Tod & I are thinking of buying a house (or an apartment) in Tokyo. I’ve been scouring the Japanese real estate websites for interesting places in our ku and nearby. It’s definitely going to be a challenge to find just the right combination of features, location and price.
This isn’t what I’m looking for. But if it were, I’d be set!
The current trend in moderately priced ($500,000 – $750,000) new homes in Bunkyo-ku and its surrounds is a three story wood structure with a plaster exterior trimmed in brick facing. The first floor has an entryway, a full bath and one room in addition to a covered parking space. Living/dining and kitchen are on the second floor, and there are usually two rooms on the third floor. Some plans include a small roof balcony. There is no yard or garden. The square footage is about 960 sq feet (89 sq meters).
For my own reference, and in case you want to poke around yourself, here are the realty websites I’ve been using and some handy Japanese vocabulary to help you search.
| 東京23区内 | central Tokyo |
| 文京区 | Bunkyo-ku |
| 一戸建て | house |
| マンション | apartment |
| 土地 | land |
| 新築 | new |
| 中古 | used |
| 1000万円 | $85,000 |
| １億円 (10,000万円) | $850,000 |
and the numbers in the rooms indicate the size in jo; each increment is about 20 square feet
