Part 1 - Building a House in Japan

I mentioned in a previous post that we've been thinking about building a house here in Japan. We're not in a rush; we're thinking at least two years out. But we've talked to some people to begin learning about the process. We've never bought a house before. In fact, I've never seriously considered owning a house before. In addition, we're excited about the idea of running a small business on the second floor (not an English school, although "English" may come into play -- it's at least an asset we have). Any suggestions or advice about starting a small business in Japan would be welcome.

This post is focused more on buying/building a house in Japan. Like most things here, it's very expensive, and houses tend to lose value quickly. But that doesn't mean it's unwise to go for it. I'm too early in the process to offer any expert insights, but here are a few impressions and lessons I've picked up so far.

1. Everyone I've talked with who has bought a house here says now they pay less (for their mortgage payment, taxes, etc) than they previously paid in rent. Rent is expensive. Renting gives you the freedom to move anytime, but if you'll be living in the same place for a long time why not consider the pros and cons of buying?

2. Buying or building a new home is very expensive, and houses in Japan tend NOT to retain their value. The average life of a typical Japanese home is about 26 years compared with 44 years in the USA (according to this article). That means that when people buy older houses they may merely be paying for the land, and the house is essentially free. That's because the buyer must count the cost of tearing out the old house eventually and rebuilding. Why do houses built in Japan last such a short time? You can blame it on the weather (humidity, etc), but my impression is that construction methods and materials account for most of the disparity (see the article I linked to above).

3. Many foreigners recommend buying an old Japanese home. That may work in certain places, but Tokyo is overdue for a major earthquake. I personally wouldn't want to be living in an older Japanese home. Maybe if I were single and carefree, but as a father I'm making decisions for my kids, too. To be fair, I would feel comfortable living in a relatively new Japanese home (or "mansion"/apartment), I just wouldn't want to buy one. Homes and buidings constructed after the Kobe earthquake in 1995 had to meet much higher construction standards than homes built before then. (In the Kobe earthquake about 6,500 people died and 250,000 homes were destroyed.) Again, in reference to the article I linked to above, I don't really trust the Japanese construction industry in general.

4. Many Japanese are "importing" homes from the USA, Canada and other countries. A typical house (all the materials, down to the last nail) can be sent from the USA or Canada to Japan in two large shipping containers (costing about $2200 each for shipping from port to port). Most imported homes come with 2x4 construction, and (from all I hear) better, more durable materials than typical Japanese homes. I talked with someone who built a house this way, and I talked with a representative from the company he worked with. He built a relatively large, nice home for less than $100,000 (less than 1000 Mon yen). He did NOT work with a Japanese company that specializes in imported homes (that would have cost much more), but he worked directly with the US company. That company sent a crew over to "frame the house" (put up the walls and roof), then he hired his own people and worked with Japanese contractors to finish the job. Japan is a service oriented economy, so one key to saving money on a major project like this is to avoid working with companies that offer a complete, effortless package. Obviously, that means the owner will expend effort coordinating the project, working with contractors, making sure all the legalities and paperwork are covered, etc. That last part is very, very important. If your home is completed and THEN you discover it's not meeting a required standard, you could have a REAL problem.

5. Buying land in Tokyo will cost much more than the cost of building a house on it. Like I said above, when you buy an old Japanese house, you may be paying for the land and essentially getting the house for free. Whether you build or buy a house, in the long run you are investing in the land. By the way, you can buy a "mansion" (condo/apartment) for much less than you would pay for a house. Keep in mind that when all is said and done, you won't own any land this way. The value may appreciate for a few years, but in the long run it will eventually depreciate significantly.

6. One practical risk when buying a house is that land prices will continue to fall. Land prices in Tokyo have been falling for many years now. Some say they are bottoming out now; others would disagree. I'm don't know enough about the financial side of things to go into this any further, but the basic principle is that it's best to buy when land prices are low. If prices fall significantly after you buy, you can lose lots of money (at least on paper, though it may not bother you unless you're hoping to sell at some point).

7. Finally, if you can qualify for a loan, the interest rates are very low. We haven't applied for a loan (too early for that), but I've been told that rates are somewhere between 1.5 and 2 percent. That's compared with 5 or 6 percent in the USA. Some would say it's more like being given money if you can borrow at such low rates. Again, I'm not a financial expert, so someone feel free to explain that in layman's terms if you can.

About the pictures above, I took them a week ago in Tokorozawa: a Japanese Johnny Depp character, a masked man at the start of flu season, and a couple of glances cast my way (the young woman on the lower left was passing out flyers for a pachinko parlor).

That's all for now. I'll post a "Part Two" when there's more to say. Again, your input is appreciate. By the way, you can comment on this site without providing your name, email, or any other information. Give it a try.

==== UPDATE ====

Here's a great link contributed by a reader -- a step-by-step description of how one person built a home in Japan.

Learning Japanese Strategies

Just a quick update to an earlier post. A commenter posted some practical strategies he used to learn Japanese will living in Japan. Here's my expanded, paraphrased list (and you can see his comment here):

1) Study for the proficiency exams and aim to eventually pass Level 1. The JLPT range from Level 4 (beginning Japanese) to Level 1 (advanced).

2) Read middle-school textbooks. (I've heard this before, and social studies texts are paricularly recommended.)

3) Read. Manga like Aoki Yuji (Naniwa Kinyudo) and Kobayashi Yoshinori use good Japanese. (Reading Japanese generally seems to be one of the things that separates those who reach an advanced level from those who don't.)

4) Get a job that requires you to use Japanese. Many jobs will also require you to use a variety of formal/informal Japanese.

5) Read the local newspaper using a dictionary. (You can also buy a reader sold by Japan Times with short, sample newspaper articles already chosen for you. And newspapers for youth include furigana, so look for those when getting started.)

6) Video tape TV shows. The commenter suggests "Koko wa hen da yo, Nihonjin!" or "Miracle Type"). In Japan you can watch daily 15 minute mini-dramas that change all the time. If you tape them, you can watch and re-watch them later.

7) Buy books that Japanese use to improve their own writing. (This sounds very advanced to me...)

6) Have a language partner who you can speak to in Japanese -- ideally a native speaker. The commenter modelled conversations with his wife. He says, "I would role play with my wife and then phone whoever to explain the problem and request service."

7) Deal with problems yourself as much as possible, like paying rent, going to government offices, maintaining a car, paying taxes, paying the NHK collector (if you do that), etc.

Influenza and Noodles

It's almost bedtime. The twins are running around with their toothbrushes, and the toothbrushes are talking to each other. Anything can talk in their imaginary world, but their favorite talking items are crayons, chopsticks and toothbrushes. Of couse, actual toys talk, too. Reia is asleep. She's been fighting the flu for the past two days. We took all the kids to the doctor's office three weeks ago for vaccinations. At that time hardly any cases of the flu had been reported. A week ago we took the kids back for a booster shot, and we still didn't have any friends who had the flu. Now it seems every family we know has at least one sick child. All of them, like us, are hoping the rest of the family will stay well. Just now Hitomi says one twin has a slightly high temperature. But what about all the money we paid for those vaccinations...

On Sunday I went to an Udon making class that lasted all morning. This was my second time taking the class. It's pretty fun, a good chance to practice Japanese and meet people, and you get to eat a LOT of good udon. I signed up with a friend who I met in the same class last spring. We were going to have an udon eating party with our two families afterwards, but my daughter and his son had the flu. Next week we'll go back together for part two: a Soba making class. So afterwards we'll all go to his house and eat soba! Personally, I like soba better than udon -- more character, like I'll take whole wheat over white bread most of the time.

Last night I temporarily locked myself out of this blog. I erased the default "author" of the blog, thinking that MT (the software that powers this site) wouldn't let me do something that would damage the blog itself. I was wrong. After a long time trying to fix the problem (using MT-Medic), I contacted my hosting provider's technical support and asked them to restore my database using a previous backup. I was HOPING that they automatically keep backups. Fortunately, they do. The person from technical support was very friendly, and with his help everything was fixed in no time. This site is hosted by Westhost, by the way. They have always provided excellent support, very little down time, and all the features I need for a low monthly price. Today I give them two thumbs up.

The picture above has been in the gallery for a long time, but I've never posted it on the blog (I don't think). When kids first learn to write a few letters, they are so proud -- and their parents are proud, too. Anyway, our daughter had just started going to Japanese preschool. She didn't speak or understand much Japanese, and she's pretty shy by nature, so I knew every day was pretty hard for her. One day, though, she took the initiative to write her own name on her "indoor shoes" (the shoes above, which are what the kids wear inside the building). It wasn't just pride in writing that motivated her. She had figured out that the other kids could only write their names (if at all) in Hiragana (Japanese script). She wanted everyone to see her name spelled out in letters this way. If she was older and "showing off" I might have reacted differently, but in this case I was so happy that she could celebrate and take confidence in a part of herself that was unique. So I took this picture and hope ya' like it.

One more post is coming tomorrow, and then things will be quiet for until the end of the month. I'll respond to comments though.

Learning and Listening to Japanese Online

The other day I realized that the coming year is a critical year for my language learning. I have now reached the point where I can impress people with my Japanese, for about 10 minutes, depending on how fast the topic moves away from: a) how long I've been here, b) where I'm from, c) my ability to speak Japanese, d) family, e) my kids, f) coffee, g) what I do... Actually, the list goes on. I've been here three years, so I can even go with the flow. But inevitably, before I'm ready for it, the conversation takes a quick turn into uncharted territory. I start searching desperately for a noun or verb to carry me through, but all I can come up with are uselss words that I've recycled to the point that I'm sick of hearing them. For the rest of the day I walk around with limp strands of kanji and ragged hiragana and katakana trailing behind. It's disgusting.

Overall, I'm encouraged to have come so far. But my point is that I could hang out at this plateau for a long time, or I could push on toward that elusive destination where I'll be able to conduct LIFE in this language. The year ahead is critical for that.

So I'm going to be taking specific steps to push to the next level in Japanese. I don't want to bore you with al the details, but I'll try to mention good ideas and resources that work.

One thing that I need to do is improve my ability to hear Japanese. Although I'm getting pretty good at hearing every day conversational Japanese, beyond that I'm very limited. Some friends have suggested watching Japanese TV dramas (usually shown in daily 15 minute segments). But my comprehension of Japanese via the TV is so poor that I don't think this will work yet. I'm excited, though, about Yahoo Japan's Headline News section. It's online and free. You can watch/listen to video news clips that are about 45 seconds each and replay them as often as you like. The transcripts are also online, and you can print them out to read later. You can choose from several different TV stations, so it's possible to listen to the same story covered in different ways (different speakers, different vocabulary, etc).

To give it a try, go to: http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/videonews/

Girls in Kimonos at Meiji Jingu, Seijin No Hi

January 10 was Seijin No Hi, or Coming of Age Day. All over Japan 20 year olds attend various ceremonies recognizing them as adult members of society. Many of the girls dress in kimonos and form moving displays of color on commuter trains and in the places where they gather. Many head for Shinto shrines with their families, boyfriends, or in groups with their friends. So for the second year in a row I went to Meiji Jingu in Harajuku for a photo frenzy. Like last year, hundreds of photographers descended on the crowd and gathered in packs around any girls who paused for a moment. I happily joined them. Most of the time in Japan I feel out of place pointing my camera at strangers, but on days like this there are no barriers. My family had a taste of this. I went with my wife and three kids. Last year my three year old daughter attracted some photographers, but that was nothing compared to the attention garnered by my twins this year. Anytime we stopped the strollers a semi-circle of photographers gathered around -- at least 20 people at a time -- and shot pictures constantly until we moved again. I'm sure thousands of pictures of my kids have been printed in Tokyo, with runny noses and stuffing their faces with onigiri. Rice with seaweed and snot anyone?

I'm really not into Shinto shrines, and I don't think I'm a "Japanophile" (whatever that is), but I love to see Japanese people relaxed, not working, enjoying each other, eating good food, dressed in colorful clothing and celebrating traditions. The girls in kimonos radiate such youth and potential; they are symbols of future hope. Personally, I wish they had more days like this ahead; but adulthood in Japan is more oriented toward work, duty and depression (and, in the face of Japan's rapidly aging population, many Japanese leaders are terribly concerned about the huge number of young women saying they don't want to get married or ever have children). So it's hope for a day. Hmm, okay, back on track.

Seijin No Hi falls within the New Year celebrations, and many people visit Shinto shrines during that period to pick up the arrow shaped charms in the picture above. By purchasing a charm they hope to obtain good fortune for the coming year. The majority of Japanese don't have "faith" in Shinto or Buddhism, but they will visit a temple or shrine at certain times to observe a tradition and perhaps improve their luck. In addition to the arrow charms, people also bought fortunes and tossed money into a large bin and bowed for a moment to utter a prayer (most will pray some variation of, "Let this be a good and successful year"). A line of people also formed to receive a ritual cup of Sake from a shrine worker (see the gallery link at the end of this post for those shots).

Two unexpected interruptions momentarily diverted everyone's attention. At one point, a group of high school boys formed a circle and danced around in the center of the crowd shouting out a school chant. I'm pretty sure the same group was there last year. The photographers gladly clicked away at them for awhile, and afterwards they posed for a group picture (see my detail above). Sometime after that, I sensed a hush from the crowd and saw two large parasols coming our way. My wife whispered that it was a Shinto wedding party, and I was glad for a chance to shoot the picture above. I assume that's the bride and her father -- or the groom. They cut a path through the center of the main gathering area of the shrine and disappeared somewhere to our left, after sharing a brief, private moment with all of us.

Just to be clear, not all 20 year old Japanese girls wear a kimono on this day, mainly because many cannot afford to. A new kimono costs a small fortune (thousands of dollars), and I imagine rentals will set you back quite a bit. Don't confuse the "kimono" with "yukata". For summer festivals Japanese women and girls wear Yukata -- colorful, light cotton outfits somewhat similar to kimonos (but the opposite in cost). Here's a site with more Kimono information.

On a final note, I learned something that came as a mild surprise. Meiji Jingu is devoted to the Meiji Emperor and Empress who died in 1912 and 1914 respectively. Although their son declared that he was not a god after World War II had ended, that doesn't seem to have affected the perceived deity of his parents, at least to the caretakers of this shrine. The prayers of the people at Meiji Jingu are directed to them. At least the prayers of the devout. As I said before, I don't think most people think much about their prayers in such a concrete sense.

To see more pictures, visit my Seijin No Hi 2005 gallery.

Thanks for coming, and I appreciate your comments! I will put up another post in a couple of days summing up this past month, including some follow up on my last post.