Moving: Once You Have the New Address...

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Yesterday I picked up the keys to my new place and moved in one first load of boxes only to realize the neighbors were staring at me. Now, with keys in hand, I'm about to complete an epic one-day journey around town that has been months in planning.

Week 4, Wednesday:
My schedule is packed today. My to-do list is as follows:

Moving: Light Fixtures for a Japanese Apartment

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Today I have a big list of things to get done. One of them is finding a new light fixture for my new bedroom.

Why Do Many Japanese Bathrooms Not Have Hot Water?

I would have to say that one of my least favorite things about Japan is finishing up my business in a public rest room only to look down at the sink only to realize there is no hot water faucet. Sadly, this happens just about every day in Japan. And it probably wouldn't be so bad if I lived in a tropical paradise. However, I live in a place with negative God-know's-what temperatures and very little central heating.

As you can expect, washing hands in icy water only to go out into the cold is not very fun. Therefore, I decided to look at why Japanese public (and sometimes private) restrooms have an aversion to warm water.

Moving: Oh Yeah, I Need Curtains

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. I just picked up the keys to my new place, and now I'm dropping off my first load of boxes.

Week 4, Tuesday:
It's already nighttime when I walk into my new place, and it's probably thanks to lights shining in from my neighbors' homes that I realize another hole in my carefully planned move: I'm going to need enough curtains for all the windows in my new home.

Moving: Getting the New Apartment Key

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. I just finished calling the electric company to make sure I have light in the new place (and am not still paying for light in the old place). Now I need to call about the water and gas.

Week 4, Tuesday:
It hasn't been so long since I first started looking at new apartments online, but already I find myself going to pick up the key to my new place.

Moving: Water and Gas Utilities in Japan

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. I just finished calling the electric company to make sure I have light in the new place (and am not still paying for light in the old place). Now I need to call about the water and gas.

Week 4, Monday:
Now that I've got one call done, I approach the next two with more confidence.


The call to the water company runs a course very similar to the electricity call; What's my name and account number? What's my old address? What day do I want the water turned off at the old place? (two weeks from now) What's my new address? And what day do I want the water running there? (today) They also confirm my bank account details.

Now all that's left is the gas.

The Japanese Guarantor

Japan is big in the world of social networking. I don't mean Facebook or LINE or whatever else is popular for showing your friends how many friends you have. I mean, in order to get things done in Japan (just like elsewhere), it helps a lot to "know a guy" or to have some connection.

Examples? In all the job interviews I've passed here, the interviewers at some point dropped the phrase, 何か縁があるようですね。 "Oh, you went to that university? We're invested in a research center there." "Oh, you play concert piano? We're affiliated with a conservatory." "Oh, you taught at that school? My daughter's a graduate." Who your family is, where you went to school, and who you work for are all a big deal, and being able to say, "I was referred to you by such-and-such," can open doors that may have otherwise stuck fast. (Interestingly, this is the same country in which references are often unasked for in job applications.)



But perhaps the biggest examples of this reference culture in Japan is the guarantor.

Moving: Calling the Electric Company in Japan

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. I just finished cancelling my old contracts, and now I'm ready to move in--almost. Before I get the key, I need to make some important phone calls.

Week 4, Monday:
After a relaxing weekend, which may or may not have involved packing things into cardboard boxes, it's time to get back to work.

A gaping hole in my moving plans that I've been blissfully ignoring until now concerns my utilities. I've gotta tell the electricity, gas, and water companies that I need those services stopped at the old place and started at the new place.

Moving: Cancelling a Japanese Apartment Contract

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. My new apartment contract is about to start, and I'm running out of time to cancel my old contracts. (That's a plural because my parking space and apartment were contracted separately and spaced a few hundred meters apart from each other.) Last post I cancelled my parking space, and this time I'll get on that old apartment contract.

Week 3, Friday:
When I found and contracted my old apartment, I was using a rental agency. Since these agencies don't usually own the properties that they are showing, they act as intermediaries and are listed as such on the rental contract. In Japanese they're referred to as the 仲介会社 (chuukai gaisha). They introduced you to the apartment, and they may have handled all the documents and details when you signed for it, but the contract is ultimately between you and the owner.

Sometimes the property owner requests that the 仲介会社 handles all the details in termination of a contract, too. But other owners may prefer to handle terminations themselves. That was the case for me.

Living in Japan: What are LP and Toshi Gas?

In Japan, houses and apartments are typically outfitted with either LP gas or "toshi" gas to serve in, primarily, cooking and water heating needs.

Let's take a look at where gas is used in the Japanese house and what the difference between these two types are.

Moving: Cancelling Rental Contracts in Japan

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Last post I signed on the new apartment. The contract will now be sent to my guarantor, and in the meantime I have a lot of other things to take care of:

Week 3, Thursday:
I'm ready to move into the new place, and deadlines are coming up for me to contact my current landlords to cancel the contracts on my old apartment and parking space. I'll take care of the parking space today.

Moving: Paying Rent on a Japanese Apartment

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Last post we started looking at the contract and other documents you sign before you move in. Today's post covers two more important notices I got from my agency at this stage.

Week 3, Tuesday:
So I've looked at and inkan stamped the two biggies: ① The Contract, and ② The 重要事項説明書. What remains to be clarified is through what means I'll be paying for this apartment month-to-month and the bill from the agency that must be settled before I can move in.

Moving: The Japanese Apartment Contract

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Last post I thought to check for Internet reviews of my new apartment... after I'd already made the down payment. Fortunately I didn't find any unpleasant surprises online.

Week 3, Tuesday:

The real estate agent calls me in: My rental contract has arrived. I stop by in the evening to sign and stamp my inkan on several documents.

A fair number of complicated documents are involved in this step. We'll work through them one or two at a time:

Moving: Japanese Apartment Reviews

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Last post I got quotes from some moving companies. I didn't haggle as much as I should have, but I set a date to have my big furniture and appliances moved to the new place.

Week 3, Monday:
Belatedly, I think to check online reviews for the new building I'm moving into. Consumer reviews posted on the Internet have helped me make a lot of purchase decisions in the past. One site for reviews on Japanese apartments is Mansion-Review.jp. It is certainly not free of fake reviews posted by property owners and agencies, but the occasional legitimate review can provide insight about nighttime noise and area traffic during commute hours.

Moving: How Much to Carry My Stuff?

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Last post I got around a potentially discriminatory second guarantor requirement and now I'm thinking about logistics of the actual move. (OK, it wasn't actually discriminatory.)

Week 3, Sunday (Continued):
In the meantime, I have sent requests to two 引越し会社 (hikkoshi gaisha, moving companies), asking them to provide estimates on cost of moving all my big furniture and appliances to the new place. A representative from one company arranges to meet me that evening.

I point out the items that I'm asking to have moved and the timeframe I'm considering. He calculates for a moment and spits out 31,000 yen. I didn't know what to expect, but it still seemed steep. After all, I'm saying that I'll take care of all the little stuff. I only want them to move big items that I can't handle myself and which can't fit in my car.

Moving: Inevitable Trouble

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Last post I signed a formal application, made the down payment, and now I'm waiting for the application to be reviewed by the property owner.

Week 3, Sunday:
I hit my first road bump. The building owner calls me directly. My application has been flagged because I am not Japanese, and they want some extra assurances. Specifically he asks about my guarantor, who lives in another prefecture. I'm told that he lives too far away. Considering my circumstances, a guarantor living in the same prefecture as me would be preferable. Isn't there someone nearby whom I can ask?

I explain that I have provided the only contact whom I feel comfortable asking to be financially responsible for me. I don't know anyone else well enough to ask such a favor of them, and particularly not within my current prefecture. From the owner's uncomfortable silence, it is clear that this answer is unsatisfactory.

Moving: Signing and Making the Down Payment

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Last post I found some apartments I liked, and now I'm ready to sign on one of them.

Week 2, Friday:
I decide on one apartment and email "Mr. T" (my agent) to make sure it is still available. He responds that it is and again encourages me to hurry up and sign on it before anyone else does!! I tell him I'll be in sometime soon.

Moving: The Real Estate Agency

This post continues my chronicle of moving to a new apartment in Japan. Last post, I checked out some places online and now I'm ready to look at properties in person.

Week 1, Tuesday:
Within a day, replies come for two of the three apartments from 仲介会社, chuukai gaisha, the real estate agencies that interface between property owners and renters (or buyers) in Japan. I stop by one of the agencies when I happen to be out shopping nearby that same evening.

The agency's employees (after confirming I can communicate with them and that I haven't just inadvertently wandered into the wrong place) ask about my requirements (quiet, under ten years old or newly renovated, on-site parking, reasonable commute), then prepare printouts detailing several different apartments. The agent who emailed me, "Mr. T," offers to drive me around to see some properties that evening. I grab my camera and visit three apartments I liked on paper, but am less impressed when I see them in person.

What's it Like to Move in Japan?

In our archives, we have a lot of great articles about moving house within Japan. We cover a lot of basics, from a checklist of things you'll need to do before and after the move, to explanations of common terms in the Japanese real estate gig like shikikin and reikin, common features of apartments, and a description of how Japanese apartments are classified.

What we haven't done, yet, is provide a real time account of what steps you go through when you decide you want to move from one rental property to another. Over the next few weeks, I'll share one of my own moving experiences in Japan. If you're planning a move yourself, I hope you find some good information in it, and if you don't have a move in mind yet, I hope you find the read entertaining.

Six Questions About Buying a House in Japan

Many thanks to Ben in Hiroshima for today's post on buying a house in Japan. Ben is a new home owner and shared his buying experience in this exclusive AccessJ interview.

So you've got a job, a car, maybe you're even married, and you're thinking about taking another step forward in planting your roots in Japan: Buying a house to live in. House shopping will open up all kinds of questions: Do you want a マンション atop a 45-floor building or your own (perhaps tiny) plot of land to call home? What's your budget? Who will be living in the home? What silly neighborhood watch programs and trash disposal schedules are you willing to put up with?

The list goes on. But today, we'll start with some of the important financial questions. Grab your reading glasses and check out the interview below: