Tokyo Apartment/Mansion Rentals

[Digi123]

Hi,

I'll be moving to Japan for a new job in about a month and I have a question regarding renting a permanent place. I've been trying to get a feel about the types of places available in Tokyo, particularly Southern Tokyo by looking online (in English). I know my company will also help me when I get there. The question is, is there a big difference in available rental places for foreigners and non-foreigners? My search online hasn't revealed a lot of suitable places for me (i.e. within my desired size and budget). Will there be much more choices available for non-foreigners or at least what I can find online?

Thanks.

[Nyororin]

Originally Posted by Digi123

. The question is, is there a big difference in available rental places for foreigners and non-foreigners? My search online hasn't revealed a lot of suitable places for me (i.e. within my desired size and budget). Will there be much more choices available for non-foreigners or at least what I can find online?

There is a huge difference in what is offered on Japanese sites and English sites. Whether there will be more choices available to you really depends on your budget and desired size.

Sites catering to foreigners in English tend to be aimed toward the very high income expat - the kind whose company either covers everything, or who will be getting paid enough that cost isn`t a huge concern. Most sites seem to only list from a very small pool of rental properties.

But in the end, it does depend on your budget. No matter how many choices are available, if you are looking for something that doesn`t exist - you won`t find anything.
What kind of apartment are you looking for? And for what kind of budget?
If you tell me what station you`ll be close to I`ll do a quick search and post a couple links to what is available on Japanese sites.

[Digi123]

Thanks for your response Nyororin. My company is near Oimachi and I would like to be within at most 30 minutes by door-door commute. My budget may allow me to go up to 130,000 yen per month. I hope to have a comfortable space, perhaps something greater than 24m^2 and something that may accommodate an extra guest every now again, ex. a friend visiting.

I am very new to all of this and I may be naive in a few things regarding what I'm looking for but if you can educate me on anything about living in japan and apartment finding I will be very grateful.

Thanks.

[JohnBraden]

Does one still have to pay the equivalent of 5 months rent up front for key deposit, landlord "present", etc? I saw a show on NHK once that surprised me with this custom.... That would probably never work here in the States....

[josebrown]

Originally Posted by JohnBraden

Does one still have to pay the equivalent of 5 months rent up front for key deposit, landlord "present", etc? I saw a show on NHK once that surprised me with this custom.... That would probably never work here in the States....

we do have 1st month, last month, and security deposit.
add in "fee" for finding an apt and thats 4 months.
so its close enough!

[MMM]

Originally Posted by josebrown

we do have 1st month, last month, and security deposit.
add in "fee" for finding an apt and thats 4 months.
so its close enough!

Right, but first month, last month and the deposit are all used or returned.

[josebrown]

Originally Posted by MMM

Right, but first month, last month and the deposit are all used or returned.

Real Estate Agents in Japan


wow!

[MMM]

Originally Posted by josebrown

Real Estate Agents in Japan


wow!

If that is correct, it is pretty outrageous by American standards. But if that is how it is done, what can you do?

[Nyororin]

Recently, fewer and fewer places are charging 礼金. There are some major rental agencies that won`t list apartments where the landlord charges it. It`s taking time, but I do think it is on the way out. The standard agency fee is about a month`s rent - at least around here and in my experience in finding apartments for people. It`s still about 3 or 4 months in advance though, but the law DOES support you getting all of your deposit back - regular wear and tear does not count against it, so if your landlord won`t give the part you paid as a deposit back... You can contact a lawyer. Usually just mentioning action will make the landlord have a change of heart and "remember" that the deposit was only for abnormal damage.

In my experience, landlords in the US are EXACTLY the same when it comes to this. They tend to conveniently forget that the deposit wasn`t to cover normal wear and tear until you remind them.

Anyway, to get back to the original question.

These are just a few links from Japanese real estate agency sites - by the time you arrive most likely none of these will be available. They should give you a basic idea of what is available in your budget and space desire range.

東京都品川区東大井3丁目京急本線 立会川駅 徒歩1分の賃貸物件情報｜お部屋探しならHOME'S賃貸
東京都品川区大井6丁目ＪＲ京浜東北・根岸線 大森駅 徒歩8分の賃貸物件情報｜お部屋探しならHOME'S賃貸
東京都品川区中延1丁目都営浅草線 戸越駅 徒歩7分の賃貸物件情報｜お部屋探しならHOME'S賃貸
東京都品川区小山4丁目東急目黒線 武蔵小山駅 徒歩2分の賃貸物件情報｜お部屋探しならHOME'S賃貸
東京都品川区西大井3丁目16-26ＪＲ京浜東北・根岸線 大森駅 徒歩12分の賃貸物件情報｜お部屋探しならHOME'S賃貸
東京都大田区西蒲田7丁目ＪＲ京浜東北・根岸線 蒲田駅 徒歩9分の賃貸物件情報｜お部屋探しならHOME'S賃貸

My personal favorite that I spotted was this one; 東京都品川区旗の台6丁目4東急目黒線 洗足駅 徒歩4分の賃貸物件情報｜お部屋探しならHOME'S賃貸
The bedroom is upstairs, and it`s quite spacious.

Those are just a few examples out of the 20000+ listed fitting your requirements - all the links I have listed are to apartments within 20 minutes commuting time of Oimachi, all 35m2+, and all relatively new buildings. Oh, and of course all below 130,000/month including all monthly fees.

There are tons of apartments out there.

[blimp]

just to add to nyororin's excellent info.
one thing that might be good to keep in mind is to try to get a flat not too far from the station. this not only cuts down on the commuting time but it also lessens the time you have to walk outside in the summer, which is hot, hot, hot. of course the closer to the station, the more expensive.

for you to get a non-"non-japanese" catered flat you might want to involve your company as much as possible, as it might be difficult for you to get a flat on your own just off the boat. if the company you works for is very famous this might not be much of a problem. with your budget you might be

in tokyo it is rather straight forward, not like osaka. you usually pay
deposit (敷金）(0-3 months, the most common is two I would say),
key money （礼金）(0-2 months, as nyrororin correctly pointed out, it is nowadays common to see flats without key money)
broker's fee(紹介料)(usually 1 month, some agencies have half a month)
and then one month's rent up front.
to this you add compulsory insurance (already decided for you) (between 20,000-30,000 yen) and perhaps some special fees; a rent guarantor, changing of the looks, extermination of bugs, and what not.

keep in mind that if you stay for a longer period, longer than two years, you might have to extend your contract which is usually a fee of 1 month's rent.