Transcription
Wait, foreigners can just buy a house in Japan. No visa, no residency. Yes, here's exactly how.
Step one, figure out what you actually want. A cheap abandoned fixer upper, a moving ready place, land to build, building from overseas a nightmare. I wouldn't touch it, or something in between. That's usually the sweet spot.
Step two, find your property. This is where most people get stuck. Japanese sites are in Japanese. Listings move fast and the best deals don't hit the English internet. So, I just use Akihub. It's a searchable database of affordable houses and condos across Japan built for foreign buyers.
Step three, found one? Call a local agent. Not email. I know you write the perfect message in Claude. Doesn't matter. Call them.
Step four, set up a viewing. And here's the reality. If you've never worked with that agent before, they're not doing a video tour. They will expect you to show up. That's how you prove you're serious. So if you're overseas, flights, hotels, time just to see one property.
Step five, ready to move? Submit a kit. If accepted, sign, deposit, locked, all in Japanese. Most overseas buyers use a proxy, but it's absolutely possible to do it all by yourself.
Step six, closing day. Pay the balance, fees, taxes, get the keys. One thing nobody tells you, buying here does not give you a visa. You get a house, that's it. Foreign buyers do this every week. No visa, no residency, no citizenship. You can usually own the land, too.
So, if it's this easy to buy a home in Japan, what's the catch? Japan will let you buy the house. It just won't stop you from buying a bad one. If you want to do this remotely and avoid buying the wrong property, use a giab.