Japan Foreclosed Property 2015-2016 - Buy this 5th edition report!

Over the years, this ebook has been enhanced with additional research to offer a comprehensive appraisal of the Japanese foreclosed property market, as well as offering economic and industry analysis. The author travels to Japan regularly to keep abreast of the local market conditions, and has purchased several foreclosed properties, as well as bidding on others. Japan is one of the few markets offering high-yielding property investment opportunities. Contrary to the 'rural depopulation' scepticism, the urban centres are growing, and they have always been a magnet for expatriates in Asia. Japan is a place where expats, investors (big or small) can make highly profitable real estate investments. Japan is a large market, with a plethora of cheap properties up for tender by the courts. Few other Western nations offer such cheap property so close to major infrastructure. Japan is unique in this respect, and it offers such a different life experience, which also makes it special. There is a plethora of property is depopulating rural areas, however there are fortnightly tenders offering plenty of property in Japan's cities as well. I bought a dormitory 1hr from Tokyo for just $US30,000.
You can view foreclosed properties listed for as little as $US10,000 in Japan thanks to depopulation and a culture that is geared towards working for the state. I bought foreclosed properties in Japan and now I reveal all in our expanded 350+page report. The information you need to know, strategies to apply, where to get help, and the tools to use. We even help you avoid the tsunami and nuclear risks since I was a geologist/mining finance analyst in a past life. Check out the "feedback" in our blog for stories of success by customers of our previous reports.

Download Table of Contents here.

Monday, January 28, 2008

Report on buying foreclosed property in Japan

For anyone interested, I am currently preparing a report on buying foreclosed property in Japan. The report will include my experiences researching, bidding, buying and ultimately renovating two properties in Japan, though I bid on 3 in total. I looked at properties in numerous regions, visited properties in Saitama and Shizuoka prefectures, but my interest was widespread.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

Strategy for buying foreclosed property in the Philippines

You wont find the same bargains in the Philippines as Japan, at least not on the entry price, but you will get greater capital appreciation. The Philippines has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are:
1. Westerm legal system and language
2. Greater transparency

The difficulties are:
1. Depending on the type of property, you might need to buy in a girlfriend's name, or tie up the property so its 'effectively' yours.
2. Avoiding areas of property overhang

There are several types of property buyer in the Philippines. By far the biggest type is the expat Filipino living abroad. Rather than let his family squander all his money he invests in property and lets his family use it. He uses it when he returns. Usually he wants it close to services in Manila. Places like Tagaytay and Alabang are popular, or Baguio City in the north. On other occasions the expats are buying places in residential estates close to their home town, though it cant be too rural. Having lived overseas, they are accustomed to the convenience, services and safety, etc of the west.
Foreigners are another big buyer of property, though their taste tends to be pretty similar. Some want however a resort on the coast of Subic, Boracay or Bohol, os they are in the company of other retirees. Most of them are old men after some titilation before they die. Probably the biggest cause of death in that demographic. he he.

The implication is that these areas have a potential rental market overhang, so rental returns are likely to be thin, as developers mass-market these properties in foreign markets to Filipinos abroad. The greater opportunity is:
1. Smaller regional cities that will soon have a shopping mall
2. Areas within close proximity to regional airport, eg. Davao City
3. Areas on an proposed railway, eg. Calamba
4. Areas that are not slummy, eg. Legaspi City
5. Areas penalised by terrorism threat, eg. Cagayan de Oro City - its a deepwater port so expect greater industry here in future

Of course the problem with the Philippines is the disorganised, corrupt development, that makes a mess of the place. The lack of respect for zoning regulations also tends to depress land prices despite the strong population growth and strong economy. The fact that the government does not spend on infrastructure makes them reliant on private schemes by property developers, so its hard to benefit from any develppments after they are announced. You need to anticipate development in future.

Strategy for buying foreclosed property in Japan

Japan has been a depressed economy for some time. Since the market collapse in 1989 to 2004 the Japanese economy has been in a deflationary spiral. Interest rates were at very low levels to keep the yen low to encourage exports, but the banks were not lending money. Neither were they liquidating their loan portfolios until the 2000s. They were waiting for the property market to absorb their bad loan portfolios. With negative population growth, they had to wait a long time. They are still liquidating, though with a strong global economy helping local exports and job growth, investment in property increased in the early 2000s, but it wasn't until 2004 that deflation ebbed. The rise in property prices started in Tokyo, and other small growth cities like Nagoya, Fukuoka.

The Japanese nation has been very slow to open up the economy to the outside world. This problem is politics. In many respects the business world is alot more progressive. There has been a shift to temp workers, the seniority, lifetime employment system is well on its way to the museums. There is a raft of discount stores undercutting the traditional department stores. Change is not evenly spread. Even government is taking some steps to reform, though policy initiatives have been slow coming. Most of the initiatives have been cost cutting.

The positive news is that whilst Japanese population growth is negative, there is still internal population movement to the cities, and not just the principal cities like Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, Nagoya, Hiroshima, Nagasaki. Regional centresw like Sendai, Morioka, Nagano have also been attracting more population.

In the cities foreclosed property is well bid by professional investors. In the rural areas such property investment is dominated by real estate agents and local astute investors willing to take risks that most locals shy away from. Actually the risks are really quite mild since foreclosed property is often heavily discounted.

First issue is - You really need to know what you want. Is the property for lifestyle (a love shack close to Tokyo), investment return, an owner-occupied residence near work, or a business residence. Any love shack really needs to be within 1hr of Tokyo, preferably younger than 12yo, and close to a station. If you dont spend muchtime in Japan, go for a small inner city apartment. They can be rented to students, or just a place to store your stuff. Apartments generally make less sense for investment. The gross yield is good, but they carry high compulsory management fees. These fees cover restoration work, but the use of funds is not efficient. The trick is to find properties that homeowners generally dont want, as they will not be bidding, and hopefully nor will the real estate agents who respresent them, who just want to flip these properties. As indicated, properties in the cities are well-bid, so best to look in countryside. I go for attract rural areas clsoe to Tokyo. I am betting on a lifestyle proiorities change - so I like the west Tokyo area. Ome is nice, but more expensive than neighbouring Hanno. My ex-GF and I also bought a place in the NW of Saitama, close to shopping by car, though 5km from the station. Agents did not bid because most buyers want close to station and more land. This was a nice house just on 80m2 of land. It made a great rental in a quiet, scenic valley.
You want to bid on properties that are older than 12yo, and need a little work, in the hope of getting agents out. Also if you can adopt some lateral thinking, you might find a property you can use. eg. A warehouse outside Tokyo as a distribution centre for imports, or a dormitory, useful for teaching kids English. I bought one next to a private school. You can buy these properties very cheap because they require too much renovation to convert into a home.
Old homes in Japan, say over 20yo are essentially valued at less than Y0.5mil, yet they have a useful life of another 20 years without much maintenance. My place at Hanno had a pile of timber all around it that discouraged buyers. It was 18yo, so the outside stairs needed painting, the downpipes are disintegrating, the plumbing is corroding.
My big lesson has been to buy in residential subdivisions, unless you are able to get information on plumbing from neighbours. I assumed my dormitory in west Tokyo had plumbing because it was a free-standing building, but it was connected to the neighbours site. The power was also connected through him. The good news is that there is a 70% subsidy to get septic connected in my area if I am a resident. I am not. I stay at my place just 1-2 months a year in Spring-Summer.

I like the regional cities as well. There are developers selling new designer homes to Australians in Hokkaido for skiing. Why not look for a foreclosed property outside these exclusive neighbourhoods for 10% of the price. Sure it wil be a little older, Japanese style, and not as close to facilities, buit its a significant saving, particularly if you are owner-user. Such off-the-plan places are targeted at executives with more money than time. There is the tax-incentive as well. Having your name in katakana makes tax sense I'm sure.

Major cities of Japan

資料:各都市の推計人口(ホームページ) Japan's major cities:
札幌市 Sapporo 仙台市 Sendai さいたま市 Saitama 千葉市 Chiba
東京都区部 Tokyo-23 横浜市 Yokohama 川崎市 Kawasaki 新潟市 Niigata 静岡市 Shizuoka 浜松市 Hamamatsu 名古屋市 Nagoya 京都市 Kyoto 大阪市 Osaka 堺市 Sakai 神戸市 Kobe 広島市 Hiroshima 北九州市 Kitakyushu 福岡市 Fukuoka

Cities and towns of Tokyo

競売物件購入 keibai buttsuken kounyu 千代田区 Chiyoda-ku 八王子市 Hachioji-shi 羽村市 Hamura-shi 中央区 Chuo-ku 立川市 Tachikawa-shi あきる野市 Akiruno-shi 港区 Minato-ku 武蔵野市 Musashino-shi 西東京市 Nishitokyo-shi 新宿区 Shinjuku-ku 三鷹市 Mitaka-shi 文京区 Bunkyo-ku 青梅市 Ome-shi 郡部 Towns and villages 台東区 Taito-ku 府中市 Fuchu-shi 瑞穂町 Mizuho-machi
墨田区 Sumida-ku 昭島市 Akishima-shi 日の出町 Hinode-machi 江東区 Koto-ku 調布市 Chofu-shi 檜原村 Hinohara-mura 品川区 Shinagawa-ku 町田市 Machida-shi 奥多摩町 Okutama-machi 目黒区 Meguro-ku 小金井市 Koganei-shi 大田区 Ota-ku 小平市 Kodaira-shi 島部 Islands 世田谷区 Setagaya-ku 日野市 Hino-shi 大島町 Oshima-machi 渋谷区 Shibuya-ku 東村山市 Higashimurayama-shi 利島村 Toshima-mura
中野区 Nakano-ku 国分寺市 Kokubunji-shi 新島村 Niijima-mura 杉並区 Suginami-ku 国立市 Kunitachi-shi 神津島村 Kouzushima-mura 豊島区 Toshima-ku 福生市 Fussa-shi 三宅村 Miyake-mura 北区 Kita-ku 狛江市 Komae-shi 御蔵島村 Mikurajima-mura 荒川区 Arakawa-ku 東大和市 Higashiyamato-shi 八丈町 Hachijo-machi 板橋区 Itabashi-ku 清瀬市 Kiyose-shi 青ケ島村 Aogashima-mura 練馬区 Nerima-ku 東久留米市 Higashikurume-shi 小笠原村 Ogasawara-mura 足立区 Adachi-ku 武蔵村山市 Musashimurayama-shi 葛飾区 Katsushika-ku 多摩市 Tama-shi 江戸川区 Edogawa-ku 稲城市 Inagi-shi

Cities & Towns of Saitama

競売物件購入 keibai buttsuken kounyu 西区 Nishi-ku 北区 Kita-ku 大宮区 Omiya-ku 見沼区 Minuma-ku 中央区 Chuo-ku 桜区 Sakura-ku 浦和区 Urawa-ku 南区 Minami-ku 緑区 Midori-ku Cities (-shi) さいたま市 Saitama-shi 川越市 Kawagoe-shi 熊谷市 Kumagaya-shi 川口市 Kawaguchi-shi 行田市 Gyoda-shi 秩父市 Chichibu-shi 所沢市 Tokorozawa-shi 飯能市 Hanno-shi 加須市 Kazo-shi 本庄市 Honjo-shi 東松山市 Higashi-Matsuyama-shi 岩槻市 Iwatski-shi 春日部市 Kasukabe-shi 狭山市 Sayama-shi 羽生市 Hanyu-shi 鴻巣市 Kounosu-shi 深谷市 Fukaya-shi 上尾市 Ageo-shi 草加市 Souka-shi 越谷市 Koshigaya-shi 蕨 市 Warabi-shi 戸田市 Toda-shi 入間市 Iruma-shi 鳩ケ谷市 Hatogaya-shi 朝霞市 Asaka-shi 志木市 Shiki-shi 和光市 Wako-shi 新座市 Niiza-shi 桶川市 Okegawa-shi 久喜市 Kuki-shi 北本市 Kitamoto-shi 八潮市 Yasio-shi 富士見市 Fujimi-shi 上福岡市 Kami-fukuoka-shi 三郷市 Misato-shi 蓮田市 Hasuda-shi 坂戸市 Sakado-shi 幸手市 Satte-shi 鶴ケ島市 Tsurogashima-shi 日高市 Hidaka-shi 吉川市 Yoshikawa-shi 北足立郡 Districts (-gun) 伊奈町 Ina-machi or ko 吹上町 Fukiage-machi 大井町 Oi-machi 三芳町 Miyoshi-machi 毛呂山町 Moroyama-machi 越生町 Ogose-machi 名栗村 Naguri-mura

Cities &Towns of Kanagawa

競売物件購入 keibai buttsuken kounyu 県計 市部計 郡部計 横浜市 鶴見区 神奈川区 西区 中区 南区 港南区 保土ヶ谷区 旭区 磯子区 金沢区 港北区 緑区 青葉区 都筑区 戸塚区 栄区 泉区 瀬谷区 川崎市 川崎区 幸区 中原区 高津区 宮前区 多摩区 麻生区 横須賀市 平塚市 鎌倉市 藤沢市 小田原市 茅ヶ崎市 逗子市 相模原市 三浦市 秦野市 厚木市 大和市 伊勢原市 海老名市 座間市 南足柄市 綾瀬市 三浦郡葉山町 高座郡寒川町 中郡 大磯町 二宮町 足柄上郡 中井町 大井町 松田町 山北町 開成町 足柄下郡 箱根町 真鶴町 湯河原町 愛甲郡 愛川町 清川村

Cities & Towns of Chiba

競売物件購入 keibai buttsuken kounyu 県計 市計 郡計 千葉市 中央区 花見川区 稲毛区 若葉区 緑区 美浜区 銚子市 市川市 船橋市 館山市 木更津市 松戸市 野田市 佐原市 茂原市 成田市 佐倉市 東金市 八日市場市 旭市 習志野市 柏市 勝浦市 市原市 流山市 八千代市 我孫子市 鴨川市 鎌ヶ谷市 君津市 富津市 浦安市 四街道市 袖ケ浦市 八街市 印西市 白井市 富里市

Cities & Towns of Osaka

競売物件購入 keibai buttsuken kounyu 総 数 府 保 健 所 計 池 田 池田市 豊能町  箕面市  能勢町  豊中豊中市  吹 田 吹田市 茨木摂津市  茨木市 島本町 枚方枚方市  寝屋川 寝屋川市 守口 守口市  門真市 四條畷 四條畷市 交野市  大東市 八 尾 八尾市  柏原市  藤井寺 松原市  羽曳野市 藤井寺市 富田林 大阪狭山市 富田林市 河内長野市 河南町  太子町  千早赤阪村 和泉和泉市  泉大津市 高石市  忠岡町  岸和田 岸和田市 貝塚市  泉佐野 泉佐野市 熊取町 田尻町  泉南市  阪南市  岬町 大 阪 市 堺市 高槻市 東大阪市  

Cities & Towns of Hiroshima

競売物件購入 keibai buttsuken kounyu 県計 広島市 広島市中区 広島市東区 広島市南区 広島市西区 広島市安佐南区 広島市安佐北区 広島市安芸区 広島市佐伯区 呉市 竹原市 三原市 尾道市 福山市 府中市 三次市 庄原市 大竹市 東広島市 廿日市市 安芸高田市 江田島市 府中町 海田町 熊野町 坂町 安芸太田町 北広島町 大崎上島町 世羅町 神石高原町