Japan

Japan Residential Real Estate Market Analysis 2024

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Japan’s residential property prices continue to increase modestly, despite slowing demand, weakening construction activity, as well as lackluster economic performance.

In the first quarter of 2024, the nationwide residential property price index rose by a modest 2.65% from a year earlier, following year-on-year increases of 1.96% in Q4 2023, 2.54% in Q3, 4.78% in Q2, and 4.12% in Q1, according to the Land Institute of Japan. However when adjusted for inflation, prices were more or less steady over the same period.

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Quarterly, nationwide residential property prices were up slightly by 0.92% (0.54% inflation-adjusted) in Q1 2024.

House price growth started to slow last year, at an average of just 1.9% - a sharp deceleration from annual increases of 7.2% in 2022 and 6.3% in 2021.

However, there are wide price variations in terms of location and property type.

In the Tokyo Metropolitan Area:

  • Existing condominium average prices rose strongly by 7.9% in May 2024 to JPY 722,700 (US$4,814) per square meter (sqm), following y-o-y increases of 6.4% in 2023 and 11.5% in 2022.

  • New condominium average prices rose by a modest 3.6% in May 2024 from a year earlier, to JPY 1,201,000 (US$8,059) per sqm, following y-o-y price growth of 42.5% in 2023 and 3.1% in 2022.

  • Existing detached house prices were down by 2.2% y-o-y to JPY 40.07 million (US$268,869), following annual growth of 7.2% in 2023 and 7.3% in 2022. 

In Osaka Metropolitan Area:

  • Existing condominium average prices fell slightly by 0.2% to JPY391,380 (US$2,626) per sqm in May 2024 from a year earlier, after falling by 9.7% during 2023 and increasing strongly by 23.8% in 2022.

  • New condominium average prices were up by 1.8% y-o-y to JPY810,000 (US$5,435) per sqm in May 2024, a sharp deceleration from annual increases of 5.1% in 2023 and 15.4% in 2022.

  • Existing detached house prices fell slightly by 0.5% y-o-y to JPY23.23 million (US$155,873) in May 2024, in contrast to annual growth of 11.1% in 2023 and 9.4% in 2022.

Demand remains weak. In Tokyo, sales of both existing condo units and detached houses fell by 0.7% and 4.6%, respectively, in the first five months of 2024 as compared to the same period last year. In Osaka, sales of existing condominiums declined by 4.2% while detached houses sales increased slightly by 0.6% over the same period.

Residential construction activity is falling. In the first five months of 2024, the total number of authorized housing starts in Japan dropped 3.8% to 323,445 units as compared to a year earlier, following a decline of 4.5% in the full year of 2023 and increases of 0.5% in 2022 and 5% in 2021, according to the MLIT.

During 2023, the Japanese economy expanded by 1.8% from a year earlier, following annual growth of 1% in 2022 and 2.6% in 2021, buoyed by the recovery in inbound tourism and automobile output. 

However, the country’s economy contracted by an annualized 1.8% in Q1 2024, in contrast to a slight growth of 0.4% in the prior quarter. As such, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recently downgraded its 2024 economic growth forecast for Japan to 0.7%, from its earlier estimate of a 0.9% expansion.

 

Demand continues to fall

Demand remains weak, with residential property sales in both Tokyo and Osaka still falling this year. 

In the first five months of 2024:

  • In Tokyo, the number of existing condominiums sold fell slightly by 0.7% to 15,577 units, following an annual decline of 9.6% during the whole year of 2023, according to LIJ. Likewise, existing detached house sales dropped 4.6% y-o-y to 7,630 units, following a 11.5% decline in 2023.

  • In Osaka, existing condominiums sold fell by 4.2% y-o-y to 7,125 units in Jan-May 2024, after an annual drop of 4.1% in the full year of 2023. On the other hand, existing detached house sales in Osaka increased by a meager 0.6% to 4,550 units, following an annual fall of 2.5% in 2023.

This is despite robust foreign demand, buoyed by the weak Japanese yen and the country’s ultra-loose monetary policy. Moreover, there are no legal restrictions on foreigners buying and owning real estate property in Japan.

Residential land market showed mixed results

Land sales continue to fall in Tokyo, but have shown considerable improvements in Osaka. 

In Tokyo, land sales were down by 6.3% y-o-y to 4,106 units in the first five months of 2024, following a huge annual decline of 19.9% for the whole year of 2023, according to LIJ. In contrast, in Osaka, land sales increased by 4% to 2,760 units over the same period, after falling by 11.6% during the full year of 2023.

Surprisingly, residential land prices were more or less steady. During 2024, the nationwide residential urban land price index rose slightly by 0.7%, following annual increases of 0.7% in 2023 and 0.6% in 2022 and a slight decline of 0.2% in 2021, according to the Japan Real Estate Institute.

  • In six major cities (Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, Nagoya, Kyoto, and Kobe), residential land prices rose by 0.8% in 2024 from a year earlier, after increasing by 1% in 2023 and 0.7% in 2022 and declining by 0.6% in 2021.

  • For the rest of the country, residential land prices were up 0.7% in 2024, following increases of 0.7% in 2023 and 0.6% in 2022 and a slight fall of 0.3% in 2021.

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Residential construction activity weakening

In the first five months of 2024, the total number of authorized housing starts in Japan fell by 3.8% to 323,445 units as compared to a year earlier, following a decline of 4.5% in the full year of 2023 and increases of 0.5% in 2022 and 5% in 2021, according to the MLIT.

In major areas:

  • In Tokyo Metropolitan Area, which accounts for about 37% share of total residential construction, the number of housing starts declined by 2.9% y-o-y to 119,018 units in Jan-May 2024, following an annual fall of 2.9% in 2023 and increases of 2.8% in 2022 and 3.4% in 2021.

  • In Osaka Metropolitan Area, housing starts fell by 5.5% y-o-y in the first five months of 2024, to 46,558 units, following a slight decline of 0.6% in 2023 and annual increases of 0.5% in 2022 and 3.7% in 2021.

  • In Nagoya Metropolitan Area, housing starts increased by 8.1% y-o-y to 27,381 units in the first five months of 2024, following a decline of 7.2% in 2023, zero growth in 2022 and an increase of 7.2% in 2021.

  • In other areas, housing starts dropped 6.1% y-o-y to 130,488 units in Jan-May 2024, following annual declines of 6.4% in 2023 and 1.5% in 2022 and an increase of 6.4% three years ago.

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Available supply of new condo units down in Tokyo, but up in Osaka

The supply of new condominium units available for sale shows mixed trends. 

In Tokyo, the number of newly-built condo units put on the market fell by 4.7% y-o-y to 11,829 units in Jan-May 2024, following annual declines of 12.5% in 2023 and 11.3% in 2022. 

In Osaka, on the other hand, new condominiums on the market rose strongly by 24.1% y-o-y to 8,217 units over the same period, after falling by 18.5% in 2023 and 7.9% in 2022.

The total number of new condominium units put on the market has been generally falling in the past three decades. 

In Tokyo, newly-built condo units available in the market fell from an annual average of 80,900 units in 1994-2007 to 42,300 units in 2008-2018, and further to just an annual average of 30,000 in 2019-2023.

Likewise, in Osaka, new condo units put on the market declined from an average of 35,200 every year in 1994-2007 to 20,900 units in 2008-2018 and to below 16,900 units annually in 2019-2023.

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Japan’s shrinking population is producing a surplus of housing

One of Japan’s biggest problems is its declining population. It is estimated that Japan will lose a third of its population over the next 50 years, and the population will more than halve from 126.8 million in 2017 to just 50.56 million in 2115, according to the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research. In addition, about 40% of the population will be over 65 by 2060.

During 2023, the country’s total population fell to 124.62 million, down by 550,000 people from the previous year. It was its thirteenth consecutive year of decline. Japan’s population is expected to fall by another 581,000 people this year.

The shrinking population is already producing a surplus of housing units. There are many sightings of abandoned homes in Tokyo. There are already an estimated 8.49 million unoccupied homes in the country, representing almost 14% of all residences, and up more than 24% from a decade ago, according to MLIT.

The number of abandoned homes is expected to rise to more than 20 million by 2033.

“The combination of a shrinking population, falling land values, patchy registration records, and a tax system ill-suited to the current situation has left ownership unclear on an estimated 4.1 million hectares, an area larger than Taiwan,” said an article published by The South China Morning Post.

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However, declining household sizes may mitigate the situation. The average household size is expected to fall to 2.37 by 2025, from 2.67 in 2000, and 5.0 in 1950. More Japanese are living alone, and fewer are in multiple-generation households.

To reduce the total number of abandoned homes, some abandoned houses and apartments are being put back on the market by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. In 2017, the government also introduced a scheme aimed at making vacant homes available to rent to low-income and single seniors. However, the initiative has failed to attract homeowners to register on its database, despite subsidies being offered.

The government is also trying to stop the Japanese population from shrinking:

  • Childcare provision was boosted by the Child and Childcare Support Act of August 2012.

  • Early school education, childcare, and child-rearing support services in local communities have been promoted by the Comprehensive Support System for Children and Child-rearing, introduced in April 2015.

  • Local governments are being encouraged to offer speed dating and other forms of matchmaking.

  • The government is expanding free nursery care.

  • Fertility treatment counseling centers in major cities are promoted.

 

The Japanese government also amended its immigration policy, which took effect last April 1, 2019, to attract overseas workers. The reforms created two new visa categories for migrants – Technical Intern Class 1 and 2. The first category targets marginally skilled workers willing to work in Japan for a period not exceeding 5 years without the benefit of family reunification. The second is directed to semi-skilled workers in certain fields, who are permitted to bring their families as well as make them permanent residents at the end of their 10-year initial working period.

The immigration reform law aims to attract 345,000 foreign workers into the country over the next five years. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown and travel restrictions measures imposed worldwide in the past three years, the target seems unattainable right now.

Then in June 2023, the Cabinet approved a plan to expand the scope of industries covered by the blue-collar skilled worker visa from the current 2 to 11 industries, creating a path to permanent residency for foreign nationals working in Japan, many from Vietnam and China, and allowing them to bring their children and spouses into the country.

“It is important to promote smooth acceptance of human resources. To address the severe labor shortage, Japan will expand the (visa’s) scope,” said Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

Recently, the government unveiled its plan to more than double the number of foreigners eligible for skilled worker visas in the next five years starting in the fiscal year 2024 to over 800,000 to address labor shortages in industries such as manufacturing, construction, and agriculture. As of end of 2023, there were around 200,000 foreigners working under this visa framework.

Currently, Japan houses nearly two million foreign workers – which is a record-high – out of a total population of 124.49 million, and foreign nationals make up about 25% of its working population.

Moderate rental yields

Japan’s gross rental yields – the return earned on the purchase price of a rental property, before taxation, vacancy costs, and other costs – averaged 4.33% in Q2 2024, at par with 4.36% in the previous quarter and 4.30% in the same period last year, according to a research conducted by the Global Property Guide in June 2024.

In Tokyo’s central districts, gross rental yields range from 3.12% to 5.92%, with an average of 4.17% in Q2 2024. Surprisingly, yields seem to be higher for bigger apartments. Not great, though not untypical for a city like Tokyo.

Besides Tokyo, the rental yields remain more or less similar in other cities and areas.

  • Osaka’s rental yield, on average, is 4.35% in Q2 2024, slightly down from 4.5% in the previous quarter.

  • Nagoya’s rental yields average about 4.12% in Q2 2024, slightly down from 4.20% in the previous quarter.

  • In Yokohama, the average rental yield was 4.23% in Q2 2024, up from 3.97% in Q1 2024.

  • In Fukuoka, the average gross rental yield is 4.72% in Q2 2024, higher than the previous quarter’s 4.34%.

  • Sapporo’s average rental yield was 4.78% in Q2 2024, lower from the previous quarter’s 5.56%.

  • In Kobe, rental yields averaged about 4.27% during the latest quarter, down from 4.78% in Q1 2024.

  • In Kawasaki, the average rental yield for apartments was 4.02% in Q2 2024, up from the previous quarter’s 3.55%.

Modest rent increases, high occupancy

Residential rents remain firm. In Tokyo’s 23 wards (23W), the average mid-market asking rent was JPY4,229 (US$28.38) per sq. m in Q2 2024, down slightly by 0.2% from the previous quarter but up by 4.8% from a year earlier, according to Savills’ Tokyo Residential Leasing Q2 2024 report.

“Tokyo welcomed a large net influx of over 65,000 new residents between March and May 2024, exceeding that of the same period in previous year, and cementing the arrival of Tokyo to a normalised state of affairs. With more companies pushing for greater rates of office participation, many workers appear to be choosing to live more centrally, with less of an emphasis on larger living spaces in order to be closer to their workplaces,” said the Savills report.

“Among these new entrants, foreign nationals comprise an ever-growing proportion, who tend to rent and often prefer more centrally located residences, and the sustained growth of this demographic should become a more prominent driver of demand in the 23W rental market moving forward,” added the Savills report.

On the other hand, mid-market rents in the central five wards (C5W) in Tokyo rose by 5.5% y-o-y in Q2 2024 to an average of JPY5,063 (US$33.97) per sqm. Quarterly, rents were up slightly by 0.7% in Q2 2024.

By key locations:

  • In the South, rents reached an average of JPY4,308 (US$28.91) per sqm in Q2 2024, down by 1.5% from the previous quarter but up by 4.1% from a year ago.

  • In the Inner North, rents were down slightly by 0.9% q-o-q to JPY 4,307 (US$28.90) per sqm in Q2 2024 but actually up by a modest 3.2% on an annual basis.

  • In the Inner East, the average rent increased by 1.2% q-o-q and by 4.7% y-o-y to JPY4,102 (US$27.52) per sqm in Q2 2024.

  • In the West, rents increased by 1.2% q-o-q and by 3.6% y-o-y to an average of JPY3,872 (US$25.98) per sqm.

  • In the Outer North, the average rent rose by 1.5% q-o-q and by 5.2% y-o-y to JPY3,696 (US$24.80) per sqm in Q2 2024.

  • In the Outer East, average rent stood at JPY 3,488 (US$23.40) per sqm in Q2 2024, up by 2.4% from the previous quarter and higher by 5.8% from a year earlier.

The average occupancy rate in Tokyo’s 23W loosened by 1.0 percentage points q-o-q and fell marginally by 0.4 percentage points y-o-y to 96.2% in Q2 2024, according to Savills. In C5W, occupancy stood at 96.1% in Q2 2024, down by 0.6 percentage points from the previous quarter and by 0.2 percentage points from a year ago.

Savills expects Japan’s rental market, especially Tokyo 23W, to remain strong in the medium term. “Overall, prospects are bright for the Tokyo 23W rental residential market. Although the market has encountered a temporary pause in Q2/2024 after previous quarters of strong growth, this should be considered a normal annual cycle. Furthermore, Tokyo’s stable economic and demographic fundamentals should help the market to perform well over the course of the year.”

“While Japanese nationals will continue to congregate in the capital, it appears that foreign migrants will likely comprise an increasing proportion of this growth, with a particular concentration in central and east Tokyo. Furthermore, many of these residents will likely be renters, which should shore up demand in the rental residential market and raise the prospects for further rental growth,” added Savills.

Home loan rates rising gradually, amidst key interest rate hikes

The BOJ’s key rate has been below 1% since the mid-1990s. In its July 2024 meeting, the central bank raised its policy rate to around 0.25%, from the previous range of 0% to 0.10%. It was the only second time in 17 years that the central bank hiked its policy rate. With the latest move, the policy rate is now at its highest level since October 2008, when it was set at 0.3%.

The BOJ will also reduce its monthly outright purchases of Japanese government bonds.

Despite the rate hike, the BOJ noted that “real interest rates are expected to remain significantly negative, and accommodative financial conditions will continue to firmly support economic activity.”

“If the outlook presented in the July Outlook Report will be realized, the Bank will accordingly continue to raise the policy interest rate and adjust the degree of monetary accommodation,” added the central bank.

Major banks in Japan have been gradually increasing their interest rates on housing loans in recent months. Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. raised the interest rate for its 10-year fixed-rate home loans for most preferred customers by 0.05 percentage points, to 1.14%.

Likewise, the home loan rate for Mizuho Bank was up by 0.1 percentage points to 1.45%. Mitsubishi UFJ Bank also raised its rate by 0.06 percentage points to 0.94%. Resona Bank’s 10-year fixed-rate home loan rate was also raised by 0.14 percentage points to 1.66%.

Interest rates for housing loans are expected to increase further, after the BOJ’s recent policy rate hike.

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Housing loans continue to increase

As of Q1 2024, the total amount of housing loans outstanding to households was JPY 147.1 trillion (US$987.1 billion), up by 3.6% from the same period last year, according to BOJ figures. It is slightly higher as compared to the annual average growth of 2.7% recorded from 2013 to 2023.

As a percentage of GDP, the size of the housing market stood at about 24.6% in 2023, almost unchanged in the past four years. But still an expansion as compared to its average market size of 21.7% of GDP in 2009-2019.

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Economic growth slowing, but inflation still elevated

During 2023, the Japanese economy expanded by 1.8% from a year earlier, following annual growth of 1% in 2022 and 2.6% in 2021, buoyed by the recovery in inbound tourism and automobile output. 

However, the country’s economy contracted by an annualized 1.8% in Q1 2024, in contrast to a slight growth of 0.4% in the prior quarter. As such, the IMF has recently downgraded its 2024 economic growth forecast for Japan to 0.7%, from its earlier estimate of a 0.9% expansion.

“In Japan, the negative growth surprise stemmed from temporary supply

disruptions linked to the shutdown of a major automobile plant in the first quarter,” said the IMF in its July 2024 World Economic Outlook Update.

The IMF also added that “the strong shunto wage settlement is expected to support a turnaround in private consumption starting in the second half. But the expectation for 2024 growth is revised downward by 0.2 percentage point, with the downward adjustment largely reflecting temporary supply disruptions and weak private investment in the first quarter.”

But even before the pandemic, the Japanese economy had been adversely affected by the US-China trade tension and the introduction of a consumption tax hike from 8% to 10% in 2019, not to mention the added risks posed by semiconductor chip shortages and rising prices of energy and resources. Then the Covid-19 pandemic aggravated the situation, causing the economy to shrink by 4.1% in 2020, far worse than 2019’s 0.4% contraction and the biggest decline since 2009.

Some say that Japan has never fully recovered from the great bubble of the late 1980s. However Japan’s economic performance is sometimes over-criticized, the truth being that over the past decade, Japanese growth has been at par with, or better than, Europe’s older economies, especially in GDP per capita terms.

The world’s fourth-largest economy expanded by an average of 1.1% annually from 2012 to 2019, an improvement from an annual average growth of just 0.6% from 2001 to 2011.

 

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Recently, the government approved a JPY 112.07 trillion (US$752 billion) budget for FY 2024 that started in April – down by 2% from the previous fiscal year but remains the second highest ever recorded. It is the first drop in 12 years as pandemic-related emergency funding was trimmed, but outlays for defense, social security, and debt servicing all surged to a record high.

The country’s primary fiscal deficit is projected to remain elevated, estimated to be equivalent to about 6.4% of GDP in 2024, following shortfalls of 5.6% in 2023, 3.9% in 2022, 5.5% in 2021, and 8.4% in 2020, based on IMF estimates.

Japan’s debt burden is considered the world’s biggest. The country’s gross public debt soared to more than 250% of GDP since 2020 and remained at that level since. This year, gross public debt is projected to stand at about 255% of GDP.

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The labor market remains tight. In June 2024, the overall jobless rate was 2.5%, slightly down from 2.6% in the previous month but at par with the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. Unemployment averaged 3.3% from 2010 to 2023.

Nationwide inflation stood at 2.8% in June 2024, unchanged from the previous month but down from 3.3% a year earlier. Though, it remains above the BOJ’s target of 2%. 

Before surging to 2.5% in 2022 and further to 3.3% in 2023, persistently low inflation had been a long-standing problem in Japan, with inflation standing at an average of just 0.1% from 2000 to 2021.

Weak yen benefits exporters but hits consumers hard

The Japanese yen continues to depreciate against major currencies. The domestic currency lost more than 34% of its value against the US dollar in just three and a half years, reaching an average exchange rate of US$1 = JPY158.04 in July 2024. Over the same period, the yen also depreciated against the Canadian dollar, the pound, and the euro by 22.7%, 25.4%, and 25%, respectively.

But even before the pandemic, the yen had been generally declining. One aspect of former PM Shinzo Abe’s famous Abenomics was an attempt to boost the economy by reducing the domestic currency’s exchange rate. The Japanese yen was made to depreciate by almost 37% from US$1 = JPY 78 in 2012 to US$ = JPY 123 in 2015. After regaining 4.7% of its value in 2016-17, the yen stabilized in the next three years. Then in 2020-21, the yen depreciated by 4% against the US dollar.

Unsurprisingly, Japan’s exports rose by a modest 2.8% y-o-y to JPY 100.89 trillion (US$677 billion) in 2023, surpassing the 100 trillion mark for the first time and the highest level recorded since comparable data became available in 1979. In contrast, imports fell by 7% y-o-y to JPY 110.18 trillion (US$739 billion). This resulted in a trade deficit of about JPY9.29 trillion (US$62.3 billion) – more than halved the previous year’s shortfall.

While a weak yen normally benefits exporters, it may be hurting Japanese households now more than in the past, as the country’s increasing reliance on more expensive raw material imports pushes up the cost of living in the country, said former BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda.

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Brief history: the housing market, Abenomics, and politics

Japan’s housing market grew from 2004 to the first half of 2008, on the back of improved economic conditions. In Tokyo, existing condo prices increased 30.2% (27.3% inflation-adjusted) while new condo prices rose by a more modest 17.5% (14.8% inflation-adjusted).

However, the housing market was adversely impacted by the global financial crisis. From H2 2008 to 2012, prices of new and existing condominiums dropped 12.1% and 3.7%, respectively, amidst weak demand and prolonged economic recession.

Then former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe came to power in December 2012 and implemented his economic policy dubbed “Abenomics”. While the impact of Abenomics on the wider economy is debatable, the policy has undoubtedly helped prop up Japan’s property market in the past years.

Abenomics stimulates the economy by increasing public infrastructure spending, devaluing the yen, and implementing aggressive quantitative easing by the Bank of Japan (BOJ). Since the introduction of Abenomics, real estate prices have accelerated strongly. Transactions started to pick up in 2012 and rose rapidly in 2013, as monetary policy kicked in.

From 2012 to 2019, existing condo prices in Tokyo rose by 43.2% (34.1% inflation-adjusted) while new condo prices increased by 33% (24.5% inflation-adjusted).

In October 2017, Abe was re-elected again for a third consecutive time as head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) which made him Japan’s longest-serving Prime Minister.

In September 2017, the government unveiled a new JPY2 trillion (US$13.42 billion) stimulus package - the fourth in a row.

Then in December 2019, Abe approved another stimulus package worth US$120 billion to buoy the ailing economy and cushion the impact of the sales tax rise.

Before resigning in September 2020 due to health reasons, Abe introduced two rounds of stimulus packages, which added about US$2.2 trillion in extra spending (equivalent to about 40% of GDP) to help households and businesses adversely affected by the pandemic.

Abe was succeeded by his deputy, Yoshihide Suga, whose focus remains on stimulating the ailing economy and asserting Japan as a regional power, after the post-war decades of avoiding strategic commitments.

In December 2020, Suga unveiled another economic stimulus package worth JPY 73.6 trillion (US$493.9 billion), amidst the spike in infections in the country. The aid, the first since Suga took office, included incentives for digitalization and carbon reduction, extensions of subsidy programs aimed at promoting domestic travel, buoying consumption, as well as helping businesses.

However, after just a year in office, Suga resigned over his handling of the pandemic, allowing former foreign minister Fumio Kishida to take over. Officially assumed office in October 2021, Kishida is seen as more liberal than his predecessors. However, his government has been hit by a political scandal related to the link of his conservative Liberal Democratic Party to the Unification Church that came to light after the assassination of Abe in 2022.

The political tension was aggravated recently by the escalating scandal involving allegations of unreported kickbacks from the ruling party’s fundraising proceeds. In December 2023, several ministers resigned over the said corruption scandal and Kishida announced that he will be revamping his government to restore the public’s trust. Based on public opinion surveys conducted in May 2024, approval ratings for Kishida and his government remain low, ranging from 18.7% to 28%.

In June 2024, the Kishida government’s much touted tax cut of JPY40,000 (US$268) per person came to effect. The said tax cut is a temporary measure that will reduce income taxes by JPY30,000 (US$201) and residential taxes by JPY10,000 (US$67) over one year. It applies to taxpayers with an annual income of JPY20 million (US$13,420) or less and their spouses and dependents. Its effect on private consumption and the overall economy is yet to be seen.

 

Sources:

 

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