Housing Japan

Breeze Meguro - Interior Work Progresses

Lloyd — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 05:49:06 +0000

Construction work on the interior of Breeze Meguro is really progressing as walls are getting cladded with gypsum board and fixtures are roughed in. It won’t be long now and the real finishing touches can begin - wall coverings, paint, flooring, and fixtures. With a little imagination you can almost see the finished product. It has been really exciting to see it all come together after months of planning and design.

The exterior is still wrapped as work continues to towards a finished house from the outside.

Job Opportunity at Housing Japan

Lloyd — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 03:57:04 +0000

Web Developers Wanted

Housing Japan is looking for part-time web developers in Tokyo for our main real estate site and various web development projects (http://www.housingjapan.com).

Skills

Experience and coding skills in php, javascript, ajax, & xhtml a must. Need to be able to work as a part of a team, develop standardized up-to-date code, and meet deadlines. Knowledge of WordPress, action script, google maps API, SEO, SMM a big plus.

Salary

Salary is negotiable and may be per project based or on an hourly rate.

Hours / Schedule

The schedule will depend on the projects at hand but are flexible.

Language

At least conversation level English - Japanese language skills not required.

For the right candidate this position may lead to a future full time position. If interested forward your resume and a brief introduction to lloyd[at]housingjapan.com

Testimonial - Raymond Gasu

sakurai — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 05:42:12 +0000

Just about a year ago, I needed to change apartments and so I spoke to my friend of mine Ray Meenan about it. He was quick to recommend Housing Japan. I followed up and the president of the company, Mr. Hashimoto, assigned Ms Miki Sakurai to assist me. He assured me that Miki would take very good care of me and she did exactly that.

I would say I was a difficult client with a limited budget but with all sorts of specific requirements. She was patient with me and worked hard to find me a good place to stay. I appreciated her assistance very much.

I then understood why Ray Meenan did not hesitate to recommend Housing Japan to me. I will not hesitate to do the same to my friends.

After I moved in to my new apartment and sent a thank you note to Mr. Hashimoto, he sent me a reply that was a pleasant surprise. This is what he said: “I am very glad that we could be of assistance. We try very hard to make our clients happy. I hope your business is successful and hope you have a wonderful stay in Tokyo. Finally please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any problems. We look after our clients until they leave Tokyo!! (The emphasis is mine).

One year down the road, I can tell you that Miki continues to assist me with any requests that I make. She facilitates communication with my Cable TV and Internet Service Provider for example.

To all of you at Housing Japan, I say more grease to your elbows!

Sincerely yours,
Raymond Gasu

Breeze Meguro update

joe — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 02:49:22 +0000

The Breeze is looking more and more like a house.The doors and windows are now in place so the site can be locked up at night.

This is a photo of the ground floor entrance. The dark grey rubber material is water proofing for the walls. It is covered in a wire mesh which is going to hold the mortar render finish.

The master bedroom walk in closet. You can see the insulation pads on the external walls.

The bath room to be.

This is the second floor looking back to the dining and kitchen. This is a nice big room. You can see the light in the foreground from the sky-lights.

The internal balcony on the second floor. We are quite happy with this space. It is giving the second floor an open feeling without losing privacy.

The third floor deck. This deck has BBQ written all over it.

The project has certainly taken longer than forecast, we were expecting to be marketing the finished house by now. We realise now it takes much more thime to build something nice using an architect than to build a standard kit home. The builder tells us now he should be done by the end of October although he still has a lot to do !

Walls and Windows

joe — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 14:24:31 +0000

The Breeze Meguro continues to zoom along. The frames are finished and the builders are working on the walls and windows.

The view from the 3F - looks like we get a clean view over the neighbour and onto the park next door. Phew..

The 3F looking back over the internal balcony. Maybe we should have made that a full height window?

The 3F roof balcony. This window will become a full height window / door - little bit expensive but should look nice.

Sky lights on the 2F - let the light in but retain privacy. Should we have gone with windows instead?

Kitchen and dining area - plenty of space here.

Ground level. This will be the entrace and car-port area. The windows are the 1st floor bedrooms.

What’s under that blue cover?

Scaffolding and Frames

joe — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:59:44 +0000

The scaffolding is in place and work has finally begun on the frames.

We met with the builder last week just as he finished putting up the scaffolding. He told us he will get the frames up by the end of this week. It sounded very aggresive to me but he seemed confident.. His little secret which became apparent is that the wood and steel frames arrive at the site already completely pre-cut. The builders just have to assemble the thing like a giant puzzle - so if they are good it can happen very quickly.

Here are all the pieces stacked up on the scaffolding early in the week and then..

Hey presto! All done..

Testimonial from Mr. Justin Cheung

kobayashi — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 10:32:34 +0000

It came as a pleasant surprise when Keiichiro informed me that he had secured a rental apartment matching the desired specifications and budget within 2 weeks of contacting him.

In the course of my dealings with Keiichiro, he demonstrated great professionalism, a patient and polite demeanour as well as a firm understanding of the leasing market. He showed interest in understanding my requirements and he was candid and responsive to all my questions and concerns.

The entire process was smooth, professional and fast. He was a proactive negotiator and I was happy with the rent and terms of the lease. I would strongly recommend his services to others and look forward to using him again.

Yours sincerely,
Justin Cheung

Fantastic Deal on Townhouses in Meguro

hashimoto — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 07:10:45 +0000

What’s Hot About this Property?

Without question, this property is a fantastic deal! You can buy a semi-detached townhouse (with land ownership) for cheaper than the average price of just the land alone! The price per m2 of this property is ¥463,651/m2 where the average land for sale in this area is ¥665,500/m2. Toritsu-daigaku is also a great location in Meguro ward - one of Tokyo’s most popular residential areas.

The Townhouses

These expat-style townhouses have 168.23m2 of space (including the garage). The 1st floor has a one-car garage and a 21m2 room. The 2nd floor has a separate dining - kitchen and a spacious livingroom. The 3rd floor has 3 bedrooms and a bathroom. There are 3 units available to choose from.

Townhouses in Meguro

Livingroom

Kitchen

Livingroom

Kitchen

Livingroom

Bedroom

Parking

Bathroom

Details

¥78,000,000~¥79,800,000
168.23m2 (50.88 Tsubo)
4 bedrooms
Built in 1987
reinforced concrete structure
managment fee ¥10,000/month
restoration fee ¥10,000/month
facing west on a 5.5m road to the front
Address - Kakinokizaka 2 chome, Meguro-Ku, Tokyo

Financing Scenarios

In terms of financing there are several scenarios depending on your situation. Basically, if the purchase price is ¥75,000,000, (these townhouses are somewhat negotiable), with a 20% down payment and
borrow 80% the mortgage would be ¥60,000,000.

Bank Loan Scenario A

¥60,000,000 mortgage extended over 25 years with a floating interest rate of 2.3%
monthly mortgage payment would be around ¥315,000

Bank Loan Scenario B

¥60,000,000 mortgage extended over 35 years with a floating interest rate of 1.48%
monthly mortgage payment would be around ¥184,000

Note:

With Bank Loan Scenario A the principle would remain the same from start to finish
With Bank Loan Scenario B ( Japanese banks) you will pay more interest and a smaller principle at first but this will reverse itself as time progresses
The floating interest rate has only changed about 0.1% over the past 10 years. (from Mizuho Bank)
These interest rates are a guideline and are subject to change

Location - Access

Kakinokizaka is one of the best residetial areas to live. It is an upscale area with lots of nice houses. These townhouses are located a 12 minute walk from Toritsu-daigaku station is on the Tokyu-Toyoko Line which is a main trianline servicing the western residential areas of Tokyo. It offers easy access to the central business districts of Ebisu, Kamiyacho, Roppongi & Otemachi. It is about a 13 minute train-ride (5 stops) from Hiroo station and 1 stop to the Jiyugaoka shopping area to the south-west.

Amenities

10 - 15 min walk to the Komazawa Olympic park
5 - 10 min drive to Seisen International school
10 - 15 min drive to St Mary’s International school

View Parador do Kakinokizaka Townhouses in a larger map

Plumbed and ready for walls

joe — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 08:58:14 +0000

The building work continues on the Housing Japan house in Meguro. We are calling it BREEZE MEGURO. These recent photos show the foundation slab and concrete walls are now done.

They will attach the wooden frame onto these steel bolts in the concrete.

Here you can see the water and sewerage pipes. It is interesting how the pipes come into the building all at one spot on the side and not through the slab. This should make the water proofing of the slab sound and also make it easy to repair any problems with the plumbing in the future.

The wood for the frames and walls will arrive on site on the 22nd of August so things should start to get more interesting from then.

We put up a sign so people can find out more about the house on our marketing website - www.breezemeguro.com
We have the site up in english as well - http://en.breezemeguro.com/
Be sure to take a look and let me know what you think. I am tracking the page hits - it will be interesting to see how many more people find the web site now we have this sign up.

Hirakawacho Mori Tower

matsumoto — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 06:51:49 +0000

Brand New Residential Tower in Akasaka Mitsuke

This building offers top quality living space right in the heart of Tokyo’s Chiyoda Ward - very close to the Imperial Palace and government agencies, the Diet Building, the Supreme Court of Japan, the National Theatre, halls of various organizations, and international hotels. This neighborhood is considered one of the old historical areas of the city with lots to offer. The project creates open public spaces within the site and creates a mixed-use facility that offers office space of the highest standard and superior residences. It realizes a modern urban philosophy of work and living spaces in close proximity to each other - thus cutting down on lengthy commutes.

Location

16-2, Hirakawacho 2-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Nearest Station

1 minute on foot to Nagatacho Station (Yurakucho, Hanzomon and Namboku subway lines)
6 minute on foot to Akasaka-mitsuke Station. (Marunouchi and Ginza subway lines)

Floor Plans

1BR ~ 5B /75sqm~425sqm

1BR : 75sqm~82sqm ( 49 units)
2BR : 128sqm~159sqm (45units)
3BR : 128sqm~244sqm (10 units)
4BR : 299sqm (2 units)
5BR : 427sqm (1 unit)

Note: rents are not decided yet

Building Features

Floors
24 above ground, 6 basement levels. (14~23F Residence, 24F Common Lounge)
Completion
December 2009 (planned), Start of Leasing (planned)
No. of Residences
122 (Residences for lease:107) (planned)
Structure
S, SRC
Vibration-Control - Construction
Seismic Damping
Parking
126 spaces

Services

Bilingual front desk services (planned)
Residents in MORI LIVING residences can use four members-only spas: the ARK HILLS SPA, GREEN HILLS SPA, MOTOAZABU HILLS SPA, and ROPPONGI HILLS SPA.
Separate fees will apply for use of spa facilities. *Hirakawacho Mori building has its own GYM. Use it for health inprovement or a change of pace.

Community Facilities

Lounge, Fitness, Relaxation Room, The Sky Deck