On January 27th, AtHome, a dominant Japanese property portal, released their Rent Trends for Apartments and Condominiums in Japan's Major Cities report for December, 2021.

The data was calculated via listings posted on the AtHome portal site by advertising agents so it is important to note the data below is advertised rents, not contracted rents.

The survey defines "rent" as the monthly rent plus management fees and common service fees paid by tenants. 

The survey covers Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, and Chiba prefectures as well as Sendai, Nagoya, Osaka, Fukuoka cities.

As for property types, the survey defines properties in the following categories based on size in square metres:

• Single Type: rentals under 30 square metres
   
• Couple Type: rentals between 30 and 50 square metres
   
• Small Family Type: rentals between 50 and 70 square metres
   
• Large Family Type: rentals over 70 square metres

The report also separately analyzes wood frame apartments (apato in Japanese) and reinforced concrete rental condos (mansion in Japanese).

The rent levels listed below are averages for the respective measured areas and are in no way meant to represent a rent level guarantee.  Property specific location, size in square metres and age of the structure will often deviate from the averages.  

Always consult a licensed real estate professional for your specific needs.

Reinforced Concrete Condos (Mansion)

Source: AtHome

The top areas in terms of average asking rent for the various condo types were:

• Tokyo non-23 ward city Large Family Type condo average advertised rent rose 8.3% Year-on-Year (YoY) to 158,517 yen. 
   
• Fukuoka City, up 3.7% YoY, with an avg. rent of 50,248 yen for Single Type condos. 
   
• Kanagawa Prefecture Small Family Type condo rents rose 4.2% YoY to an avg. rent of 91,674 yen.  
   
• Saitama Prefecture Small Family Type condos rose 3.4% YoY to an avg. rent of 91,938 yen. 

In particular, the Tokyo non-23 ward cities, Kanagawa, Saitama and Chiba prefectures saw an average rent increase across all property types compared to the same month last year. 

Eight of the nine areas (excluding Nagoya City) recorded YoY average rent increases for Large Family Type condos, and seven areas (excluding Tokyo's 23 wards and Nagoya City) recorded YoY increases of 3% or more for the same property type.

Wood Frame Apartments (Apato)

Source: AtHome

The top gainers for wood frame apartment rentals were Fukuoka City (up 3.9% YoY, to an avg. of 41,800 yen) for Single Type apartments, Fukuoka City again for Couple Type apartments (up 4.3% YoY, to an avg. of 61,676 yen), and Osaka City (up 9.7% YoY, to an avg. of 104,659 yen) for Small Family Type apartments.

Tokyo non-23 ward cities, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba prefectures as well as Osaka and Fukuoka cities all saw YoY increases in all wood frame property types. 

The rise for Couple Type rentals was notable, with prices in five of the nine measured areas reaching their highest levels since January of 2015.

Further Reading

AtHome December, 2021 Rent Trends for Apartments and Condominiums in Japan's Major Cities (Japanese only; January, 2022)