Second-hand home boom explodes in Japan

SECOND-HAND HOUSES IN JAPAN –

There's a phenomenon exploding in Japan that should give us pause: the boom in second-hand homes . Abandoned properties , called akiya , often dilapidated and covered in rubbish, are being brought back to life thanks to affordable renovations . This has led to a radical change in lifestyles and real estate market practices.

While 90 percent of homes sold in the United States and Great Britain are secondhand, with a constantly buoyant real estate market seeking new investment opportunities, in Japan this segment accounted for only 15 percent of sales. For the Japanese, a home was either new or it didn't exist.

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RECOVERY OF ABANDONED HOUSES IN JAPAN –

Now everything is changing, a culture of recovery and reuse is spreading . And a rate that risked abandoning one in three homes by 2033 is being halted. Currently, there are over eight million abandoned homes, known as akiya , many of which are still made of wood and are gradually being put on the market . This is a concrete response to the demographic curve, which sees the Japanese population aging, concentrated in the metropolises, abandoning rural areas, and the new generations increasingly struggling to find new housing at a decent price. It marks the end of the throwaway housing culture that has characterized Japan since the post-war period . And it is also a way, through the sale of empty homes that cost less than rent, to revitalize entire peripheral areas abandoned precisely following the sale of these homes. Will we see a trend we see in Italy too?

TO KNOW MORE: Wooden houses are being built at 17 for every 100 new ones. And prices are falling.