@@JapanMediaReview That's INSANE that governments are spending that much money to find heirs to these abandoned properties. I learn so much from your channel.
there has to be some limits on how far down the line inheritance can go IF no one in the family bothered to had it down to someone. If they valued it, they would communicate to their clan about that value. At some point the state should be able to re-claim and repurpose the land. Also, this is a large enough problem that the governments should be streamlining this process if not for the past; for the future. It's a massive operational liability for them in terms of admin costs.
That's what they do in my country (in the Caribbean) if the house is left abandoned for too long. It goes to auction and if no one buys it the government takes the house and reclaims the land.
as someone from europe with a big love for japanese architecture and interior design, there's nothing i would love more than put my hands on some of those construction materials and furniture from akiyas, but several web searches have led me to nothing... and i bet im not the only one interested!
Property taxes should disappear when the original owner passed away. That should be included with years of paying taxes for the property. Government is TOO GREEDY. Making a mess of people's lives.
Very interesting information. We see so many videos enticing foreigners to snap up free or cheap properties in Japan, but don’t get enough info about the potential downside.
@@koriko88 if you are European from a rich country and have decent savings you can get a relatively stable visa. But very few Americans, Europeans or Australians want to move to Japan permanently in particular in the countryside. Actually many would love the environment but the difficulty of dealing with language, visas, healthcare and regulations makes it so difficult. Places like Italy are a better option for cheap houses in the countryside. Of course Italian real estate is still expensive in cities and the popular tourist areas because there are constantly people wanting to move there but in the countryside it's different. Many Italians are very used to foreign tourists, most young generation Italians can speak at least some English and you don't have many natural disasters. Italian healthcare is not hard to get and similar in quality to Japan healthcare. Also it's easy to visit many countries in Europe with cheap flights from Italy, flying to Paris, London, Madrid or Berlin is usually below 50$ with low cost airlines. And anyway Italy still has some immigration making it's depopulation much slower as Italy attracts a lot of people from countries like turkey or eastern Europe and north Africa as well as rich retirees from US like George Clooney that retire in Italy. Also Italy has easy retirement visas and low tax schemes in particular if you come as a foreigner for retirement. And almost all public services (like bus routes, hospitals and government websites) are also in English. Also the weather in Italy is a bit nicer for old people than most of Japan in particular in the south it usually stays above 0 even in winter and you get a long summer which is usually not too hot. Also the cost of living in Italy is in general quite a bit cheaper than in Japan.
So some people spend their entire lives working and paying mortgage on a house, only to have to give it away after they die because they aren’t worth anything and no one wants them. Harsh.
Abandoned trash piles up because the government refuses to provide free/affordable disposal service. In Singapore, old or broken furniture or electrical appliances can be deposited at designated areas just under the apartment blocks for the garbage staff to collect every morning. It's free & fast. And if the furniture is too heavy, residents can pay a small fee to the garbage staff to come up to the apartment & bring down the furniture to be thrown away.
Huge difference between furniture and house. Here in Germany furniture disposal is free but tearing down a house is so expensive. It’s the idea that you should build a house for generations not decades
The solution is simple. Encourage companies to move offices to these smaller towns to drive up demand for these homes. The local government needs to fast track any permits and give a tax free period during demolition and renovation.
I can see this become predatory real quick. The gov waited till now when theirs no value and cost went up to bump it on the last heir like a hot potato
foreigners are willing to pay for it and live in it , but even that is becoming an issue . they rather leave it like that then selling it to a foreigner that has an interest in it . japan needs to fix that first .
The kind of foreigners who want to get a place like this are usually poor foreigners. If enough poor foreigners move there, I guess they can create a barrio or a ghetto. 😅
Groan! My wife's house is definitely heading towards being "negative value real estate." It is very large with a detached garage/apartment and will soon need a new roof and new windows. But we are retired and don't really need such a big house. Three of the bedrooms in this 4 bedroom house are filled with piles of clothes and items my wife purchased but never used. My wife's daughter certainly has no interest in the property and lives far away in very expensive Chiba. The neighbor tore down her old house to the foundation and then had a new house built on top of it. But she is still in her prime earning years and could get a mortgage loan. The only glimmer of hope is that there is a large hospital nearby and maybe a doctor who wants a shorter commute might take our house for zero Yen.
@@heythave I'm a little reluctant to give that much identifying info here. Let's say it's definitely a city on the periphery of Japan and has a declining population.
@@prieten49 Oh, ok. No worries. I watch videos about akiya sales and I was considering that I may buy one if the property was in a certain location, and so, I was asking you about it in case your wife will be selling it in the future.
@@heythave We live way up in Hokkaido 4 hours by car from Sapporo on the east coast in a city called Kushiro. It's usually the coldest city in Japan on those TV weather maps. Lots of nature, but the coal mining industry is dead and the fishing industry will soon follow. Only hospitals are thriving here. Lots of nature though (some deer wandered into the city about a week ago and ate my potato plants). But skiing and Nisseko are far off in western Hokkaido.
I would have been surprised if Japan's laws were to irrational, so I looked into it; the Civil Code of Japan, Article 915, stipulate "an heir" can give a "renunciation, regarding inheritance within three months of the time he/she has knowledge that there has been a commencement of inheritance for him/her." So, am I missing something? Did the first guy just procrastinate?
'Later, a person who has made a statement will receive an inquiry form (a letter of inquiry regarding the contents of the written statement) from the court, so he/she shall reply to the family court by surface mail. In response to the contents of the written reply, if the family court accepts the statement of renunciation of inheritance, a "Notice of Acceptance of The Statement of Renunciation of Inheritance" will be surface mailed to him/her. (After returning the inquiry form, it is estimated within 1 week to 10 days) the procedures of the renunciation of inheritance are completed with this notice. '*Depending on the content of the inquiry form, the renunciation of inheritance may be rejected.' So, was his renunciation rejected? Why?
@@JapanMediaReview Well, it said it was a complex legal process, when it shouldn't be; for instance, why would he have to reach out to other heirs, (all 106?) just to relinquish his claim?
I’m not a legal expert so I don’t know the exact requirements =( but in the news segment, his process of relinquishing the inheritance seems to involve coordinating with a number of other relatives (not all 106 heirs). When the government mentioned 106 heirs, it wasn’t advising him on how to relinquish the inheritance; it was asking for a collective resolution to restore the house to a safe condition
Very interesting and educational video. I knew this sort of situation existed in Japan, but it's much more extensive than I thought. This is what a burden truly is. Allows someone who might be juggling the thought to buy or not a property in Japan, to think and think again.
If you don't pay property tax for the Akiya, then doesn't the property belong to the local government. Even if it has heirs, no tax payment could mean it belongs to the state.
the government should take care of this issue, that's what tax money are for. if it looks abandoned for a couple of decades, then just knock it down, haul away the trash, reclaim the land and sale it. the government pockets the money from the sale. see? what's so hard about that? why bother unknown relatives of the decease when they had nothing to do with it? Japan needs a new reform on this issue, why are they stuck in the past using old methods when they're living in the future.
Japan government is so slow and backwards. In Singapore, the government would have seized the land without batting an eye. Land is scarce in Singapore and the government holds absolute power and is able to seize any land without permission.
I wonder how much it cost to trace 120 heirs for months and sending out letters😂….. I guess just renovating it and auctioning it off would have been much cheaper
More like the younger folks, able aged types. They need it more than the elderly. Replacement rate is in dire situation and raising families are important now. But I do agree with you. Government is trying to replace them with foreigners, clearly obvious
Japan appears to be on an inexorable downward population spiral. Predictions are that by the end of the century Japan's population will be 60% smaller than today. That means 60% of all buildings, not just houses, will be vacant: schools, commercial buildings, factories, everything. The whole country will look like much of Detroit if abandoned buildings are allowed to rot. The Japanese government should set up a new and independent department the sole purpose of which is to raze abandoned buildings rapidly. Any building abandoned for a certain length of time should be declared government tear-down property. There should be a target of, say, 10,000 demolitions weekly, and the freed up land could be devoted to free community gardens or parks or simple open space. Even at that rate it would take well over a decade to demolish just the presently-existing abandoned structures. Many more will be abandoned during that time period, but eventually the abandoned structures will be few.
Lol as if Japan gov will do this…They DON’T give a SH*T - nothing will be done the country side of Japan will continue falling in ruin year by year until it simply goes back to nature in the mountains. Just watch yearly the decline is literally unstoppable. I cannot wait to see how it will play out in the endgame.
This is nonsense. In my country, you own property, then you must pay property tax. If you die, who pays the tax? The house must be inherited via will, or go through probate. This is where possible heirs receive their inherited property if no will exists. If you don’t want the property because you don’t want to pay the inheritance tax, then you relinquish ownership, or simply never claim it if there is no will. The government wants to find an owner because they want their property tax. That’s why there’s also a adverse possession, which essentially allows a squatter to live in an abandoned property. After a very lengthy period, if no legal owner claims it, (who has a lot of back taxes to owe) it’s yours. Now then, there are also things like city ordinances. Something in that disrepair, it “contributes to urban blight,” and starts getting fines. Liens are put on that property, and eventually the government owns it. At some point before that happens, usually it gets condemned, so even if people are living in it, they are removed lawfully, and the property, even if theirs, is torn down, usually at the owners expense. Can’t pay? That just speeds up the process. Basically by the government seizing ownership, they can clean it up, then sell the lot to recoup the cost of the cleanup. The government just wants their tax money. How can they function without tax money? My mom once owned a beach house as a rental. The property taxes came out of an escrow account so she wouldn’t ever have to worry about it. The house was in good condition with people living in it. Well one day she was contacted by one of the renters, worried they were going to be evicted because apparently she hadn’t been paying the taxes on it. My father had changed something involving the escrow, only, he had passed away 3 years prior, so she never knew something was wrong. She then had to come up with three years worth of property tax, AND late fees, just to keep the house. The government just wants their money. In cases like Japans, where the property value is negative, they will give these places away, because, again, they want their money. Any improvements made, they can finally collect taxes on it, so any incentives they can get to gain new owners is made.
@@avernvrey7422because they waited so long. They literally waited generations before finally doing something about it. If this was some rural area, then that local government probably wouldn’t even known about it. I’ve visited homes like that. Rural, nature reclaimed it, town grew up, and no one, even those living nearby, had any idea about the house, who’s roof has already collapsed, because it required fighting through thick brush and trees a foot apart from each other. They only get discovered when someone finally takes ownership. In this case, the town itself wanted to build a road through it. But in a major city, as soon as there’s a certificate of death, that’s when all the belongings are handled by the government; any debts and assets this person has. You’re the only child of the deceased, if you’re not mentioned in any will, you now have to do THEIR work, and prove your relationship and why you think you deserve their house, car, whatever. There’s an inheritance tax, so it’s better if citizens do claim it, because they make money without really having to do anything. No claims, then they have to file all the documentation so the government can own it, and decide whether to keep or sell. I get that now that there’s a major population shortage, this may become a problem, too many houses, not enough people, but these people died decades ago before that ever was a problem. Now the house can’t be saved. There was a program they were doing in some parts of my country, like Detroit, where houses were abandoned and in disrepair due to the poverty level and people moving away. No one was moving in, so same issue with population. What they did was essentially sold the property for $1-20 just so people would hopefully do the repairs, or knock it down and start over. They did not wait for the property to become negative value. Most of these homes could have been saved. The Japanese government literally made family trees and genealogy research to find the owners, why didn’t they do this for the first or second generation of people and handled it then? They don’t want to pay the inheritance tax, then they could sign it off to the government and then they could actually do something about it. House the homeless, or real estate investors who could turn these into short term rentals for tourists, because that’s a population that is helping the nation.
@youknowkbbaby because most foreigners are visitors. They aren’t immigrating. That’s why Japan still has a labor shortage. And if they’re looking for several generations of descendants, then those homes clearly aren’t even on the market yet, and may never sell because they waited so long to do anything about it. So many movies set in the US and elsewhere, where if some mysterious will doesn’t appear by a set deadline, ownership is given to someone else, usually an interested buyer. They don’t wait generations.
@youknowkbbaby you really think the US does that? The US has a labor shortage because no one wants to work minimum wage, but we have hoards of migrants literally dying to live here. Rather than spend our tax dollars on processing them so they can have work visas and stay here legally, we waste those tax dollars on silly things like some wall that does nothing, bus trips so these “illegals” can go elsewhere in our country with no ability to track, and of course, my favorite, the concentration camps for children, whether they were accompanied by a parent or not. They aren’t asking for citizenship. They aren’t asking for a hand out. They are simply asking for a better life than what they had back home. Tourists already have a better life. They won’t be staying. They don’t help with the labor shortage, but they do help with the economy, though there is some question on whether or not they’re causing inflation. Having short term rentals for them makes sense because many stay longer than just a week or two since travel is such an ordeal. Actual immigrants that come to Japan for a better life can’t really afford to own a home. Low income rentals would still help here. They aren’t paid a whole lot, but in most developed countries, healthcare is seen as a human right, so they don’t have to worry about medical bills, insurance, and bankruptcy due to some minor injury, like they would in the US. If there’s an earthquake, or a train crash, they’re actually taken care of. No gofundmes required.
Another great story.
@5:00, was it 12万 (120,000) or 120万 (1.2 million)？
I miscounted a zero 😓 it should be 1.2 million yen
@@JapanMediaReview That's INSANE that governments are spending that much money to find heirs to these abandoned properties. I learn so much from your channel.
there has to be some limits on how far down the line inheritance can go IF no one in the family bothered to had it down to someone. If they valued it, they would communicate to their clan about that value. At some point the state should be able to re-claim and repurpose the land.
Also, this is a large enough problem that the governments should be streamlining this process if not for the past; for the future. It's a massive operational liability for them in terms of admin costs.
That's what they do in my country (in the Caribbean) if the house is left abandoned for too long. It goes to auction and if no one buys it the government takes the house and reclaims the land.
as someone from europe with a big love for japanese architecture and interior design, there's nothing i would love more than put my hands on some of those construction materials and furniture from akiyas, but several web searches have led me to nothing... and i bet im not the only one interested!
Property taxes should disappear when the original owner passed away. That should be included with years of paying taxes for the property. Government is TOO GREEDY. Making a mess of people's lives.
Taxes were only supposed to charge for infrastructure. Unless all of that will be improved, there's no reason for it. Yes it's greed.
Very interesting information. We see so many videos enticing foreigners to snap up free or cheap properties in Japan, but don’t get enough info about the potential downside.
Foreigners can't live in those areas and they won't get a visa even if they own 200 cheap homes.
@@kageyamareijikunThere’s plenty of foreigners living in Japan.
@@kageyamareijikunI guess even investors don't think it's worth buying and demolishing these properties for the land.
@@olive4naito Who would want a train line in their backyard?
@@koriko88 if you are European from a rich country and have decent savings you can get a relatively stable visa. But very few Americans, Europeans or Australians want to move to Japan permanently in particular in the countryside.
Actually many would love the environment but the difficulty of dealing with language, visas, healthcare and regulations makes it so difficult.
Places like Italy are a better option for cheap houses in the countryside.
Of course Italian real estate is still expensive in cities and the popular tourist areas because there are constantly people wanting to move there but in the countryside it's different.
Many Italians are very used to foreign tourists, most young generation Italians can speak at least some English and you don't have many natural disasters.
Italian healthcare is not hard to get and similar in quality to Japan healthcare.
Also it's easy to visit many countries in Europe with cheap flights from Italy, flying to Paris, London, Madrid or Berlin is usually below 50$ with low cost airlines.
And anyway Italy still has some immigration making it's depopulation much slower as Italy attracts a lot of people from countries like turkey or eastern Europe and north Africa as well as rich retirees from US like George Clooney that retire in Italy. Also Italy has easy retirement visas and low tax schemes in particular if you come as a foreigner for retirement. And almost all public services (like bus routes, hospitals and government websites) are also in English.
Also the weather in Italy is a bit nicer for old people than most of Japan in particular in the south it usually stays above 0 even in winter and you get a long summer which is usually not too hot.
Also the cost of living in Italy is in general quite a bit cheaper than in Japan.
So some people spend their entire lives working and paying mortgage on a house, only to have to give it away after they die because they aren’t worth anything and no one wants them. Harsh.
Abandoned trash piles up because the government refuses to provide free/affordable disposal service. In Singapore, old or broken furniture or electrical appliances can be deposited at designated areas just under the apartment blocks for the garbage staff to collect every morning. It's free & fast. And if the furniture is too heavy, residents can pay a small fee to the garbage staff to come up to the apartment & bring down the furniture to be thrown away.
Huge difference between furniture and house. Here in Germany furniture disposal is free but tearing down a house is so expensive. It’s the idea that you should build a house for generations not decades
Singapore is smaller than just Tokyo. Japan is an entire country. Easier to run a city than a country. Beside that, you have a good point.
The solution is simple. Encourage companies to move offices to these smaller towns to drive up demand for these homes. The local government needs to fast track any permits and give a tax free period during demolition and renovation.
That's just makes the nation's economy less efficient for no good reason. There's no solution, the owners just have to eat the loss and move on.
Finally, a new video. I have been waiting for a new video from you. Keep it up. These videos are wonderful.
Thank you for your support!
@@JapanMediaReview hey, can I know the website in video that mentioned?
I can see this become predatory real quick. The gov waited till now when theirs no value and cost went up to bump it on the last heir like a hot potato
Sad! South Korea is also heading into this type of situation real fast.
foreigners are willing to pay for it and live in it , but even that is becoming an issue . they rather leave it like that then selling it to a foreigner that has an interest in it . japan needs to fix that first .
The kind of foreigners who want to get a place like this are usually poor foreigners.
If enough poor foreigners move there, I guess they can create a barrio or a ghetto. 😅
A fascinating discussion. Thanks for sharing!
The government should knock down the house & sell the land to recoup costs.
yea that costs 5million yen as mentioned in the video
The local government would go bankrupt if it did that.
People don't even want them free 😆
Who is gonna buy the land?
@@jlee104 he didn't pay attention to the video 😆
Thank you for sharing this wonderful content!
Groan! My wife's house is definitely heading towards being "negative value real estate." It is very large with a detached garage/apartment and will soon need a new roof and new windows. But we are retired and don't really need such a big house. Three of the bedrooms in this 4 bedroom house are filled with piles of clothes and items my wife purchased but never used. My wife's daughter certainly has no interest in the property and lives far away in very expensive Chiba. The neighbor tore down her old house to the foundation and then had a new house built on top of it. But she is still in her prime earning years and could get a mortgage loan. The only glimmer of hope is that there is a large hospital nearby and maybe a doctor who wants a shorter commute might take our house for zero Yen.
I am sorry to hear that. Which city are you located?
Thanks for sharing reality.
@@heythave I'm a little reluctant to give that much identifying info here. Let's say it's definitely a city on the periphery of Japan and has a declining population.
@@prieten49 Oh, ok. No worries. I watch videos about akiya sales and I was considering that I may buy one if the property was in a certain location, and so, I was asking you about it in case your wife will be selling it in the future.
@@heythave We live way up in Hokkaido 4 hours by car from Sapporo on the east coast in a city called Kushiro. It's usually the coldest city in Japan on those TV weather maps. Lots of nature, but the coal mining industry is dead and the fishing industry will soon follow. Only hospitals are thriving here. Lots of nature though (some deer wandered into the city about a week ago and ate my potato plants). But skiing and Nisseko are far off in western Hokkaido.
Japan has plenty of homeless people. How about the Japanese government give the homeless a place to live and a job, so they can pay for the housing?
It is a culture thing to not do this
Lol people think housing people will solve the homelessness "problem". Trust me, 99% want to be on the streets.
I would have been surprised if Japan's laws were to irrational, so I looked into it; the Civil Code of Japan, Article 915, stipulate "an heir" can give a "renunciation, regarding inheritance within three months of the time he/she has knowledge that there has been a commencement of inheritance for him/her."
So, am I missing something? Did the first guy just procrastinate?
'Later, a person who has made a statement will receive an inquiry form (a letter of inquiry regarding the contents of the written statement) from the court, so he/she shall reply to the family court by surface mail. In response to the contents of the written reply, if the family court accepts the statement of renunciation of inheritance, a "Notice of Acceptance of The Statement of Renunciation of Inheritance" will be surface mailed to him/her. (After returning the inquiry form, it is estimated within 1 week to 10 days) the procedures of the renunciation of inheritance are completed with this notice.
'*Depending on the content of the inquiry form, the renunciation of inheritance may be rejected.'
So, was his renunciation rejected? Why?
If you mean the first man from Osaka, it says in the video that he did legally relinquish the inheritance around 2:15 😅
@@JapanMediaReview Well, it said it was a complex legal process, when it shouldn't be; for instance, why would he have to reach out to other heirs, (all 106?) just to relinquish his claim?
I’m not a legal expert so I don’t know the exact requirements =( but in the news segment, his process of relinquishing the inheritance seems to involve coordinating with a number of other relatives (not all 106 heirs). When the government mentioned 106 heirs, it wasn’t advising him on how to relinquish the inheritance; it was asking for a collective resolution to restore the house to a safe condition
We need protection of all humans life from moment of conception.
In my Eastern-European country, we don't need to pay property tax.
You buy a house and it is yours.
Philipines here.The property heirs are fighting tooth and nail just to get the property even bringing the dispute to court.
Well, better than what they do in other countries, use houses as an investment line to go up forever.
That house in setagaya is worth money just for the land
That's a really messed up policy. Nobody should have to inherit debt from a relative that was dead long before they were born.
I would love to live in a place in the countryside in Japan. I could actually afford a place to live there.
Very interesting and educational video. I knew this sort of situation existed in Japan, but it's much more extensive than I thought. This is what a burden truly is. Allows someone who might be juggling the thought to buy or not a property in Japan, to think and think again.
Australian here. I would love to get a home.
yaahh 35km from your working place
@@khoirulanam9141 I'll take it.
Have to be able to stay in Japan, long term, first. Not easy. And then, no local jobs available...
What happened to death tax so government can take ownership😂
If you don't pay property tax for the Akiya, then doesn't the property belong to the local government. Even if it has heirs, no tax payment could mean it belongs to the state.
the government should take care of this issue, that's what tax money are for. if it looks abandoned for a couple of decades, then just knock it down, haul away the trash, reclaim the land and sale it. the government pockets the money from the sale. see? what's so hard about that?
why bother unknown relatives of the decease when they had nothing to do with it? Japan needs a new reform on this issue, why are they stuck in the past using old methods when they're living in the future.
I agree. Plus they are spending money bothering the unknown relatives.
Gov should just seize the land and use it for good use.
Logic is not something they are good at in Japan.
Japan government is so slow and backwards. In Singapore, the government would have seized the land without batting an eye. Land is scarce in Singapore and the government holds absolute power and is able to seize any land without permission.
All Governments don't like using logic, it's unheard of.
@@kageyamareijikun’so slow and backwards’ is 💯 correct.
Japan will sooner than later be for sale to the highest bidder.
It’s always the government’s fault
Don't they have bulldozers in Japan?
On 5:00, it’s not 120.000 yen, it’s actually 1.2 million yen, 1 more zero than what was translated 😢
I wonder how much it cost to trace 120 heirs for months and sending out letters😂….. I guess just renovating it and auctioning it off would have been much cheaper
Why don’t the government renovate for the elderly instead of trying to sell to foreigners!
More like the younger folks, able aged types. They need it more than the elderly. Replacement rate is in dire situation and raising families are important now.
But I do agree with you. Government is trying to replace them with foreigners, clearly obvious
@@tandelta6843 why don't the young want these houses? Because there are no jobs around those areas.
Japan appears to be on an inexorable downward population spiral. Predictions are that by the end of the century Japan's population will be 60% smaller than today. That means 60% of all buildings, not just houses, will be vacant: schools, commercial buildings, factories, everything. The whole country will look like much of Detroit if abandoned buildings are allowed to rot. The Japanese government should set up a new and independent department the sole purpose of which is to raze abandoned buildings rapidly. Any building abandoned for a certain length of time should be declared government tear-down property. There should be a target of, say, 10,000 demolitions weekly, and the freed up land could be devoted to free community gardens or parks or simple open space. Even at that rate it would take well over a decade to demolish just the presently-existing abandoned structures. Many more will be abandoned during that time period, but eventually the abandoned structures will be few.
Lol as if Japan gov will do this…They DON’T give a SH*T - nothing will be done the country side of Japan will continue falling in ruin year by year until it simply goes back to nature in the mountains. Just watch yearly the decline is literally unstoppable. I cannot wait to see how it will play out in the endgame.
Why not sell affordable prefabricated tiny houses in replacement of the old houses.
This is nonsense. In my country, you own property, then you must pay property tax. If you die, who pays the tax? The house must be inherited via will, or go through probate. This is where possible heirs receive their inherited property if no will exists. If you don’t want the property because you don’t want to pay the inheritance tax, then you relinquish ownership, or simply never claim it if there is no will. The government wants to find an owner because they want their property tax. That’s why there’s also a adverse possession, which essentially allows a squatter to live in an abandoned property. After a very lengthy period, if no legal owner claims it, (who has a lot of back taxes to owe) it’s yours.
Now then, there are also things like city ordinances. Something in that disrepair, it “contributes to urban blight,” and starts getting fines. Liens are put on that property, and eventually the government owns it. At some point before that happens, usually it gets condemned, so even if people are living in it, they are removed lawfully, and the property, even if theirs, is torn down, usually at the owners expense. Can’t pay? That just speeds up the process. Basically by the government seizing ownership, they can clean it up, then sell the lot to recoup the cost of the cleanup.
The government just wants their tax money. How can they function without tax money? My mom once owned a beach house as a rental. The property taxes came out of an escrow account so she wouldn’t ever have to worry about it. The house was in good condition with people living in it. Well one day she was contacted by one of the renters, worried they were going to be evicted because apparently she hadn’t been paying the taxes on it. My father had changed something involving the escrow, only, he had passed away 3 years prior, so she never knew something was wrong. She then had to come up with three years worth of property tax, AND late fees, just to keep the house.
The government just wants their money. In cases like Japans, where the property value is negative, they will give these places away, because, again, they want their money. Any improvements made, they can finally collect taxes on it, so any incentives they can get to gain new owners is made.
The government doesn't want these houses. There's no value to them and the local government would lose lots of money tearing them down.
@@avernvrey7422because they waited so long. They literally waited generations before finally doing something about it. If this was some rural area, then that local government probably wouldn’t even known about it. I’ve visited homes like that. Rural, nature reclaimed it, town grew up, and no one, even those living nearby, had any idea about the house, who’s roof has already collapsed, because it required fighting through thick brush and trees a foot apart from each other. They only get discovered when someone finally takes ownership. In this case, the town itself wanted to build a road through it.
But in a major city, as soon as there’s a certificate of death, that’s when all the belongings are handled by the government; any debts and assets this person has. You’re the only child of the deceased, if you’re not mentioned in any will, you now have to do THEIR work, and prove your relationship and why you think you deserve their house, car, whatever. There’s an inheritance tax, so it’s better if citizens do claim it, because they make money without really having to do anything. No claims, then they have to file all the documentation so the government can own it, and decide whether to keep or sell.
I get that now that there’s a major population shortage, this may become a problem, too many houses, not enough people, but these people died decades ago before that ever was a problem. Now the house can’t be saved.
There was a program they were doing in some parts of my country, like Detroit, where houses were abandoned and in disrepair due to the poverty level and people moving away. No one was moving in, so same issue with population. What they did was essentially sold the property for $1-20 just so people would hopefully do the repairs, or knock it down and start over. They did not wait for the property to become negative value. Most of these homes could have been saved.
The Japanese government literally made family trees and genealogy research to find the owners, why didn’t they do this for the first or second generation of people and handled it then? They don’t want to pay the inheritance tax, then they could sign it off to the government and then they could actually do something about it. House the homeless, or real estate investors who could turn these into short term rentals for tourists, because that’s a population that is helping the nation.
@youknowkbbaby because most foreigners are visitors. They aren’t immigrating. That’s why Japan still has a labor shortage.
And if they’re looking for several generations of descendants, then those homes clearly aren’t even on the market yet, and may never sell because they waited so long to do anything about it.
So many movies set in the US and elsewhere, where if some mysterious will doesn’t appear by a set deadline, ownership is given to someone else, usually an interested buyer. They don’t wait generations.
@youknowkbbaby you really think the US does that? The US has a labor shortage because no one wants to work minimum wage, but we have hoards of migrants literally dying to live here. Rather than spend our tax dollars on processing them so they can have work visas and stay here legally, we waste those tax dollars on silly things like some wall that does nothing, bus trips so these “illegals” can go elsewhere in our country with no ability to track, and of course, my favorite, the concentration camps for children, whether they were accompanied by a parent or not. They aren’t asking for citizenship. They aren’t asking for a hand out. They are simply asking for a better life than what they had back home.
Tourists already have a better life. They won’t be staying. They don’t help with the labor shortage, but they do help with the economy, though there is some question on whether or not they’re causing inflation. Having short term rentals for them makes sense because many stay longer than just a week or two since travel is such an ordeal.
Actual immigrants that come to Japan for a better life can’t really afford to own a home. Low income rentals would still help here. They aren’t paid a whole lot, but in most developed countries, healthcare is seen as a human right, so they don’t have to worry about medical bills, insurance, and bankruptcy due to some minor injury, like they would in the US. If there’s an earthquake, or a train crash, they’re actually taken care of. No gofundmes required.
These local governments are freaking ridiculous. I would sue the pants off of them for harassment.
0:59 Japan. That's far too much research. Just send a letter to the heirs and tell them to claim it or it will be demolished.
i like this channel
Interesting situation
I wouldn't respond to it. Not my circus, not my monkeys
akiya
Maybe give them to the next door neighbors, they can increase their property size
Because the house they build has age of 40 years.
@4:58 120万 is not 120,000 jpy it is 1,200,000 jpy which is about 7800 usd. What a channel.
Wow. And people prefer sardine can living.
sound like scam
Wtf