In my experience with foreign clients, a common request is to secure rental housing in Japan a year before their arrival. They often seek assistance with property searches and wish to finalize rental agreements well in advance.

However, in Japan, it’s not feasible to enter into a rental agreement a year prior due to the Tenant-Landlord Law借地借家法. Under Japanese law, for a landlord to terminate a rental agreement, a “just cause正当事由” is required.

Meeting the criteria for “just cause正当事由れ” is incredibly challenging, often requiring landlords to pay exorbitant sums to tenants to legally end the lease. Practically, it’s almost impossible for landlords to initiate a termination under normal circumstances.

Therefore, we can only finalize contracts for properties that are currently vacant. This limitation can be frustrating for those planning ahead, but it’s an essential aspect of the Japanese rental market to understand.

Navigating these challenges requires expertise and patience, and I strive to guide my clients through this process, ensuring they find a suitable home upon their arrival in Japan.

#RealEstateJapan #ExpatsInJapan #RentalHousing #JapaneseLaw #PropertyManagement #ExpatriateLiving #HousingInJapan #TenantRightsん

(Photo) Japanese painting by Nagasawa Rosetsu (1892 – 1951)

Recently, news broke that baseball star Shohei Ohtani has finalized his move to the Los Angeles Dodgers. A shining talent in the Major League Baseball’s home run competitions, it’s hard to imagine him returning to Japanese professional baseball.

This reminds us of the case of Ichiro Suzuki, who moved from Kobe’s Orix to Major League Baseball and retired without returning to Japan. Such situations stem from the failure of the Japanese government’s economic policies, particularly the consumption tax policy, which has led to no increase in Japanese salaries for 30 years.

Talented individuals are high taxpayers. The outflow of such high-value individuals from Japan is a consequence of the government’s economic policies, a fact that the Japanese public needs to recognize. To reverse this trend and retain domestic talent, thus revitalizing the economy, a revision of these economic policies is urgently needed.

#ShoheiOhtani #TalentDrain #JapaneseEconomy #ConsumptionTaxIssue #EconomicPolicy #ProfessionalBaseball #MLB #IchiroSuzuki #PolicyRevision #EconomicRevitalization #DomesticTalentRetention #HighTaxPayers

In the wake of increasing scrutiny on Prime Minister Kishida’s cabinet, it appears that an increase in consumption tax may be looming in Japan’s future. Interestingly, the term ‘消費税’ (shouhizei) in Japanese translates to two different terms in English: ‘Sales Tax’ and ‘Consumption Tax’. Despite common belief among Japanese citizens, finance officials, and even accounting experts that it’s a consumption tax, the reality is that Japan’s ‘消費税’ functions more like a sales tax.

A sales tax, unlike a consumption tax, is borne by businesses, not consumers. This means that Japan’s consumption tax is not merely a pass-through charge as widely believed. When companies prepare their tax filings, salaries paid to employees cannot be deducted from this tax, which limits the ability of businesses to increase wages.

Consequently, salaries in Japanese companies have not seen significant increases over the past 30 years. With the current political climate, it’s unlikely that this will change in the near future, largely due to a fundamental misunderstanding of the accounting principles behind the consumption tax. This misunderstanding and the resultant fiscal policies could continue to stifle wage growth and impact the Japanese economy.

#JapanEconomy #TaxPolicy #ConsumptionTax #SalesTax #JapanesePolitics #BusinessImpact #EconomicGrowth #FiscalPolicy #WageStagnation #FinancialAwareness

In recent times, there has been a noticeable increase in negative reporting surrounding Expo 2025. While some of these reports may be based on certain truths, it is believed that they are underpinned by the strategies of Japanese bureaucrats.

It appears that bureaucrats, perceiving Prime Minister Kishida’s influence as waning, are now intent on releasing all negative information at their disposal. By spring of next year, it is anticipated that a slew of unfavorable reports, including those pertaining to political corruption, will emerge.

In such a scenario, the prospects for salvaging Prime Minister Kishida’s position seem bleak. His scheduled visit to the United States in the spring of 2024 is likely to be the last highlight of his political career.

However, it is expected that following this visit, the negative press around the Osaka Expo will subside. From the spring of 2024, when the cherry blossoms bloom, we look forward to welcoming wonderful talented foreign individuals from around the world to Osaka, bringing new vigor and perspectives.

#Expo2025 #JapanesePolitics #KishidaAdministration #InternationalRelations #OsakaExpo #PoliticalShifts #InternationalCooperation #GlobalLeaders #NewHorizons