Basic Steps for Finding Real Estate in Japan

This article explains the basic process of how foreign investors considering STR investment in Japan, or foreign buyers who simply want to purchase a second home or other property for their own use, should search for real estate in Japan.

1. Start by Understanding the Market Through Property Portals

When searching for real estate in Japan, the first places that general buyers and investors usually come across are major portals such as SUUMO and At Home. SUUMO describes itself as a comprehensive real estate portal that supports the purchase, sale, and leasing of housing and real estate, and it lists apartments, detached houses, land, and rental properties across Japan.

At Home is also a major portal site similar to SUUMO, but in addition to residential properties, it also lists investment properties.

Because the two platforms have different fee structures, there are many listings that do not overlap, so in principle it is better to check both.

When looking for real estate in smaller regional areas, it is also necessary to review the websites of smaller local real estate companies in each area. On the other hand, if you are looking at major markets such as Tokyo or Osaka, these portal sites alone are generally sufficient.

That said, for foreign investors, reading Japanese-only portals directly is itself the first barrier. For that reason, it is better to begin with foreigner-oriented services such as wagaya Japan and Japan Property.

wagaya Japan provides multilingual rental and purchase information as a portal for foreign users, while Japan Property is positioned as a portal for foreign buyers and investors searching for property in Japan, including investment property support. For this reason, when foreign investors are trying to gain an overview of the market, it is practical to start with foreigner-oriented services and then confirm listings on SUUMO and At Home.

The main sources to check are as follows.

However, in order to improve the accuracy of investment decisions, it is necessary to understand which media should be treated as the primary source of information. Foreigner-oriented portals are very useful, but in practice, information listed on major domestic portals is often closer to the actual distribution information held by sellers and brokers, and these portals are also stronger in terms of update frequency and volume of listings. Therefore, it is realistic to use foreigner-oriented sites as an entry point and SUUMO and At Home as primary confirmation sources.

2. There Are Also Broker-Only Portals, but You Do Not Need to Worry Much About Them

Japanese real estate companies use not only public portals but also an inter-broker database called REINS. General users cannot access it directly, but many properties with strong marketability, as well as listings intended for quick transactions, eventually appear on the public portals as well, so this is not a major issue.

If you find a Japanese agent company you trust, it is enough to ask that company to also check REINS.

3. Once You Find an Interesting Property, Move on to Document Requests and Regulatory Review

Once you find a candidate property, the next step is to request documents from the brokerage company or seller. These include not only the sales sheet, but also registry information, building confirmation documents, floor plans, zoning information, road access conditions, management rules, repair history, and if the property is currently leased, lease-related documents as well. In Japan, portal listing information alone is not enough to determine whether a lodging business can actually be operated, so collecting documents is not simply a matter of checking details; it is the starting point of legal and operational due diligence.

If you are purchasing a condominium for your own use, such a detailed investigation may not always be necessary. However, in order to conduct an STR business, it is very important to confirm the legal restrictions imposed by the relevant municipality. There are many cases in which the intended business cannot be carried out because of zoning, district planning, or restrictions under the Building Standards Act.

We ourselves often come across properties that initially seem attractively priced, only to discover after careful review that they were inexpensive for this exact reason: the planned business could not be carried out there.

4. Legal Points That Should Be Checked for STR Investment

The main items that should be checked before purchase are as follows.

Depending on the property, there are cases where a wooden structure does not satisfy the planning requirements, hotel operation is not allowed, or legal compliance necessary for expansion or renovation cannot be achieved. If these issues are discovered only after purchase, there is very little room for correction, so they need to be checked before acquisition. In STR investment, the quality of sourcing directly determines the success or failure of the business, so screening ability, including the ability to decide not to buy, is extremely important.

5. How Much Should Foreign Investors Do by Themselves?

When foreign investors enter the Japanese market, it is useful in itself to build a sense of market pricing by looking at portal sites. In fact, by continuously monitoring SUUMO and At Home, it is possible to understand price ranges by area, inventory movement, and rough ranges by property type to a considerable extent. This is meaningful in the early stage of investment decision-making.

On the other hand, it is not realistic for investors themselves to independently carry out license feasibility checks, coordination with municipalities, and detailed investigation of building, fire safety, and operational conditions. In particular, practical administration differs by municipality, and the review items also vary depending on the property type and existing use. This requires not only Japanese language ability, but also an understanding of regulatory practice and experience with both government procedures and on-the-ground execution.

For that reason, our view is that investors should actively participate up to the point of building market awareness through portal sites and narrowing down the direction of candidate properties, while leaving the legal review and business feasibility assessment that directly affect the acquisition decision to professionals who are familiar with STR practice in Japan.