There are nine million empty houses (akiya) in Japan; This is a very specific crisis whose numbers do not bode well for the foreseeable future. To give us an idea, they currently make up almost 14% of all homes in the country. Another example of its size: If we assume that three people can live in each house, this number would be enough to accommodate almost the whole of Australia. The problem is reaching the entire Japanese real estate stock.

Real estate devaluation. A research report by Japan’s Akiya Consortium, a group of 14 companies and a research institution that aims to solve the problem of vacant homes, estimates that the country’s real estate market has suffered losses of about $24.7 billion over the past five years due to declining properties. Values ​​of nearby houses.

Land and buildings. The study shows that land prices for properties within a 50 meter radius around Akiya continue to fall. Data that underlines the scale of a problem that is fueling a vicious cycle of falling prices and more unsold properties.

As if that wasn’t enough, Nikkei explains that the absence of an owner in abandoned apartments can mean deferring payments for management and repair fees, which can reduce the asset value of the entire building.

Factors and conditions. A lot. The first is the loss of the attractiveness of the region. In addition to a sense of insecurity, potential buyers are also concerned about issues such as overgrowth of vegetation and/or pests caused by abandoned homes.

This house is a ruin. There is an inherent risk with such old structures. These homes also pose serious security risks, as in most cases we are talking about properties that have not been maintained for a long time. In fact, the research draws attention to the possibility of earthquakes, landslides or collapse in extreme weather conditions as examples.

Even if you love him. Even if someone wants to take possession of an akiya, renovate it, demolish it and build a new one on its foundation, in most cases it becomes impossible to find the owner. There are many cases where grandchildren do not live in the area because they moved or no one could find them. At this point, the cluster of empty houses forms those “ghost towns” that terrify young families in Japan’s rural prefectures.

Incentives to stop bleeding. Given this scenario, institutions are trying to offer incentives. The Japanese government went so far as to offer cheap $500 housing and tax breaks in an attempt to persuade residents to move from urban areas to rural towns. And not just national. Foreigners also participate in the deals, buying large properties at low prices, renovating them and turning them into their dream homes, and when they fail to do so, they turn them into holiday homes for rent due to the tourism boom in the country.

Airbnb came to the rescue. Nikkei reported in November that Airbnb was looking to partner with local governments to encourage hosts to renovate their abandoned homes so they can be used as tourist attractions. According to Yasuyuki Tanabe, the company’s manager in Japan, “This can be a good source of income after people retire, as our life expectancy is getting longer. This could be a solution if the owners of idle assets renovate them and turn them into accommodation.”

Background: demographics. It is not new, it is far away, but it cannot be ignored as one of the reasons explaining this empty house crisis across the country. Of course, the Akiya phenomenon would not be the same without Japan’s demographic crisis. As the country ages and loses population, the number of vacant and/or abandoned homes increases and the prospects do not get any better; estimates speak of the end of the century when 53 million people (that is, less than half) will live in the country. Among 128 million people in 2017.

Image | Bo Nielsen, Muyo

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