Search - real_estate

 
 
BUSINESS
Apr 6, 2001

FSA approves real estate joint venture

The Financial Services Agency on Thursday gave the go-ahead for a joint venture between major trading house Mitsubishi Corp. and UBS AG of Switzerland to manage real-estate investment trusts, Mitsubishi said.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 29, 2023

Singapore’s high costs won’t dethrone the money center — yet

Southern Malaysia is becoming popular as Singaporean housing prices surge. The commute to Johor brings its own challenges.
Japan Times
United KIngdom report 2023
May 5, 2023

Kajima Europe: Spearheading Japanese investment in Europe’s real estate markets

As a major developer and investor, Kajima has had a significant presence in the U.K. for over 30 years. Grounded in its roots as a general contractor, the Japanese giant has notably diversified over time, investing, developing and managing assets across most U.K. and European real estate markets, with...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 21, 2023

Tokyo's new condo prices surge 60% to a record in first half of year

The average price of a new apartment in central Tokyo jumped 60% to ¥129.6 million ($930,000) in the January to June period.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Jul 4, 2014

When should we make noise about loud neighbors?

In August 1974, a 46-year-old man living on the fourth floor of a public apartment building in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, forced his way into the unit below him and killed two little girls and their mother. After attempting suicide he was arrested, and he told police he had been driven to murder...
BUSINESS / Companies
May 8, 2014

Mitsubishi Estate turns first profit in three years

Mitsubishi Estate Co. said Thursday that full-year earnings rose for the first time in three years as profit margins at its residential business improved and office rents recovered.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Dec 26, 2017

Land ownership riddles in aging Japan come at a cost, stifle economy

When Sparx Green Energy & Technology, a renewable energy firm, found an ideal plot of land on which to build a solar panel factory, there was a catch. The three people on public record as the owners of the land had died years earlier.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Dec 31, 2016

Getting too cozy to the next-door neighbors

In its Dec. 20 issue, Asahi Shimbun reported on a couple in their 60s living in Saitama City. Two years ago their neighbor installed an Eco Cute system that uses heat pump technology to heat water more efficiently and, thus, reduce electricity costs. But since the system was installed, the older couple's...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Jul 2, 2016

A rise in vacancies won't mean drops in rent

According to the June 11 issue of Nikkan Gendai, the vacancy rate for rental properties in the 23 wards of Tokyo is currently 33.7 percent, while in surrounding prefectures, it's even higher: 35.5 percent in Kanagawa and 34.1 percent in Chiba.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Apr 2, 2016

Low interest rates cause spike in refinancing

It has been more than a month since the Bank of Japan introduced negative interest rates in its bid to revitalize the economy. For consumers, the rate change is a mixed blessing. Obviously, interest on deposits will not go up any time soon, but anyone thinking of buying a house or condominium can get...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Jan 2, 2015

Property borders: Where to draw the line

Some years ago we lived in western Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, in a neighborhood that clung to the contours of a hilly terrain. Many of the streets were just dirt and gravel, even though the area was fully developed. Neighbors told us that they had been trying to get the local government to pave these...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 17, 2022

Property markets work better when the line doesn’t always go up

Japan's housing sector has been flat for years. But if dwellings are plentiful and attainable, why should that be a bad thing?
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 1, 2022

China’s property crash sends billionaire founders heading to exits

The nation's worsening credit crisis has led to defaults, failure to deliver homes on time and an unrelenting market selloff.
Japan Times
LIFE
Oct 9, 2022

A tiny Tokyo apartment: ‘I wouldn’t live anywhere else’

Meet the young Japanese who have decided to live in a shoe box.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 29, 2022

China’s Politburo signals no big stimulus despite slowdown

Instead, the country's top leaders are calling on officials to ensure that housing projects are completed following a wave of mortgage boycotts.
Buildings in downtown Bozeman, Montana. Tech-savvy Californians who work from home are fleeing to cheaper states, while retirees and nature lovers are flocking to places like Montana.
WORLD / Society
Sep 12, 2023

Pandemic population boom in rural hotspots sparks resentment

In some places, the influx of new residents is deepening political divides in an already polarized country.
Shi Tieniu, 39, sits in a room of an unfinished residential building at Gaotie Wellness City complex in Tongchuan, Shaanxi province, China.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society / FOCUS
Sep 18, 2023

Broken dreams, shattered families in China's unfinished apartments

Since the property debt crisis began in 2021, thousands of homeowners have faced tough situations as smaller developers face liquidity issues.
Many of the wealthy in Japan are becoming more keen to park their cash in private assets like equity, credit and real estate that aren't traded in public markets.
BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2023

Brokers tap demand for private assets among Japan's wealthy

Private assets are booming globally after decades-high inflation and rapid interest-rate hikes weighed on both shares and bonds.
China Evergrande Group Chairman Hui Ka Yan
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 27, 2023

Evergrande’s billionaire chairman Hui under police surveillance

Hui was taken away by Chinese police earlier this month and is being monitored at a designated location. It’s not clear why he is under surveillance.
The land ministry plans to resume a subsidy program to help families with small children and young married couples build energy-efficient houses.
JAPAN
Oct 21, 2023

Japan looks to resume aid to help build energy-saving houses

The land ministry aims to incorporate the program in the government's upcoming economic package.
WeWork sought U.S. bankruptcy protection on Monday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 7, 2023

SoftBank's WeWork, once most valuable U.S. startup, goes bankrupt

The company reported estimated assets and liabilities ranging from $10 billion to $50 billion, according to a bankruptcy filing.
Singapore national flags hang from the facade of a Housing & Development Board public housing estate in the Selegie area of Singapore, in 2021.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 17, 2023

China puts money behind Singapore model in major housing shift

Details are undisclosed, outlined in a classified "Document 14" last month.
Mori Building CEO Shingo Tsuji speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Nov. 30.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 15, 2023

Mori’s CEO eyeing the next Roppongi Hills, casino resort in Tokyo

The real estate developer behind the towers that have reshaped central Tokyo’s skyline isn’t done yet.
Daiwa Securities' renewed push in Australia comes as Chief Executive Officer Akihiko Ogino seeks to increase income from outside Japan by about 40% in the next few years.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 26, 2024

Daiwa plans foray into Australian farm loans and real estate

The firm wants to continue its focus on lending and advisory in the clean energy space, leveraging its five staff in Sydney and Melbourne.
Hong Kong’s property tycoons are eagerly awaiting interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve due to their struggles with slow home sales, vacant office buildings and tenants pushing for lease renegotiations.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 12, 2024

The Fed is making Hong Kong's billionaire landlords anxious

Many Hong Kong property companies have significant amounts of debt at floating interest rates tied to Hibor, which tracks the Fed's rate changes.
A residential area of Tokyo. Rising prices has made it difficult for the child-rearing generation to secure large houses in the capital.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 7, 2024

Tokyo government considering fund for housing support

The planned fund will provide necessary financial aid for private businesses to develop affordable housing.
Fewer and fewer people are using the administrative consultation system, which will mark its 70th anniversary next year.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 12, 2024

Japan aims to raise awareness of administrative consultation services

Fewer people are using the administrative consultation system, which will mark its 70th anniversary next year.
Tokyo has the highest price-to-income ratio for high-rise condominiums in the country, at 17.78 times.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 12, 2024

New Japanese condos now cost 10 times average salary, study shows

Wages are not keeping up with rising costs, resulting in developers focusing on the higher end of the market.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.