it was pretty nice.
I posted some photos of the apartment over at my site if you care to look: Part 1 and Part 2
From what I've seen most of the Leopalace buildings are more or less identical, so anywhere else in the country it'll look very similar both inside and out. |
YMMV with Leopalace apartments. I stayed in one too when I first came to Japan. Leopalace apartments are not all identical, some are nicer, newer buildings, whereas others are older, and rather worn out.
The building I stayed in was one of these older types. It was poorly insulated, so I was often kept awake at night by noisy neighbors, or the traffic passing by on the street outside. The poor insulation also meant that it got very cold in the winter, and very hot in the summer. Electricity bills during the hot and cold months were very high. Utility bills are not included with your rent unless you pay an additional $200 to $300 per month for your rent, in which case they'll pay them for you.
Other complaints: The smell; a smoker had lived in my apartment before I moved in, so it stank of stale cigarette smoke. Bugs; in the summer I had to deal with giant cockroaches (and spiders). "Kitchen"; eating out in Japan is rather costly, so it is wise to do your own cooking if you can. The kitchen in my apartment had a single electric burner on the stove which took about 30 minutes to boil water. The sink was too small to lay a dinner plate down flat.
Leopalace apartments are okay if you are planning a short stay, and can't sign a long-term lease.