Become an owner in Japan

There is some legitimacy to know that finding his dream house, is never easy. And that in any country. This is why, I propose you some useful sites, for people who understand Japanese or who live in Japan or overseas.

If you are looking for a house in Japan, here are some useful sites that may help you:

CJK.JP : https://www.cjk.jp
NOMU : https://www.nomu.com
H-GALLERY : https://www.h-gallery.com

Know how to read a Japanese real estate plan

Let's familiarize ourselves with the Japanese abbreviations, used to read a real estate plan.
This should help you in your search to buy a property.

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An important point to remember about the reliability of a real estate agency in Japan. As in any country, as a foreigner with a language barrier, it is important to ascertain the risks that may be present or the benefits that may be offered to you. This is why it is essential to check the following points on the real estate sites you visit.

• Size of the company
  the larger the company, the greater the number of employees
• If the documents have a translated version in a language you can understand
  never sign a document if you do not understand its meaning
• Check the details on site (during the visit) if you can, or on the documents relating to the property
  you can request to translate the documents

Advice
It is in your best interest to contact the real estate agency directly who is in charge of the announcement of a property that you liked in order to avoid some mix-up or misunderstanding. Luckily, there is probably among one of the staff of the real estate agency that you have contacted, an employee who can speak English! Otherwise

Real estate diagnosis

Remember to request a real estate diagnosis from the agency, to constitute a wealth of information to assess the condition of your future property. According to different situations:

• Type of goods offered for sale
  single-detached house or apartment
• Localisation
• Construction date

Here are the 10 so-called "mandatory" real estate diagnoses
to be carried out with the real estate agency

• Period of validity of diagnoses previously carried out
• The energy performance diagnosis (DPE)
• Asbestos condition
• The state of the non-collective sanitation installation
• Observation about the risks of exposure to lead
• The state of the interior electrical installation
• The state of the internal gas installation
• The state of risks and pollution
• The measurement of the area of the property
• Noise diagnosis

Visit

I strongly recommend that you visit the property in order to avoid unpleasant surprises as much as possible and to check that the photos of the property seen on the advertisement correspond to reality. Although the risks in Japan are lower, there are, like everywhere, a few unscrupulous agencies that exist. IF you cannot move to Japan :

• Visits can be done remotely via Facetime (just request it.)

We are gradually reaching the point of no return.
After deciding to purchase the property, you will need to submit a "purchase certificate" to the seller of the property or the estate agent who will indicate that you have the intention to purchase officially the property at :

- the price referred (as indicated on the announcement)
- or at a negotiated price

When buying real estate in Japan, the following expenses are included in addition to the price of your purchase.
It is generally said that the total of the following expenses is around 8% of the purchase price of your property.

1. (1) Stamp duty to be affixed to the sales contract
2. (2) Property acquisition tax
3. (3) Registration tax
4. (4) Brokerage fees paid to the real estate brokerage firm
5. (5) Insurance premiums for fire insurance, earthquake insurance, etc.
6. (6) Settlement of property tax
7. (7) Settlement of management fees

Once you have a contract with a real estate agent, you will need to decide how to pay for the property you want to buy and prepare the purchase funds.

There are three main possibilities.

2 supply methods

1. Direct money transfer
2. Real estate loan for foreigners

Let me explain each of them to you.

Direct money transfer

Non-residents in Japan can not open a bank account. In this case, you will have to directly transfer money abroad from the financial institution you use in your own country and pay the purchase price of the real estate transaction to the real estate agency or to the seller of the property directly.

For payments from abroad, it is necessary to have sent the agency fees in advance so that the administrative procedures can be triggered.
Like in Europe or in United States, agency fees are to be seen with the real estate agent to find out the deposit account, which is often the agency that you have contacted. That's why it's important to choose a real estate agency you can trust !

Also make sure you get the following documents from the real estate company to confirm the basis of the agency fee and to confirm the payment you have made.

Before payment abroad
Proof of agency fees with the seal of the real estate agency
(a Japanese seal corresponds to the signature and stamp of the agency)

After payment of agency fees abroad
Proof of the bank transaction
(from the bank you are sending money to)

Real estate loans for foreigners ( 3 ways)

Real estate loans are also possible for financing. But what if you want to take out a loan to buy in Japan?

When making real estate loans, from a national financial institution, many cite "having permanent residence" as a condition of the loan.
Because banks want to make sure that you plan to stay in Japan during the loan repayment period.
Therefore, it is difficult, but not impossible for foreigners who do not have permanent residence to take out a loan from a Japanese financial institution.

Here are 3 different ways to do it :

Financial institution in your home country
If your financial institution has a branch in Japan , you can apply for a real estate loan. It is possible that the validation criteria are different from those of Japanese financial institutions, so that even people who do not have a permanent residence may be able to have a loan.

Foreign-affiliated non-banking institution
Foreigners of United States , United Kingdom and Canadian nationality, may be able to take out a foreign non-bank loan.

=> Indeed, instead of permanent residency, there are real estate loan that find out credit information in your home country, review it and decide on a loan. However, only the United States , United Kingdom and Canada allow credit information to be released overseas, so it may be difficult for people of other nationalities to use it.

Bank loan in Japan
The bank of Tokyo Star Bank (to quote one) which, under certain conditions, offers real estate loans to foreigners who do not have a permanent residence.

(do not hesitate to ask an advisor for more details)

The following documents are also required for foreigners wishing to purchase real estate in Japan. They are different depending on those who live in Japan and those who live abroad.
Here are the documents required for each.

2 types of cases :

Resident in Japan
Resident abroad

Resident in Japan

If you are :

• a permanent resident
• or a special permanent resident*
• or be with someone with residency status such as a Japanese spouse
  
• or a person with residence status with a Japanese work visa

*is a resident of Japan whose ancestry is usually linked to its former colonies, Korea or Taiwan, especially when those countries were under Japanese colonial rule.

In this case, you will need to provide 4 documents :

1. Foreign resident card
You can obtain a foreign resident card by contacting the counter of the municipality which informed you of your place of residence.

For the companies, a subsidiary, or the buyer of a sales business in Japan,
=> A copy of the company register and a certificate of qualification will be used instead of the foreign resident card.

2. Residence permit
To register the purchased property, you will need to bring the residence card, as this proves the identity of a foreigner in Japan.

• It also appears on this card your authorization or not to work on Japanese territory.
  
• The maximum length of stay is in principle 5 years (exceptions may apply).

3. Seal certificate

Obligation to attach to the sales contract, the seal certificate which can be obtained by registering the seal in the municipality where the residence has been declared.

For companies, a subsidiary, or the buyer of a sales business in Japan,
=> A seal certificate with the seal of the representative's company is required

4. Manufacture a gasket (seal)
Possession of a seal is necessary to seal documents such as sales contracts.
There are few countries that use seals overseas, so it is best to make them in Japan.

- Several businesses in Japan manufacture it, so it is relatively easy to get your own seal.

Resident abroad

When a buyer living overseas purchases real estate in Japan, the following four documents are required.

1. Documents that can replace the resident card
It is a document that replaces the "residence card" in Japan.

[ If you are an individual and not a company ]

• The Resident Registration Certificate plays the same role as the Japanese Resident Card.
• In the case of a country that does not have a resident registration system, an affidavit* certified by a notary public belonging to the country of origin can be used instead of the resident card.
• A certificate of affidavit certified by the consular service of the embassy of your country of origin is also valid.

*a statement under oath and in front of a witness for a formal procedure. The applicant swears that everything he says is true.

[ If you are a merchant or a company ]

• If the buyer is a company, the certificate of registration must be issued, either by the competent authority of the country, or by the person in charge of the company, or by the notary public of the office of the country of origin having jurisdiction. Therefore, you will need to prepare a sworn statement.

2. Passport
In the case of an individual, it is your passport and in the case of a company, it is the passport of the representative.

3. Documents that can replace the seal certificate
A document that replaces the Japanese "seal certificate" must be attached to the sales contract.

4. Manufacture a gasket (seal)
[...I mentioned it above... ]

Finally, I have summarized other points to note when foreigners buy Japanese real estate.

1. Real estate title receipt
2. Tax administrator
3. Final tax declaration (in case of investment)

Real estate title receipt

After the acquisition of the property, the ownership title will be completed in about a week and must be decided in advance, whether this document will be sent by post or managed by a management company.

Tax administrator

After buying a Japanese property, the tax office will send you a tax payment slip such as real estate acquisition tax and property tax, so you need to pay the indicated tax.

In this case, if you reside abroad, you must set up a « tax administrator » who will take care of the procedure for paying taxes in Japan.
A tax administrator can be a member of your entourage or an acquaintance.
Otherwise, you will have to consult a property management company.

Final tax declaration
(in case of investment)

In case of investment, it is necessary to file an income tax return.

If you buy a property to invest in Japan and earn rental income, you must file an as " real estate income ".
You can ask your tax accountant to handle income tax return process for you.
- If you do not have a tax accountant, ask a property management company to introduce you to one.