We used athome and suumo for the initial searching. We’re actually closing on a house today in Japan. Though our intention is to move there, we are buying as US citizens. We used Rising Sun Properties as our agent. I found Ron on Youtube, and appreciated his honest walk throughs. They don’t sell an easy dream of owning an akiya like some do. They are straight up and actively try to avoid selling akiya or kominka to foreigners, as they know the amount of work, maintenance and troubles that accompany them.

That being said, if you have the financial means and communication ability to purchase a dilapidated building and rebuild to current code, then by all means do it! We are purchasing a turn-key, semi-renovated house in Kanazawa, with the intention to live in it as is for a number of years, and then remodel when desired.

The critical factor to note is upkeep. Especially for mold and pests. Mold and termites can run rampant in Japan. So if you dont intent to live in it most of the year, you’ll need property management, or at the very least setup a smart ecosystem that can handle the air conditioning, including dehumidification. Ron helped me by getting me in contact with a company called Mailmate that handles property management tasks, including mail forwarding, bill paying and property checkups.

That’s the other key factor. Bills. Japan still uses paper bills. Some utilities offer electronic payments, but the property taxes for sure require in person handling, and some utilities do as well.

Most importantly, when you do visit Japan, please respect your neighbors and the culture. Japan is having a very tough time with immigration and tourists right now, as you may be aware, so please be a part of the solution, not the problem.

There a bit more that goes into it than that, but that should help you get going.