Prime Minister Takaichi receives recommendations to curb apartment speculation from Foreigner Policy PT

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi met with members of the Liberal Democratic Party's Foreign Policy Headquarters Project Team at the Prime Minister's Office on the 1st, and received recommendations calling for measures to curb speculative apartment transactions. The proposal emphasizes, ``There are voices pointing out the increase in short-term buying and selling by foreigners and others as one of the causes of soaring condominium prices.'' The prime minister responded, ``I want the government to respond firmly.''

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The proposal points out that ``concern that residential real estate in urban areas is being acquired for speculative purposes is one of the concerns of local residents.'' ``Speculative transactions that are not associated with actual demand should be discouraged by both Japanese and foreigners,'' he said, calling for early measures to be taken, including tax measures.

According to an announcement by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism in September, 12.1% of new condominiums will be sold within one year of purchase in Tokyo's six wards (Chiyoda, Chuo, Minato, Shinjuku, Bunkyo, and Shibuya) in 2024. In 2025, 5.9% of new condominium purchases in the six wards were purchased by people with addresses outside of Japan.