Guest Post By Corey Crail In this guest post, Corey shares his story of finding, buying and renovating his house in Osaka. He also shares his cost figures, which came out very reasonable! In 2015, I stumbled upon a surprising discovery: homes in Japan were far more affordable than I ever imagined. That single moment […]
My Journey to Owning a Home in Japan Read More »
A Comprehensive Look at Why Houses in Japan Are So Affordable In 2019, I bought a two-bedroom house in Japan for only $36,000 (the actual house I bought is pictured above in the title image). This number includes all real estate fees and taxes. At that same time, the average home price in my home
Why are Houses in Japan so Cheap? Read More »
The 2024 Cheap Houses Japan survey results are in! We had 2,197 people answer the survey this year – up from just 578 responses two years ago! I wanted to understand your thoughts on purchasing a property in Japan, as well as your budget and location preferences so I can improve the relevance of future
Japan Real Estate Trends in 2024: Exclusive Insights from the Cheap Houses Japan Survey Read More »
While Japan may be an unconventional choice of location to retire, it’s an increasingly attractive one. Though I am not yet retired, the relaxed pace of life outside of major Japanese cities has been a highlight of my time here. Amazingly, this is also where the most highly affordable properties can be found. See also: Our
How To Retire In Japan As A Foreigner Read More »
Bitsii moved to a remote fishing town in Ehime prefecture in 2021. She wasn’t ready to commit anything major since she was new to Japan and unsure visa renewal potential — until the locals handed her first vacant akiya house. This interview with Bitsii is full of interesting insights about akiya DIY and living in
Transforming an Akiya Into a Home: An Interview With Bitsii in Inaka Read More »
Dani and Evan, after living on an urban farm in New Orleans, moved to rural Japan to pursue hobbies like beekeeping and farming. They bought two akiya houses on Ōmishima island for their guesthouse and future home, attracted by the mild climate and tourism potential. Renovations were completed quickly despite challenges like time constraints and
Renovating an Old House into an AirBnB in Japan: An Interview with Dani & Evan Benton Read More »
Nick started a company called Japan Remotely to help people achieve the best of both worlds: live in Japan and work remotely. He shares his thoughts about the financial benefits of relocating to a cheap house in Japan. Would you mind quickly introducing yourself to our readers? How long have you lived in Japan and what brought
When Tom Fay wanted to set down roots in Japan, he left the city and bought a kominka in the countryside. Here’s his story. *All the photos on this page were taken by Tom Fay. Would you mind quickly introducing yourself to our readers? How long have you lived in Japan and what brought you
Escaping the City for the Countryside: An Interview with Tom Fay Read More »
Western news media homed in on the story of Japan’s depopulation crisis and the eerie ghost towns left behind about a decade ago now. More recently, though, the focus has been on the abandoned properties up for grabs. Headlines like Japan Is Giving Away 8 Million Abandoned Houses — Here’s How to Get One and
$500 houses in Japan: How to buy one and is it worth it? Read More »
Dream of buying a home in Japan? The good news is that, whether you are a resident or not, anyone can purchase real estate in the country. And, with the yen at record lows against most major currencies at the time of writing, housing here is more affordable than ever to those living overseas. But
House Prices In Japan Read More »