Verified real estate in Japan

Modern seismic-engineered Tokyo residences, traditional Kyoto machiyas and Hokkaido ski chalets with Legal Affairs Bureau registry verification.

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2: Verified listings
JPY: Base currency
tsubo, sq m: Standard units

The journey

How Japan builds.

Japan builds in timber, on ground that moves. Its housing is also treated as a depreciating asset rather than an appreciating one, which changes what a purchase here actually means.

Kyoto to Tokyo · the old capital to the new

Kyoto

Kyoto · 35.01°N

01
Kyoto
Kyoto · 35.01°N
Narrow frontage, long section
The machiya townhouse was the standard merchant house of the old capital, and survives in protected pockets of it.
How it is built
A post-and-beam timber frame with earthen walls, on a plot taxed by street frontage — hence very narrow and very deep. Light and air come from tsuboniwa, small internal gardens punched through the middle of the plan.
02
Osaka
Osaka · 34.69°N
Dense, and rebuilt often
A commercial city with permissive, nationally-set zoning that mixes uses at a fine grain most countries would not allow.
How it is built
Steel and reinforced concrete on tight plots. Buildings are replaced rather than restored on a cycle of decades — a wooden house is often valued at close to nothing after thirty years, and the land carries the price.
03
Tokyo
Tokyo · 35.68°N
Engineered for the tremor
The world's largest metropolitan area, on the meeting point of three tectonic plates.
How it is built
Post-1981 shin-taishin seismic standards are the dividing line in any purchase. Larger buildings sit on base isolators or carry dampers; the date of the code a building was designed under matters more than its age.

6 prefectures, one desk

How the market reads by region

Japan's 47 prefectures operate within world-leading earthquake resilience and transit-oriented development frameworks. Tokyo's central wards (Minato, Shibuya, Chiyoda) command premium tower condominiums; Osaka and Kyoto harmonize modern commercial developments with traditional machiya preservation; Hokkaido's Niseko resort region attracts global alpine investment. Estate Ulagam verifies Legal Affairs Bureau registry certificates and Takken broker mandates across all prefectures.

Prefectures live

Reviewed

Cities

24 cities across 6 prefecture (tos / dos / fus / ken)s

Minato1 Shibuya1 Shinjuku Chuo Chiyoda Roppongi Osaka Sakai Suita Toyonaka Kyoto Uji

Listed cities first — search reaches the rest.

Cross-Border Legal Briefing

Foreign Ownership & Non-Resident Acquisition in Japan

Advertising rules

Japan has no legal restrictions on foreign nationals or non-residents purchasing freehold land or buildings; foreigners enjoy the exact same ownership rights as Japanese citizens. However, under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act (FEFTA), non-resident buyers must submit an ex-post report to the Bank of Japan within 20 days of acquiring real estate. Furthermore, under the 2022 Important Land Use Regulation Act, property acquisitions near military defense facilities or designated remote border islands are subject to national security scrutiny and registration checks.

Governing Body

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT)

Primary Statute

Real Estate Brokerage Act (Act No. 176 of 1952) & Consumer Contract Act

Title Instruments

Tokibo Tohon / Tohon (Certified copy of the Real Property Register from the Legal Affairs Bureau)
Juuyou Jikou Setsumeisho (Juusetsu - Statutory Explanation of Important Matters)
Kenchiku Kakunin Zumi-sho (Building Confirmation Certificate & Inspection Certificate)
Kouzu / Chiseki Sokuryo-zu (Official cadastral parcel map and land survey plan)
Torihiki Kakunin-sho (Identity verification & anti-money laundering confirmation record)

The desk

What we ask for, and why

Every Japan submission is checked against the same working set of records before it can be reviewed for publication, governed by Real Estate Brokerage Act (Takken Act) & Real Property Registration Act. None of this is a substitute for independent legal advice — it is the paperwork our desk asks an advertiser to produce, and cross-checks before an advertisement goes live.

Tokibo Tohon Registry

Official Ministry of Justice Legal Affairs Bureau property registry certificate.

Inkan Shomeisho seal check

Municipal registered seal certificate matching legal owner on official title.

Building Confirmation Certificate

Official municipal inspection certificate confirming Building Standards Act compliance.

Takken Broker Mandate

Standardized transaction agency agreement from a licensed real estate broker.

Estate Ulagam reviews submitted advertising materials and documents before publication.

From submission to publication

How a listing goes live

Submission

Owner, agent, or builder registers with phone and email OTP, then submits the property with photographs and the documents above.

Review

Estate Ulagam's desk checks identity and the documents above against Real Estate Brokerage Act (Takken Act) & Real Property Registration Act before anything moves forward.