Buying an Apartment in Tokyo

We bought an apartment in central Tokyo! In this video, I share how we approached buying an apartment, what apartments cost in Tokyo, and what we considered and prioritized. I also show the area we looked in and give a tour of 5 apartments we looked at.
CHAPTERS:
0:00: Intro
1:27: Prices of Apartments in Tokyo
1:55: The Tomigaya Area
2:44: Central Tokyo vs. Greater Tokyo vs. Rural Japan Apartment Prices
3:55: 5 Apartment Tours in the Tomigaya and Kitasando Areas
9:44: Earthquakes and Building Retrofitting in Tokyo
11:46: Submitting a Bid to Buy an Apartment
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#tokyoapartment #buyingahome #apartmenttour

[@roxas896]

Yay! Congratulations🙂. You guys did good. So happy for you.

[@barrettish]

Thank you!! 😊

[@danielhan1757]

Really good video Barrettish! Very informative 👌

[@barrettish]

Thanks Dan! 🙌

[@bluasterisk]

Owing property is always exciting! Congrats on the new place!

[@barrettish]

Yeah first time for me! Thank you!

[@garcurran5079]

Very informative, thanks

[@barrettish]

Thanks for watching!

[@franciscasantamaria3593]

Great video and choice, I appreciated your accurate explanations. I love floor plans. Does place come with storage and parking space? Regards!😀👍

[@Komainu959]

Congrats and Happy Thanksgiving!

[@barrettish]

Thank you and hope you have a nice holiday season!

[@goutfromfriedokra]

@@barrettish why not consider Osaka? it's cheaper price home, right?

[@SubtleProvisions]

Very informative. What's the link to that map with the colored dots? Thanks

[@etherdog]

Wow, Barrett, we expected you to move back to Japan but maybe not so quickly--but this looks great! Buying in that neighborhood for only $300,000 seems like a good deal. If the place is going through renovation still, don't be afraid to insist on tailoring things to your liking because doing so now will be the best money you will have invested in the project.

[@barrettish]

Thanks! Well, I’m not fully moving back lol just trying hard to have two bases. Thanks for the tip, we can do everything at once but so far it’s going well :)

[@TheForistality]

Are there condo fees? in Canada there are monthly condo fees.

[@dothetwist298]

35-45 is very cheap for that area. Do you feel like there was a lot of competition for these apartment buyers-wise? I live in the area. It I’m renting a tiny apartment, would love to actually buy one here in the near future.

[@SuperWhacka]

I've stayed in a few different parts of Tokyo before and always loved the west side of Shibuya around the Uehara area, congrats! 🎉

[@barrettish]

Yeah it’s a nice area! I’m glad you were able to stay in different parts of Tokyo! Thank you! ✨

[@cafelate9515]

Hi Barrett this is my first video I seen of yours. You don’t seem like a Japanese person and more like a Chinese person from the US. I am also a real estate broker. It is nice to see how real estate looks like in Japan and the prices and location.

[@barrettish]

lol why do you think so? I'm glad you found this interesting. From what I can tell, real estate is pretty different in Japan compared to the US.

[@indigo_died6910]

I'm so confused with the timeline. You left Japan for America, still travelling regularly to Japan for your work, now you've bought an apartment in Tokyo? Congrats :D

[@barrettish]

lol something like that 😆 Thank you!

[@larrynebron7140]

Were you given a Comp Sheet? How could you sanely make a bid when do not know what similar properties recently sold for. Where i live the listing agent will give a comp sheet away to the home visitor

[@barrettish]

No but we knew that it was within range of what similar places sold for in the area, it and it was possibly on the lower end considering year, construction type, etc.

[@empeds9975]

Is your new apartment in Omotesando? Or Yoyogi? Both excellent areas

[@barrettish]

In the Yoyogi Park area. Yeah, the general area is really great!

[@Dogsnark]

Once you have purchased an apartment, I imagine there is also an additional monthly fee, like the home owner association fee at American condominiums. Is there such a fee in Japanese apartment buildings, and if so, about how much is it for your ~50 million ¥ apartment?

[@barrettish]

Yes there is. I don’t know how it compares with other parts of the U.S., but it’s way cheaper than ones in Hawaii. Fees at this apartment and other similar ones I’ve heard are usually within the ¥30,000~¥50,000 per month range. In Hawaii if it’s $700 that’s not bad, some are a thousand or two!

[@jirojiro1029]

I have heard that property tax is a big problem for owning real estate in Japan especially if you are not actually living in Japan you are like losing money every year. What’s your take on that?

[@barrettish]

To be honest I’m not super knowledgeable about that, luckily my wife handled it. Property taxes depend on the value, and due the area and the trend, it probably will go up which would potentially become a burden if we’re not there much.

[@harperb]

Did you end up getting a loan / mortgage somehow as a non-resident, or paying cash?

[@barrettish]

Yes, but there was some cash involved as well. Luckily my wife handled most of that kind of stuff!

[@Dflowen]

4:46 is what you settled with - a fixer upper. 12:33 swept it right under then eh Barret? XD. As your realtor said, "It's business". But 7 years searching for the other bidder. 13:27 wowzer 2.5 million yen or USD$25k on hand.

[@barrettish]

Yup, glad it worked out! I do feel a little bad for that other person but hopefully they found something too! Bringing all that cash was pretty nerve-wracking!

[@Mwoods2272]

Barrett, you are a baller, an apartment in Tokyo and a house in Hawaii. People can't even pay their rent in Tokyo and you have 2 homes in two of the most expensive cities for housing.

[@barrettish]

Nah, I’m totally not. I don’t own anything in Hawaii. Still trying to figure out how to make a living there.