Buying a House in Japan

It's been two years since Take and Joey bought their akiya in Tama, and this episode is a full walkthrough of everything that's changed. From a brand new cold plunge to an unexpected termite discovery under the floor, the guys break down every upgrade, what it cost, and what they'd do differently. What You'll Learn How they threw their first big party at the property, including neighbor etiquette...

A Hawaii family buys an oceanfront home in Japan for $16,000 and it has a surf break out front, a bike path, and ski resorts 40 minutes away. This is how they did it. In this episode, host Take Kurosawa sits down with Chris Rose, a former Army veteran, longtime Hawaii resident, and Buying a House in Japan direct program customer, at the Hoʻomaluhia Botanical Garden on Oahu's east side. Chris share...

This week Take is running solo, joined again by Ryan, head of Japan operations for AkiyaMart and a certified financial planner to walk through how Japanese inheritance tax could apply to foreign-owned property. It's an important but sometimes overlooked conversation when it comes to buying foreign real estate and this conversation can be a good starting point as you plan your Japan home purchase....

Three years ago we built a tool so we could buy a cheap house in Japan. Then, we started helping other people buy cheap houses in Japan and soon we were helping folks from all over the world buy their dream home in Japan at any price or condition. For a while now, AkiyaMart has become a platform serving a large variety of homebuyers and we're changing our brand to reflect that. Listen to learn how...

Buying a house in Japan used to mean combing through sometimes dozens of multiple listings just to get an accurate picture of a property. With AkiyaMart v4, we solved that problem. Let us tell you how we did it. Unlike in the US, where the MLS aggregates property details into singular cohesive listings, Japan's REINS system operates almost like a series of Craigslist ads. We wanted to simplify the...

This week, Take and Joey run through the ten most frequently asked questions from AkiyaMart consultation calls. After three years and thousands of consultations, they identified your top questions and hope this episode can help you prep for your Japan home buying journey. They cover whether foreigners can buy property in Japan, how the buying process actually works end to end, why loans are not av...

This week, Take and Joey break down what's next for AkiyaMart and why they're repositioning toward a broader Japan real estate platform. The most immediate change is that they've decided to stop using the word "akiya." For foreigners it's shorthand for cheap, abandoned homes in Japan. But for many people in Japan, the word carries real cultural and economic weight. For the team, this business has...

Can a foreign family actually build a life in suburban Japan? Linda moved from Europe to western Tokyo with no Japanese, no prior visit, and a toddler. Ten years later, her daughter is fluent, she knows the whole neighborhood, and they can't imagine leaving. This episode covers moving to Japan with kids, international schools vs. the Japanese public school track, raising a multilingual child in Ja...

Is a year at a Japanese language school your ticket to living in Japan? Kristian is an AkiyaMart consultant and former Melbourne real estate agent who moved to Fukuoka to attend Japanese language school. He joins Take and Joey to walk through the visa process, what a year of daily study actually produces, and tips for those wanting to buy an akiya at the same time. Are you considering moving to Ja...

In this episode, Take and Joey sit down in Fukuoka with Carlos, who  recently relocated from Los Angeles on a Business Manager Visa. He  breaks down the full process: which visa to apply for, why Fukuoka's  immigration bureau is faster than Tokyo, how to find an apartment as a  foreigner when 80% of landlords say no, and what the first couple months  on the ground actually...

This week, Take and Joey sit down with Tomoa, a Japanese friend, to  answer a question we get all the time: "why didn't a Japanese person buy  this akiya first?"   Tomoa breaks down how kegare shapes Japanese attitudes toward used  homes, why rural properties rarely appeal to Japanese buyers, and what  foreign buyers need to understand about owning property responsibly in...

Take and Joey are wrapping up three years of work on Jissoji Lux, their first-ever akiya in Beppu, Japan's top onsen city, and gearing up for a major launch in Otaru this spring. Both projects represent what it looks like when an akiya renovation reaches the finish line. In this episode, they record from inside Jissoji Lux and walk through what three years of work actually looked like. The house i...

Ever heard of the Highly Skilled Professional (HSP) visa? The HSP is a  points-based visa. 70 points to qualify, 80 to accelerate permanent residency. Joey scored 95, built up through two decades of school, career, and two years running a business in Japan. Could HSP be the right visa for your move to Japan? Joey breaks down all  you need to know in this episode. Follow us on Instagram a...

This week, Joey and Take are joined by Ryan, AkiyaMart's representative director in Japan to talk about Joey's recent move to Ishigaki, and to cover just how hard it can be for a foreigner to rent in Japan. It might be easier just to buy a place after all. Find out why. Follow us on Instagram and YouTube ! Buying a House in Japan is a production of AkiyaMart. Find your Japan dream home at akiya-ma...

This week, Take and Joey are joined at Tama base camp by Erik, an early  AkiyaMart customer and current AkiyaMart Direct Sales Manager, who has  purchased three akiya in Japan, including the viral $69 home he is  currently rehabbing as a traveler-friendly Snoopy-themed stay. The group  covers some of the unwritten rules that lead to headaches during car  registration, home...

This week, Joey and Take are joined at Tama Base camp by Lukas is an  AkiyaMart consultant from Alberta, Canada, currently living in rural  Hokkaido In the group covers what people actually need to know before  committing to a purchase in Japan: visas, realistic budgeting, property  condition, and why visiting your target area before you buy matters more  than most pe...

This week, Take and Joey are back in Japan, recording from Tama Base Camp, and a lot is happening for the duo this spring: Joey moved to Ishigaki in Okinawa, things are moving with the Tama house, and we've got another Japan speed run through Tokyo, Otaru, Fukuoka, and Beppu, where the guys are finishing up Jissoji Lux to put on the market as a turnkey starter-kit home. Follow us on Instagram and...

Want to buy an akiya in Japan but the idea of earthquakes keeping you up  at night? We get it. Japan shakes, so we made a tool to help you figure  out where to look.   This week, Joey and Take catch up with university friend Keita, the  geospatial software engineer who built AkiyaMart's new earthquake  overlay filter. He explains how it works, why Shindo (felt intensity) &...

This week Joey and Take sit down with AkiyaMart agent and short-term rental manager Ryosuke Takamoto. Together, they talk about the pros and cons of doing minpaku from abroad without a manager, the setup costs for minpaku and ryokan businesses, the setup timeline and structure, and how AkiyaMart can help you manage your Airbnb from anywhere in the world. Follow us on Instagram and YouTube ! Buying...

21 years ago, Cathy and Ron Stockermans were inspired to take their family on an adventure abroad.. After Cathy was offered a job at a high school in Shizuoka, they, and their three sons, took the leap of faith that changed their lives. 21 years later, they sit down with Take and, one of their sons, Joey, to discuss that decision, how it shaped their lives, and how it led Joey to where he is today...

On this first Dear Diary episode of 2026, Take and Joey get together to reminisce about their days studying abroad together in Tokyo and to talk about just how far the two have come since then. The guys give us a rundown of what happens at AkiyaMart and introduce us to two new products that the team hopes will remove some headaches from the purchase process and even make akiya buying just a bit mo...

This week Joey and Take meet up in Tokyo with Danny Wilson, a comedian and host of Tokyo Super Great Time Tokyo Podcast. Danny shares his journey of growing up in the U.S. and moving to Japan to reconnect with his roots. He discusses his career in Japanese comedy, his experiences in a prestigious Japanese comedy school, and the challenges and joys of being a bilingual comedian. The conversation to...

This week,Joey and Take visit Anton Wormann, who you may know as Anton in Japan. Anton is a renowned real estate mogul, interior designer,  and author in Tokyo. Anton shares his transformative journey from being a world-traveling model to becoming a successful property renovator in Japan. He discusses his initial cultural impressions, the challenges and triumphs of renovating old Japanese hom...

This week Joey and Take are joined at Tama Base Camp by AMD Agent Hide. Hide shares his thoughts on the state of buying an akiya, as well as his opinions on what is coming next in the space. The team talks about potential rules around foreigners buying property. and opening businesses in Japan while also giving insights on both how and why these rules may be adopted buy the Japanese government. Th...

Take is flying solo this week, chatting with a new guest, Devin Silvernail, an AkiyaMart Direct client  currently going through the process and our podcast editor. Devin, originally from Seattle but living in France, shares his journey starting from falling for the lush surroundings of the Shimanami Kaido bike route to taking a chance on Kanazawa's more classic and subtle charm. He also talks...