In this edition of the Housing Japan Insider`s Edge podcast, Adam German talks about the future of news Casinos – now legal thanks to recently passed legislation – and their effect on the Tokyo real estate market. For home buyers or investors, this is one of the biggest changes coming to Japan, and will have a significant impact on the value of your assets in the coming years.

"Since 2012 total annual tourism inbound to Japan jumped almost 3.5 times from under 8.4 million tourists in 2012 to a little over 28.6 million in 2017." says German.

"It is difficult not to notice an increase of tourists in Tokyo. 2017 was the highest ever amount of foreign people visiting Japan, 2018 shows no sign of slowing down."

Traditionally, gambling has been illegal in Japan. Pachinko (a type of mechanical game originating in Japan comparable to that of the slot machine in Western gaming) is a 30 billion us dollar a year industry in Japan and some say this has led lawmakers to rethink legalizing gambling according to German. 

Click play to listen to the full Housing Japan podcast hosted by Adam German from Housing Japan.

Given the current setup of pachinko pawn shops industries, the only tax revenue the government is making is relatively low corporate taxes from pachinko and associated pawn shops.

In his podcast, Adam German mentions that it is estimated that 40% of Japan's population will be over 65 years old in 2050 and more and more tax revenue is needed to fund pension payments in the near future.

This is said to be one of the critical benefits of casinos in Japan. In other parts of the world casinos are highly taxed. It is this type of revitalization Japan's regional economies would benefit from. 

Hard rock international CEO Edward Tracy says their best bet for a casino is in Tomakomai City south of Sapporo in Hokkaido. He expects it to be about 3 years away from when construction starts due to the current political climate. Osakya and Yokohama are also in the front running for location but nothing has been decided.

• On July 20, 2018 a bill was enacted authorising the opening of casino resorts although the law legalising casino gambling is opposed by the majority of public opinion in Japan.
• The law only allows 3 locations to host integrated resorts, 2 must be regional with a third being a metropolis.
• Floorspace will be limited only to 3 percent of usable floor space with remaining 97 percent to be used for hotel space, MICE facilities and shopping centres.
• Japan residents will only be allowed to visit integrated resort 3 times per week up to maximum amount a of 10 times per year. Each visit requires an entrance fee of 6,000 Japanese yen. Tourists can go unlimited.

"While integrated resorts exist outside of Tokyo, all economic roads lead to the capital. There will be little that happens outside of Tokyo that won't filter back in some way. E.g. increased jobs, wages or tax revenue." 

"Integrated resorts will allow for maintenance and growth of current tourism numbers post-2020. Mr Abe's government has a target of 40 million inbound tourists by 2020 and 60 million by 2030. Increased tourism numbers can be argued to be a precursor of immigration reform." says German.

"1 in 10 Tokyo people in their 20s are foreign-born, according to the Nikkei Asian review. This sets the scene for a giant makeover in Tokyo's composition moving forward. These yong people are working and will move up the economic ladder, will purchase and rent homes, spend at local businesses and introduce Tokyo to their friends."

"Seeds of today's tourism backed by 2 world class sporting events and legalised gambling in locations easy to get to from capital will ensure that property demand will be healthy for years to come."

"Casinos will help more than harm Japan while real estate is a long game with payoffs being decades down the road. While nothing is certain it is a rare moment in time to be able to see so far down the playing field like the current environment that the Tokyo real estate market is offering," says German.

For more information about the Tokyo real estate market and the effects and opportunities associated with the planned Integrated resorts and Casinos in Japan phone or email Adam German from Housing Japan via the contact details below. 

Click here to listen to the full Housing Japan podcast hosted by Adam German from Housing Japan.

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