Housing and Relocation in Japan; Tokyo and Nagoya

Where is the economy going?

2009-07-15T22:39:00.001-07:00

Rental housing in Tokyo or Nagoya? Serviced Apartments in Nagoya? Relocation in Tokyo and Nagoya? Car / Furniture Leasing and Purchase in Tokyo or Nagoya? http://www.japanhomesearch.com/ and http://www.relojapan.com/. We want to help you in Japan!

I am hearing two different voices out there with regard to Japan and the economy. It is going to be interesting tonight when Jesper Koll comes to Nagoya to share with us his thoughts.

Our clients and many of the people I speak to in the foreign community recently have indicated that things have definately picked up in Japan in the last 2 months. For our housing and relocation business this is also true. However, this is supposed to be our busy period of the year anyway, so I am a little skeptical to believe that we are out of the worst yet. But, things definately are better than they were.

Many are saying that after the Obon Holiday shut down, we are really going to see things start to take off again. I was talking to the head of a recruiting company a week ago, and he commented that while some companies have already begun to recruit again, he felt that many will start recruiting in earnest after getting Obon out of the way.

This all sounds great, but on the other hand we have economists pointing out that the rise in the Japanese stock market index is "artificial" or "inflated" and that the steady increase has no justified foundation or basis. I would point out that alot of it would seem to be more confidence that Japan is getting better, this factor alone being one of the big reasons why Japan's economy has shrunk so much in the last 6 months. Too much media gloom! So, maybe this is "artificial confidence" I am not sure, but when you do take a look around there are alot of things that are still not happening; banks are not lending, companies are still cutting expenses and people where they can, companies continue to go under at the highest rate in 6 years, etc. So I can certainly see why some economists would choose to say we are not out of things yet.

So, which is it? We are out of the worst and after Obon things will take off, or we are not out of the worst and after Obon there is going to be another downturn in the stock market..... Hopefully Jesper Koll will shed some light on things tonight, but I suppose only time will tell.

Free International Dialling!

2009-07-15T22:27:00.000-07:00

I have just been introduced to a new phone service called "FLAT TALK". Yes, believe it or not, there is now a phone calling service that you can use to call internationally free. Yes, that is right FREE!

What is more, you require no registration, no up front fee, nothing. All you do have to do is dial a local number, for which you will bear the domestic phone calling charges for the length of the call, listen to a 15 second advertisement, and then your call is put through.

The countries are limited, but growing steadily; USA, China, Hong Kong, Canada, Singapore, UK, with the following countries to be added soon; Thailand, Germany, France, Denmark, Ireland, Australia (Sydney only at this stage) and Russia (Moscow only at this stage).

Some countries do restrict calling to landlines.

The dial in numbers are as follows;
Tokyo 03-4530-6868
Chiba 03-670-6868
Nagoya 052-456-6868
Osaka 06-4560-6868

You simply dial in, listen the 15 second advertisement, dial in the country code and number, and you are on a free call!

Websites and phone calling cards with the information are on their way and will be launched soon!

Try out "FLAT TALK" !!

Rental housing in Tokyo or Nagoya? Serviced Apartments in Nagoya? Relocation in Tokyo and Nagoya? Car / Furniture Leasing and Purchase in Tokyo or Nagoya? http://www.japanhomesearch.com/ and http://www.relojapan.com/. We want to help you in Japan!

Housing Negotiations in Tokyo

2009-07-06T20:09:00.000-07:00

When looking at a property, don't just ask about the rent! Ask about what type of contract the owner is offering!

Rental housing in Tokyo or Nagoya? Serviced Apartments in Nagoya? Relocation in Tokyo and Nagoya? Car / Furniture Leasing and Purchase in Tokyo or Nagoya? http://www.japanhomesearch.com/ and http://www.relojapan.com/. We want to help you in Japan!

Over the past 6-months we have witnessed a large part of the Expat Community relocate back to their home lands and home offices. Our Tokyo Office has been flooded with assisting repatriations out of Japan, and we now have many owners in Tokyo begging for the opportunity to show their properties to potential tenants.

Naturally, the rental prices are falling quickly. On average I would say rental prices for properties over 700,000 yen per month have dropped by 20- 30% compared to when Lehman was still around. Yes, that means that there are savings to be found. At http://www.japanhomesearch.com/ we would be happy to assist you find a new house / apartment at a much discounted price per month. We have helped a number of people; rent of JPY 1,500,000 back to JPY 1,200,000 in a new property, rent of JPY 900,000 back to JPY 700,000 in a similar property, etc. There are moving costs and the costs of renovating the previous property and paying the up front fees for new properties. However, when you are saving 200,000, 300,000 or sometimes up to 500,000 yen per month on rent, the cost of moving into a new property is very quickly recovered. Food for thought!

ONE WARNING; There is something you need to be aware of in doing this!! Large savings can be found, but there is a trade off involved in many cases. There is a high potential that you will be asked to sign a fixed term contract.

In Japan residential rental properties are generally offered under one of two types of contract. One is a "Ordinary Contract" (普通契約）and the other is a "Fixed Contract" (定期借家契約）. Ordinary contracts are typically 2-years in length and often automatically renew, or sometimes you pay a 1-month renewal fee. Ordinary contracts very much protect the tenant under Japanese Real Estate Law and once a tenant is in the property, owners often have not even a leg to stand on. This is therefore the contract you want to be signing if you are a corporate company signing for your expat tenant in Japan.

The second kind of contract is the "Fixed Term" contract. This is virtually no different to the ordinary contract during the term of the contract, but the big difference is that once the term is up, the contract does not renew. A new contract needs to be signed. Effectively, this means that as the contract finishes, unless the owner wishes to sign a new contract, the tenant doesn't have a foot to stand on. If the owner says "no" to a new contract, they can demand you leave the property.

So, what are owners doing these days in Tokyo. Well, they are offering you 200,000- 500,000 yen off the monthly rent for a "fixed term". ie. they are asking you to sign "Fixed Term Contracts", which means when the 2 or 3 years is up, they can renegotiate with you on a new contract. The tenant is pretty well protected under real estate law for the ordinary contract, so it is difficult to do for this type of contract. However, fixed term contracts are just that. You need a new contract to continue living in the property, and owners have every right to negotiate with you when this happens. They also have every right to say no to a new contract if you don't agree to their terms. Yes, in 2 or 3 years time, they may come back and ask you to pay the extra 200,000- 500,000 yen or more! Just beware!

Owners mayn't be willing to discount rent so much if you are looking to sign an ordinary contract, so the moral of the story is;

When looking at a property, don't just ask about the rent! Ask about what type of contract the owner is offering!

"Tokaname Yaki"- Cera Mall!

2009-06-30T00:20:00.000-07:00

CERA MALL is a Tokoname Pottery Wholesale Industry Park. It is a comprehensive pottery-ceramics shopping zone, which is the largest in scale and variety on Chita Peninsula for ceramics. Within the premises are a few small cafes, a nice park for kids and lots of freee parking where people can leisurely shop in a cozy environment.

99 Kamisunahara, Kanayama-Aza

Tokoname City, Aichi

0569-43-7125

The ceramics on sale range from top-of-the-range handcrafted masterpieces, through to 3 for 100 yen type pricing for slightly defected or older items. The items available also range from cups, sauces and plates right through to umbrella stands, large pots for outside gardening and even decorations for Christmas and the New Year (obviously depending on the season).

I am not a great shopper at any time of the year, but this is one of the places I really enjoy wandering around. I especially enjoy the bargains available on alot of rice bowls, plates (small and large) and it is a common place to go to pick up an omiyage to take back to New Zealand for my family. I have also introduced newly wed couples to Cera Mall on many occasions, as it really is a great place to fit out your kitchen if you don't have one yet..... cheaply, but nicely!

If you have a little time on your hands, this is a perfect place to visit before or after the beach in Utsumi, or some of the fish markets in the south of Chita Peninsula.

If you are stuck for directions, please see the below!

This is a overall map showing the location on Chita Peninsula;

http://www.ceramall.or.jp/images/map1b.jpg

This is a more detailed map;

http://www.ceramall.or.jp/images/map2b.jpg

This is the google map;

http://www.google.co.jp/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=ja&geocode=&q=%E3%80%92479-0003+%E6%84%9B%E7%9F%A5%E7%9C%8C%E5%B8%B8%E6%BB%91%E5%B8%82%E9%87%91%E5%B1%B1%E5%AD%97%E4%B8%8A%E7%A0%82%E5%8E%9F99&sll=36.809285,136.40625&sspn=35.479488,60.908203&ie=UTF8&ll=34.911977,136.842613&spn=0.07151,0.118961&z=13&iwloc=A

Happy shopping!

Jesper Koll in Nagoya

2009-06-29T22:21:00.000-07:00

It is not so often that you get to have dinner with one of Japan's leading economists. So, join us on July 16th to welcome Jesper Koll to Nagoya! Details below.

The American Chamber of Commerce in Japan Presents:
***********************************************************************
"Japan - from Kamikaze Capitalism to Smartpower Dynamism"
JESPER KOLL, PRESIDENT AND CEO, TANTALLON RESEARCH JAPAN

DATE: Thursday, July 16, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
VENUE: The Westin Nagoya 1F Chambord
COST: Members: 5,000 yen, guests: 6,000 yen

REGISTRATION AND CANCELLATION DEADLINE: Tuesday, July 14
HOST: Business Program Committee - Chubu

***********************************************************************

EVENT OVERVIEW:

Japan has what it takes to emerge a winner from the global crisis a
powerful technology base, low financial leverage, huge savings and a
diligent labor force that can easily compete with almost any global
competitor.

Against this, a massive fiscal deficit, very adverse demographics and
fragmented policy making threaten to ensnare Japan in domestic stagnation.
Which force will win? Where are the industries and companies that will take
the lead? What strategies will the new political leadership promote? Will
the Yen ever stop rising? How can your company benefit from the emerging
global economic order and Japan's force in it?

Over the past decade, Jesper Koll has been consistently ranked as one of the
top Japan strategists. He has written two books in Japanese, "Towards a New
Japanese Golden Age" and "The End of Heisei Deflation." He has been a member
of several government advisory panels, including the MoF council on global
capital flows and PM Koizumi's ad-hoc group of private sector experts.

<>
Jesper is the President and CEO of our new Tokyo office, Tantallon Research
Japan KK.

Jesper has been researching and investing in Japan since becoming a resident
in 1986. For the past eight years he was the Chief Economist of Merrill
Lynch Japan. Prior to that, he had worked for the Tiger Fund. He was also
the head of research for JP Morgan in Tokyo (1994-1998) and the chief
economist of SG Warburg (1989-1994). His analysis and insights have earned
him a spot on several Japanese government advisory committees. He is also
one of the few non-Japanese members of the Keizai Doyukai, the Japan
Association of Corporate Executives.

He has a masters degree from SAIS The Johns Hopkins University and was a
research fellow at both Tokyo University and Kyoto University. He is a
graduate of the Lester B.Pearsn College of the Pacific.

TO REGISTER:
Contact Noriko Kato
052-229-1525, or nkato@accj.or.jp
Or fax to: ACCJ Chubu Office: 0052-222-8272

"Japan - from Kamikaze Capitalism to Smartpower Dynamism" on July 16th.

See you there!

"Habitat Japan"- Free Reading!!

2009-06-26T07:09:00.001-07:00

There are plenty of books out their on where to go in Japan, what to do, how to eat and what to choose, how to get a traditional experience and how to get a hold of the Japanese language and culture. Go to Maruzen and there is a huge selection to choose from.

However, there are very few books that cover the mental aspects of preparing yourself for time in Japan, and getting the best out of your experience. We felt that something was missing in this context, and have spent 2 years putting together "Habitat Japan" to guide foreigners in Japan on how to have a great time here.

With each chapter written by a different Japan Guru, you get a fantastic insight into what experiences await you in Japan and how to deal with them best.

Download your free copy on http://www.japaninfoswap.com/

Things Are Picking Up in Japan

2009-06-26T06:37:00.000-07:00

There is a definate surge in confidence in the Japanese economy, and word on the street tells us the worst is over.

At a chamber of commerce meeting earlier this week, members of the financial industry, small business owners, government representatives and even companies in the recruiting and HR services industry noticed a definate pick up in business during June. Hotels have also indicated better results in June, so it does really appear that demand is going to return for goods and services to a reasonable level of where things were before.

For us at H&R Group also, we have seen the return of inbound housing and relocation clients at a quite significant pitch in June. June has probably been the most positive month we have experienced since things hit the wall in October / November of last year.

There are a couple of areas of concern, for which only the future can tell;

- What is going to happen to globalization? Have companies reached their peak with globalization and are now going to back to a more locally driven model? ie. Are all managers going to be locally hired now, or will Expats continue to come to Japan?

- What is going to drive the relocation industry into the future? Price or quality of service? It definately looks like price has been the driver in a globalized economy and world, but it will be interesting where this takes us if local HR departments and offices begin to take more power back from the global model.

Have a nice weekend!

Property vacancies in your area?

2009-06-19T03:21:00.000-07:00

Take a look around you in whatever city you abode in? Do you notice any differences lately? Being in real estate for so long, I have this habit of looking at buildings all the time. Recently in both Tokyo and Nagoya, I am noticing lots of vacancies....... Lots of buildings with very few lights on.

Our company was talking with Leo Palace earlier this week. It would appear that there are some residential buildings around in Nagoya with occupancy at 0%........ Alot of these were buildings cancelled by the recruiting companies of Toyota and other manufacturers at the downturn of the economy. The recruiting companies would sub-lease whole buildings to house the people they were dispatching to the factories. Not a laughing matter for a number of owners these days, who are now eating up their reserves in order to meet loan payments.

Office rents are ready to come down significantly in Nagoya, with what would appear to be a ridiculously silly number of brand new high end offices popping up all over the inner city in recent months. Something has to give way!

Love Hotel Business!

2009-06-19T03:12:00.000-07:00

If you have been in Japan long enough you will have often wondered about love hotels and the mystery that surrounds this hotel business. If you want to know the details, there is a great event coming up! See below for details!

The American Chamber of Commerce in Japan Presents:
***********************************************************************
LABOR OF LOVE: THE PLAN TO REVOLUTIONIZE AN OVERLOOKED JAPANESE INDUSTRY Stephen Mansfield, CEO, New Perspective (asset manager for Japan Leisure
Hotels)

DATE: Thursday, June 25, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
VENUE: Hilton Nagoya 4F Fuji
COST: Members: 3,500 yen, guests: 5,000 yen REGISTRATION AND CANCELLATION DEADLINE: Tuesday, June 23
HOST: Business Program Committee - Chubu
NOTE: This meeting is OFF THE RECORD
***********************************************************************

EVENT OVERVIEW:

There are approximately 25,000 love hotels in Japan, and with typically
25 rooms per hotel, the industry accounts for an estimated 0.75% of Japan's GDP or over $40 billion. Yet it remains a backwater: no single operator or owner controls more than 100 hotels, and in fact 90% of all owners have five or fewer properties. This means few, if any, operators have the size and financial resources to achieve the scale, transparency and accountability to develop a more mature business and realize the potential of the strong underlying fundamentals.

Japan Leisure Hotels, which listed on the AIM section of the London Stock Exchange in January 2008, plans to make its brand, Bonita Hotels, the first nationally-recognized name in short-stay accommodation and lead the impetus for consolidation in the industry. Just as investment by major developers in the 1980s and 1990s changed Las Vegas from a town of questionable repute into a mainstream holiday destination, Japan Leisure Hotels believe it can bring what is perceives to be a fringe business into the mainstream. Success would bring huge rewards, but it's a daunting challenge. Can Bonita Hotels revolutionize this overlooked Japanese industry? Decide for yourself at what promises to be a lively presentation and discussion.

Steve Brown and Mike Wright
Business Programs Committee - Chubu

TO REGISTER CONTACT:
Noriko Kato
Operations Manager - Chubu
The American Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ACCJ) Tel: +81 52 229-1525
Fax: +81 52 222-8272
Email: nkato@accj.or.jp

*************************************************************

And remember! Rental housing in Tokyo or Nagoya? Serviced Apartments in Nagoya? Relocation in Tokyo and Nagoya? Car / Furniture Leasing and Purchase in Tokyo or Nagoya?
See H&R Consultants or ReloJapan! We want to help you in Japan!

Mt. Fuji Climb

2009-06-16T15:05:00.000-07:00

If you are in Nagoya and are looking for a challenge this July, how about climbing Mt. Fuji.

H&R Consultants / ReloJapan are once again sponsoring Hope International's charity climb of Mt. Fuji, to be held on July 10th and 11th. We will pay for you to get up there, so that you can concentrate on challenging the mountain and raising some funds so that Hope Interternational can provide clean water to those in Laos, and also support refugees in Sri Lanka.

I was a climber last year. We had terrific weather, and I forgot my suncreen. I came down a very burnt man!! It was a really great, but trying experience. We left Hongo in Nagoya at 11:00pm, arrived at the base of Mt. Fuji at 3:00am, and started climbing at 3:30am. There was about 1-hour in the dark, but the rest was in the light. It took 6-hours for me to get up to the top, arriving at 9:30am. I spent 1-hour at the top resting, and then came down in about 3.5 hours. Your shoes are very important. I had shoes that were a little tight, and ended up losing both of the toenails on each big toe. Going up is tough and requires alot of energy. Coming down is however worse, as you are tired, and it puts alot of strain on your legs and indeed your feet and toes.

Anyway. We have 37 people booked to challenge so far. The bus takes 50 people, so there are just 13 spots left. Contact Hope International on challenge@hope.or.jp to reserve your spot!

Have a great week!

And remember! Rental housing in Tokyo or Nagoya? Serviced Apartments in Nagoya? Relocation in Tokyo and Nagoya? Car / Furniture Leasing and Purchase in Tokyo or Nagoya?

See H&R Consultants or ReloJapan! We want to help you in Japan!

2009-06-12T21:32:00.000-07:00

Well it is two years later, and I happy to announce the relaunch of Japan Info Swap, and interactive website for the foreign community. We have made some changes and will be incorporating our "Xpat Files" on this site for all to see. Our monthly newsletter that has been produced and edited by Sue Conolly will now be placed on Japan Info Swap in real time. We will then take the best of the entries on Japan Info Swap and will create the monthly newsletter from these.

Yes, Sue Conolly our old faithful is still going to be involved, and yes, the Xpat Files newsletter will continue. It is just going to be in a slightly different format.

I am also pleased to announce that "Habitat Japan", a book written for Expats in Japan in order to get their best out of their time in Japan is also available on www.JapanInfoSwap.com. Go get your copy!! Once again edited by Sue Conolly, and written by a number of experienced "Japaners", this really does give you a great insight in how to get the most out of your time here in Japan.

Good reading da yo!

A New Interactive Website- Japan Info Swap!!

2007-12-29T01:43:00.000-08:00

I am proud to announce that the H&R Consultants Group has just launched a new website for the Expatriate Community of Japan. Called Japan Info Swap, the site has been designed for the Expat Community to interact with each other and trade information.

The site will be initially launched with 3 basic categories;

1. An Information Blog

This will provide useful information on both Japan-wide and local topics of interest. Basically think of it as an on-going newsletter. Naturally, comments can be posted against any entries and an interactive forum is encouraged.

2. A Question and Answer Corner

The most interactive part of this new community site is this Q&A section, which will allow members of the Expat community in Japan to share information and obtain good answers to unknown questions from other reliable and experienced members of the community. This will be a great place to find out things you have always been wanting to know from others in your community!

3. Classifieds Component

This section is aimed at assisting the Expat community to make recommendations and trade information, ideas and items. These classifieds will be ideal for Expats soon to arrive or leave Japan, as they will enable them to trade not only useful information on their communities, but also items such as furniture and appliances. For those of you who have left Japan before, you know how difficult it is to get rid of things, and for those of you who have arrived in Japan for the first time, you know how expensive it is to buy everything! We are looking to unite such like people! The classifieds section will also be a great place to make and verify recommendations on anything from restaurants to hospitals and doctors.

In summary, here is what we are aiming to do through this new site;

To provide a platform for foreigners in Japan to exchange information and share experiences both with each other and with those who are about to embark on their Japanese experience. To stimulate interaction between like members of the foreign community, and enhance the experience of everyone’s time in Japan.

Please go take a look! We are launching things in January and are looking forward to providing everyone with a network to have fun on! Naturally, we will continue to add further content and components in line with everyone's feedback!

WISHING EVERYONE A WONDERFUL 2008!

Steve Burson
H&R Consultants
The Japan Real Estate and Relocation Company

Counters for Length and Area: Shaku and Tsubo

2007-09-17T05:28:00.000-07:00

Japan has its own unique system for measuring area and space, which is called “Shakkan-ho”. Made up of “Shaku” a measurement of length and “Kan” a measurement of mass.

One shaku is equal to approximately “one foot” or more accurately 30.3 centimeters, and all other units of measurement in the system are fractions or multiples of the “shaku”. The shaku was derived from nature and is described to be the average distance between nodes on bamboo. Shaku is still used in construction in Japan; for example plywood is commonly manufactured in 182 x 91 cm sheets, known as “Saburokuhan” or literally “3 x 6” shaku. Saburokuhan is effectively the same size as a Tatami Mat that are measured in “–JO” (please see my entry of September 12th), and therefore shows how the different measurement types all relate to the “Shaku”.

Another very common measurement counter in Japan is the “Tsubo”, which is how area is expressed in Japanese society. 1 Tsubo = 2 tatami mats or 2-JO. Tsubo is still commonly used in the Real Estate Industry in Japan not only for land, but also for describing floor-space in both offices and houses. A typical plot of land used for the building of a Japanese home is 40- 50 tsubo that equates to approximately 130- 150 square meters, or slightly over 1,000 square feet. It is very common for office space to be quoted in yen per tsubo. In Nagoya for example, the market for office space in the downtown area fluctuates anywhere between 10,000 yen per tsubo (approximately 3,000 yen per square meter) through to 30,000 yen per tsubo (or 10,000 yen per square meter), which is what you would pay to have an office in the new Toyota Midland Square Building. Naturally, 30,000 yen per tsubo is the starting point for offices in many locations in Tokyo. One tsubo = approximately 3.3 square meters, or 35.58 square feet.

Hopefully this helps you to work out what the hell your Japanese acquaintances are talking about when they throw the tsubo measurement in your face!

Japanese Tatami

2007-09-12T08:21:00.000-07:00

Some of us have been brought up on feet and inches, while the younger of us know only meters, centimeters and millimeters. However, if you live in Japan, you need to develop a “third sense” when it comes to measuring area. Japan has its own unique measuring system brought down from ancient times.

This starts with the Tatami Mat. Anyone who has been in Japan for a period of time knows about tatami (woven straw mats), and probably know that it is how Japanese people communicate space (or lack of it) in a house or an apartment. A 6-mat room or “roku-jo no heya” in Japanese, is the standard sized room; 4.5 mats would be considered small or slightly cramped, where as an 8-mat or 10-mat room is generally considered to be quite a large room. Contrastingly, an 8-10 mat room would probably the standard size of a bedroom in a western-style home. The tatami mat and its “counter” – jo, are not used only for bedrooms however, but for each individual room including the living / dining / kitchen (known as LDK). A 20-jo LDK would be considered very spacious in a Japanese apartment, where as the standard would probably be 10-15-jo.

You can easily see the use of tatami mats as a counter of room area by taking a look at the floor plans displayed at local real estate agents such as “Mini-Mini”, Apaman-shop, Nissho, etc. Quite often they are referenced by a “J” for the counter “-jo”. For example, the LDK might read 13.0J and the bedrooms 5.5J and 6.0J respectively.

So, how big is a one-jo (ichi-jo in correct Japanese!). Well, it depends where you live in Japan! The standard is close to 1.8 meters x 0.9 meters in a good part of Japan, but due to space constraints in cities such as Tokyo, often tatami are slightly smaller (and this is not an advertised fact- owners are very cunning in populate cities!). Standard Tatami sizes in Tokyo are 1.76 meters x 0.88 meters.

While tatami are used as the “size indicator” of rooms in Japan, it is not so typical to express the overall size of a particular apartment or house in “so-many tatami”. ie. It is not common to add up the tatami count of all the rooms to express the total size. Total size is expressed in either square meters or “tsubo”. Where does Tsubo come from you ask? Well, historically 2-jo = 1 tsubo. I will cover tsubo in my next entry!

Remote Relocations

2007-08-25T00:06:00.000-07:00

In this ever increasingly international society , more and more companies are needing to become global to survive, or at least have a global presence. No longer is it just the large corporations, but now small to medium sized organizations are needing to become "multi-national". As this global phenomenum pulls in smaller companies to the international market, in the relocation industry we are seeing that this is driving the destination of transferees from the highly populated "financial" and "manufacturing" centers of the world to more remote locations. Transferees that used to be located in the Tokyos of the world, are now often being asked to spend their assignment amongst rice paddies.

We are seeing an increasing wide range of Japanese companies (especially in manufacturing in the Chubu Region) who are developing partnerships with overseas vendors / distributors. Often, as these Japanese businesses begin to succeed and grow in both the foreign and domestic market due to these relationships, it is necessary for the overseas entity to have someone on the ground here in Japan. Read on if you are one of these foreign companies!

This creates the perfect receipe for disaster, as different expectations from the Japanese side and the overseas side immediately create and build conflict. A classic example is the housing contract of the overseas employee. The overseas employee and often his superiors assume that the Japan side company will assist to coordinate the contract and even sign it. Anyone who knows Japan well already knows that not many companies in Japan, let along the individuals in the company, are going to be willing to act as a signing party or guarantor. This is just the start, however, as the Japanese "receiving" company will probably not have worked with an "on-the-ground" overseas coordinator before and will therefore be unsure of how to help, even if they want to. Likewise, the overseas coordinator is not likely to have lived in Japan before, and will therefore rely on the Japanese partner for guidance. Bad mistake, as the guidance is unlikely to be correct or clear, and before everyone even starts working together they are totally frustrated with each other.

In these cases, you really want our organization H&R Consultants to be in the middle of things. We have experienced Japanese staff to work with Japan side company to help them handle the typical issues and understand where the foreign party is coming from. We then have foreign consultants to work with the foreign dispatchee; helping to manage their expectations and educate them on all the differences here in Japan and all of the processes that have to be followed.

So, back to "Remote Relocations". What we are seeing is that a number of foregin employees are increasingly being dispatched to very rural areas of Japan. This obviously increases the burden, as there is just not the infra-structure or language ability in the remote relocation like there is in a large city. Just in the last week, we have worked with people in locations such as Ise, Okayama, Okazaki and Utsunomiya, all cities with small populations.

Housing in remote Japanese areas are usually much more inferior than the larger cities. In fact you just can't easily find options that are even "Semi-Western Style". However, the overseas entity will assume the "Western Option" exists. Then the Japanese entity will usually assume that what does exist will be sufficient. Naturally, this creates huge gap that needs to be closed!

Once you have closed this gap, there are many more gaps waiting. The overseas entity will assume that an English contract is available and that they can sign it. Wrong! It will definately be a Japanese contract only! Think about it! Would you expect a Japanese contract to be available in rural Texas?! Owners in rural areas are unlikely to be used to having foreign tenants, and are likely to be very conservative. This is when you need the help of your Japanese business partner, but if they aren't expecting to help, you have big problems!

So, what is the message here. Well, if you thought a relocation to the main center of a Asian Country was difficult, then you have twice the difficulty if you are sending someone to a remote relocation. Twice as much planning is required, and you must do the work up-front in terms of making sure you have the support and understanding of your Japanese partner. Unless you have someone in your company that is a veteran of Japan, you are not going to be able to do this without help of real estate and relocation professionals. Don't ruin your relationship with your Japanese partner or branch office before you start working together. Get help from relocation professionals first and make sure you
- Don't assume anything
- Collect as much information on the destination as possible
- Visit the destination in advance and confirm things
- Start early!

Nobody can work properly if they are not effectively housed and cared for. Think about it!

Driving In Japan- Are you properly licensed?

2007-07-31T05:49:00.000-07:00

Did you know that you need a Japanese Driver's License to drive in Japan? You do!

If you are here 12-months or longer, a International License will not suffice. You need a Japanese one! By law!

If you are from Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxemburg, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand or South Korea it is a relatively easy process.

If you are from anywhere in the world, it is not so easy and you are going to need http://www.japandriverslicense.com/. Take a look now at how we can help you through this bureacracy.

YOU MUST GET A JAPANESE LICENSE!

But, why.......(I hear you all say)

1. Japanese Law says so.

2. Not having a Japanese license is the same as not being qualified to drive

3. Your insurance company is unlikely to cover you in an accident

4. It acts as a good form of ID when you lose your Gaijin Card...

Good reasons....? So, get your Japanese License!

So, why this topic today?

Well, the truth is I wrote this while in a 2-hour "Driving Seminar" that is required when you renew your Japanese License (the 2-hour seminar is for people who have offended.....parking tickets, speeding tickets, etc). This reminded me to remind you about being "legally licensed".

So what did I learn today? Well, not so much, as I was writing the above, but here are the main points.

a. Aichi Prefecture has the worst driving record in the whole country. The most deaths occur in Aichi.

b. Tokyo has a high death rate this year and is right up there with Aichi in 2007.

c. Using mobile phones while driving is illegal and causes many accidents. Don't do it! Even holding your phone in the car is illegal, so please use hand free devices.

d. Beware of procedures for earthquakes.

EARTHQUAKE PROCEDURE FOR DRIVING

If you are in your car when an earthquake strikes, what do you do?

* Without breaking or swirving suddenly, safely slow down and stop on the lefthand side of the road.

* Once stopped, use your car radio to determine earthquake and traffic information, and act accordingly.

* If you are to evacuate leaving your car behind, do your best to park the car off the road. If this is not possible, park to the far left of the road, turn off the engine, leave the key in the car, wind up all windows and leave the car unlocked.

* When parking your car, consider disaster rescue activities and evacuation of others. Don't leave your car in places that could hinder rescue operations.

Drive safely with a license!

Real Estate In Nagoya; Have Investment Trusts Gone Mad?

2007-07-15T05:15:00.000-07:00

The last 18-months have been really interesting in terms of real estate investment in Nagoya. We have seen activity that has never been seen before in Japan's 4th largest city. It went mad, it died off, and now it is back on again.

In the last 12-18 months, Nagoya has been influxed with visitors from Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs); mainly Japanese ones that are known as J-REITs. From early until late 2006, these trust "funds" have come into Nagoya and bought up a good percentage of the large developments in the city like nothing else ever seen before.

So, why Nagoya?
Well, due to increasing land and construction prices, the return on investment (ROI) that is available to investors in Tokyo has dwindled below 5%. So, as this as happened, investors have begun to look else where; Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka being the main targets. Having been seen to be more "genki" than Osaka and Fukuoka economically, Nagoya was the initial target of REIT eyes looking outside the capital, and with ROIs of 6-8%, in came the vultures to buy everything up. And they did. Most of the large development projects or "A-Grade" projects that have been completed in Nagoya in the last 18-months, have had REIT involvement. Their investment makes up only about 5% of the total building investments in Nagoya, but from virtually no presence in Nagoya, REITs are now involved in more than 30 large-scale developments in the city (data from JonesLangLasalle).

So what has this done for Nagoya?
Well, basically two things.
Firstly, you may have heard that the area in front of Nagoya Station has had the highest valuating land prices in Japan for 2 years in row. REIT investment activity has been the main driver. Nagoya has a shortage of "A-Grade" office buildings, so the REITs coming to the city have driven up the demand for sites that are feasible for "A-Grade" projects. As a result, land prices have valuated sharply in prime "A-Grade" locations, which has in turn driven up the general land prices in the down town Nagoya area. This has also triggered valuations in other areas of Nagoya City, and this "effect" has also slowly dispersed out to areas such as Kariya and Anjo Cities, who are also recording record land values.
Secondly, higher land prices and increasingly expensive construction costs have driven up project fees to a level where Nagoya is now not a bargain compared to Tokyo or other locations. ROIs are falling, and word in the market now is you are doing well to calculate 5% returns.
As a result, the REITs began moving out of Nagoya in late 2006 to find greener fields elsewhere.

So, where are the REITs now?
Funnily enough, they are back. As mentioned in my introduction, it went mad, it died off and now it is starting again.

But, didn't you say ROIs were falling? What are they doing back?
As mentioned above, the REITs were only every interested in "A-Grade" opportunities. These were the large-scale properties for which a signifcant amount of land in a down town location was required. Such opportunities were limited, and the laws of supply and demand soon turned the ROIs sour. However, while general land prices were rising, smaller blocks of land were not affected as much by supply and demand forces, as they were not feasible for what the REITs wanted to invest in.
So, what are they doing now? Well, the "A-Grade" opportunities have pretty much been eaten up, so now they are back buying up "medium-scale" opportunities in 3s and 4s. In other words, they can't get projects large enough, so they are buying into 3 or 4 projects at a time, and treating them as one large project. Yes, this is how the activity is taking off again!

If only the Nagoya market can sustain the need for all these new developments. I am skeptical that it can........Once again, the winners will be those who have thought about their investments (developments) and those that have a marketing plan in place. From where I sit, Nagoya is not growing quick enough to sustain the supply that this activity is bringing. Time will tell!

New Toyota Building and Relocation to Nagoya

2007-06-18T04:29:00.000-07:00

The new Toyota Building in front of Nagoya Station is complete. In true Toyota style they have done it so right, and "Midland Square" has immediately become Nagoya's new landmark. The basement is full of new shops and restaurants, and standing beside Nagoya's Twin Towers that were completed earlier this century, this new complex sets the stage for Nagoya's transition from a small city to something much more impressive.

Just to the north of Midland Square is the new Lucent Building. A similar monstrosity, the Lucent Building is probably as stylish as Toyota's effort, if not better. It also has all the shops and restaurants and its own underground walkway from Nagoya Station.

However, waht the Lucent Building doesn't have is the "talk" of Midland Square. Midland Square has had people talking in Nagoya for years. What will the new building bring? Who will it bring? What Toyota functions will move from Tokyo? Who will have offices there? Will there be multitudes more foreigners in Nagoya due to it? How many Japanese employees will relocate? What will the building do for the housing market in Nagoya?

Once again, in true Toyota fashion, nobody really knew the answers to those questions, and Toyota kept as much under its hat as possible.

So, the result? Well, not much has changed. What we have seen is Toyota moving a few people internally. Alot of them, surprisingly, within Nagoya itself from other Toyota Offices. A few people have transferred from Tokyo, while others choose to keep their residences in the capital city, and just be in Nagoya during the week.

New developments in the downtown area of Nagoya have shot up all over the place in the last 12- 24 months. Those developers who have thought about their investment and have considered the local characterisitics and tendancies have done well. However, the majority of the developments have not been well considered, and have just gone up in a rush to meet the same completion period as Midland Square. With the smaller then expected impact of the new Toyota Office, there are now many hurting developers out there wondering where all the people are.

So where are the people and are they coming? Well, they are not here yet maybe, but I am confident they are coming. The trend in Nagoya is for a slow but steady increase in economic growth. With Toyota around, this is unlikely to change. However, we are not going to wake up tomorrow and see the next New York developed in our back yard. Much like the increase in the foreign population and foreign company presence in Nagoya, growth is slow but steady and it will take time. With Toyota now sitting in front of Nagoya Station, slowly but surely, many companies will be reminded that they need to be close by. Slowly but surely, many companies overseas that are involved in Toyota Sales and After Service are going to see the need to be in Nagoya; just like many of their counterparts in the supply chain of Toyota who know they need to be on the ground near Toyota City to enhance their ability to maintain and increase their business with the world's number one vehicle manufacturer.

The factor that will really shape Nagoya's future is financial markets. It is a dynamic of the Nagoya economy that is tough to believe now, but if Toyota can bring financial markets to Nagoya then waking up with New York in our back yard mayn't be so far away as we all think......

Corporate Social Responsibility in Nagoya

2007-05-31T03:43:00.000-07:00

We have just come off a wonderful event in Nagoya. Every year the foreign community of Nagoya comes together to arrange a "Walkathon" to raise money for local charities and the not so lucky of our community. In 2006, the Walkathon raised 6.5 million for local orphanages, facilities that support the mentally and physically challenged, etc. This years event was blessed by great weather and a record attendance of close to 2,500 people. In 2007, we should able to give more than 7 million back to local Nagoya Charities.

Corporate social responsibility or CSR is a term that we have only started hearing in the last few years, but the Nagoya foreign community's social responsibility has been going for much longer. This year was our 16th Walkathon.

As a company that provides housing, relocation and leasing services to the Expatriate Community in Japan, CSR and giving back to the community that both we and our clients live in, is a very important agenda for our group. Much has been talked about in the area of "internationalization" in Japan, but our operations as a company and the lives of our clients in Japan are the real grass roots of Japan becoming more "global" and understanding other cultures other than their own. The Walkathon is all about bringing Japanese and Foreigners together to learn the grass roots of giving to charity and volunteering time for the benefit of others. It is not artificial "internationalization" like that of events held by cities and prefectures across Japan such as cooking classes in a local kominkan. Our Walkathon and our clients out living in Japanese communities are the real thing, and they are the real way forward to Japan warmly accepting all people regardless of race, color or background. However, it is a two-way street and we must never forget what the community does for us foreigners in Japan. The Walkathon is one way to thank everyone around us in for their support by giving back to those in the community who need it.

Hopefully in coming years we will see many more Japanese companies learn more about CSR and especially the different ways companies can give back to their community, while having their employees benefit from the partnership and relationships that are built by being involved in such activities. It is not all about how much money companies give, it is also about the time you can give, and the extent of involvement you have in giving financial support to charities. Any company can throw some money to a charity and call it CSR, but smart companies get involved in the giving and have their people learn about CSR through interacting with others outside their own organizations. The Walkathon teaches this in Nagoya, and H&R Consultants is glad to be able learn from it too.

I hope you can help us give back to Chubu again in May 2008 at the 17th Walkathon!

Why is Relocation to Japan Different? Difficult?

2007-05-09T21:55:00.000-07:00

Relocating anywhere is a difficult business. Who likes moving house? Would you move 3 times a year?

Most people would cringe at the thought of moving even 3 times in 10 years.

So add to that an international move, to a country that speaks a different language (which is incidentally spoken nowhere else in the world), to a land of people who have a different approach to many things in life. That's the difference!

So what make's it difficult? Well, that is easy...... People make it difficult! People make everything difficult! Why? Because we all come from different backgrounds, have different perspectives on things, have different expectations that typically are built on our past experiences, and we all think that we are the correct about everything (well, alot of the time anyway!).

So, what do we do to assist in the relocation of people to Japan and finding them a comfortable home? We try to understand them. We try to put our feet in their shoes. And, we try to never forget that the people we work with are human, and therefore require a human touch.

We have a long way to go in perfecting our real estate, relocation and leasing services, but we are going to go there, because we know what is required. We know that however quickly technology changes, people are always going to be difficult, and people are always going to required a human touch. If it were not for people, this world would long ago have been perfected. However, we all know how far away from perfection the world is, and therefore I know that H&R Consultants, ReloJapan and Lease Japan have a long time to live in Japan yet!