Housing
You will need to find a place to live after arriving in Japan. Housing costs accounts for especially large percentage of living costs when studying abroad in Japan. In order to lead a comfortable study abroad life, it is better to look for a house upon understanding what types of housings Japan has, what kind of costs are necessary, average housing style and cost of international students, and steps in looking for house.
(1)Types of Housing
Homestay, which is commonly used for studying abroad students in Europe and United States, is not common in Japan and international students generally live in large or small apartments. Please choose a housing that suits you after checking housing types.
(2)Housing Cost
There is an expense to pay at time of contract and also monthly cost when renting a house. Moreover, there is an expense that will be paid as deposit to the landlord which will be returned at the time of terminating contract.
Generally, 4 to 6 months of monthly rent will be necessary at the time of contract.
Monthly
At time of contract ( Deposit at time of contract )
Per every contract term
Upon termination
Actual Situation of International Students’ Housing
Based on Japan Student Services Organization survey of privately funded international students, we can understand Japan’s housing environment of international students who are already studying in Japan from the following 4 points: types of housing, housing cost, size of room, and time commuting to school. Please begin to look for your housing after deciding on your desired condition after referring to predecessors’ actual situation.
(1)Housing Types of International Students
According to Japan Student Services Organization survey of privately funded international students, 75% of students studying abroad in Japan live in private small or large apartments. Additionally, half of those students share room with friends or family members. The second highest, 15% of international students, stay at college or school-run student dormitories. Homestay, which is commonly used for studying abroad students in Europe and United States, is not common in Japan and international students generally live in large or small apartments.
Japan Student Services Organization “The Summary of Result on an Annual Survey of International Students in Japan, 2019”
(2)Average Housing Expense
Housing expense greatly differs between private small or large apartments and university or school dormitory. Approximately 50% of universities and school dormitories are less than JPY30,000 with relatively low burden. On the other hand, approximately 30% of the housing expense for private small or large apartments is less than JPY30,000, approximately 40% are JPY40,000 to JPY50,000, and approximately 25% are more than JPY50,000. Rent market price for general small and large apartments in Japan differs depending on area and size but the average market price of apartments for students would be around JPY50,000. Thus, many of those who answered JPY40,000 may be sharing a house with roommates.
Japan Student Services Organization “The Summary of Result on an Annual Survey of International Students in Japan, 2019”
(3)Average Size (m2)
Exclusive area is the area in which the individual renting room can use as their exclusive area. Exclusive area includes bathroom, shower room, and entrance. Balcony is not included. Average size of small or large apartment for single person in Japan is 18m2~20m2. International students that have exclusive area less than 15㎡ per person accounts for 66%, and of this, 45% live in an exclusive area less than 10m2. Dormitories run by universities and schools often have a smaller exclusive area since bathrooms, kitchen, and shower rooms are often shared. Additionally, the rental expense will become cheaper as one’s exclusive area becomes smaller in general.
Japan Student Services Organization “The Summary of Result on an Annual Survey of International Students in Japan, 2019”
(4)Average Commuting Time to School
Many companies have business locations in the city center so such areas do not have a cheap rent. On the contrary, rental property market value becomes cheaper as you live farther away from the city center. Commuting time to work or school which should be considered when searching for a place to live, significantly changes between metropolitan area and rural area. Dormitories run by universities and school are often located on the premises, making commuting to school convenient. For private small and large apartments, commuting times tends to become longer if you seek cheap rent. Especially the rent in center city part of Tokyo is expensive so commuting time to school within an hour accounts for approximately 35% of the students which is more than 10% higher than that of national average.
Japan Student Services Organization “The Summary of Result on an Annual Survey of International Students in Japan, 2019”
Search for Housing
Search for housing is carried out in the following 4 procedures. First, decide on your desire of budget, location, and facility. Next, look for property information or for real estate agencies near the area where you wish to live. After finding a room that you are interested in, you will go view it. After the room viewing, you can proceed to signing a contract.
(1)Procedures to Search for Housing
(1) Deciding on conditions
When deciding on the conditions of your room, you need to decide on the budget, location, and facility. Regarding the budget, first decide on the maximum budget, then prioritize location and facility conditions. This will make it easier for you to find a room.
(2) Search for property information
After deciding on what kind of room you want to live in, you can start looking at websites for potential rooms. There are two types of websites. One website is a portal website which has put together property information from various real estate companies and another website which is run by each real estate company. If you have decided on where you want to live, you can visit the real estate company of the nearest station and look at property information. Please note that unoccupied room information on the Internet may not be updated information.
(3) Room viewing
It is important to actually view the room before you sign the contract. It is free of charge to view the room. Remember to check the room and surrounding environment so that you are able to imagine your new life starting from here.
(4) Signing the contract
After you find a room that you would like to rent, you will need to make application to move in. You will need to submit all the documents necessary for tenant screening. The landlord will carry out the tenant screening and you will be able to move in after you pass the screening and sign the contract. Standardly, it will take 1 to 2 weeks from application to moving in.
