Rental property management has long suffered from being "hard to understand," "expensive," and "disappointing in service quality." INA formally launched its rental management business in July 2021 precisely to resolve these long-standing inefficiencies in the industry and to deliver value to owners and tenants alike. This article explains why we are taking on the rental management business, the philosophy behind it, and the details of an innovative business model.
What information asymmetry do property owners face?
The single biggest problem in rental property management is "information asymmetry." Many owners struggle with opaque management fees and slow responses from their management company.
Since launching a brokerage service for investment real estate aimed at high-net-worth clients in 2020, we have had the opportunity, largely through introductions from banks, to meet with several hundred property owners. What surfaced repeatedly in those conversations was a familiar list of complaints.
- Management fees are too high (3–5% of monthly rent)
- A lag before rent collected by the management company is actually transferred to the owner
- Vacancies never seem to improve
- Restoration work and building-maintenance costs run high
- Front-desk staff respond poorly
Rental management should, in principle, be a service that helps owners make the most of a precious asset. In reality, however, many owners are burdened by opaque practices and high costs. Solving this problem was the first motivation behind our move into the rental management business.
How does technology deliver transparency?
INA promotes the fusion of "real estate and IT" and maintains an in-house technology division, which allows us to open up management operations that are traditionally something of a black box.
Most conventional property management companies rely on systems built and operated by outside vendors. We instead develop our own cloud systems while also integrating external systems where useful, which lets us tailor the service flexibly to our own specifications — closer to how a technology company builds its own stack than to how a traditional Japanese management firm outsources it wholesale.
This strength lets us publish call-center response records and repair progress to owners in real time, and to make clear the basis on which any commission is calculated when we arrange outside contractors. By opening up, as far as possible, what has traditionally stayed hidden, we work to build an environment where owners can feel at ease.
How does the "human-capital investment company" philosophy translate into rental management?
INA defines itself not as a "real estate company" but as a "human-capital investment company." Property management is fundamentally a service delivered by people, and without excellent people, high-quality service is impossible.
We deliberately use the term "jinzai" written with the character for "asset" rather than the more common character for "resource." Both are read the same way in Japanese, but the choice signals that we regard people not as mere labor but as an irreplaceable asset of the company — the distinction Western management writing would frame as Human Capital versus Human Resources.
This philosophy connects directly to the rental management business. It is precisely because of this belief that developing our people and creating opportunities for them to thrive sits at the center of how we run the company.
What new value does drawing on regional talent create?
By putting the skills and knowledge of talented people based outside the major metropolitan centers to work in rental management, we address the talent shortage and support regional revitalization at the same time.
In Japan today, a declining birthrate, an aging population, and the concentration of opportunity in Tokyo mean that many highly capable people living in the regions are unable to fully use their abilities because of family circumstances, health, childcare, or similar constraints — a pattern with clear parallels to labor-market debates elsewhere about talent stranded outside major metro areas. The build-out of internet infrastructure and cloud technology has made remote work a realistic option, and on that foundation we built a "rental management business model powered by regional talent."
Under this model, we create an environment where people can thrive regardless of where they live or their personal circumstances, while providing owners with high-quality, sustainable management services. Because remote work is the default rather than the exception, operations are also more resilient to disruption from disasters or pandemics.
What concrete value do we deliver to owners?
By using remote work to cut fixed costs and passing that saving directly through to our management fee, we offer rates starting at roughly ¥1,100 per unit per month — among the lowest in the industry.
By moving payment management and document creation to the cloud, and by applying AI and big data, we maintain service quality on par with the largest management firms. A precise rent-appraisal system helps us set the right market rent, aiming for higher occupancy and shorter vacancy periods, which in turn supports owners in maximizing their returns.
How is INA's rental management different from the conventional model?
To address information asymmetry at its root, we have built a management system built around thorough transparency and efficiency.
The distinguishing features of our rental management service include the following.
- All contracts, including lease agreements and management-entrustment agreements, are executed electronically
- Rent is transferred directly from the tenant or the tenant's guarantor company into the owner's own bank account
- A dedicated 24-hour call center is available for tenants
- We do not designate a specific restoration contractor or building-maintenance company
- Cleaning photos, inspection reports, and similar records are sent through our own system directly to the email address the owner specifies
Two of these practices are worth pausing on for readers unfamiliar with the Japanese rental market. First, the direct-transfer arrangement above removes the management company from the payment chain — in many overseas markets, a landlord may collect rent directly from a tenant by default, but in Japan the management company has conventionally been the intermediary that receives, holds, and later remits rent, which is exactly the lag owners complain about. Second, Japanese leases traditionally require a tenant to restore the unit to close to its original condition at move-out (genjo kaifuku), a stricter standard than the "normal wear and tear" baseline common in the United States or the United Kingdom, and management companies have often steered that restoration work to an affiliated contractor at a markup; not designating a contractor removes that conflict of interest. Together, these initiatives eliminate the "information asymmetry" that has long existed in rental management and give owners a transparent, efficient service.
What is the future vision for INA's rental management business?
Guided by the mission of "building a society where everyone is fairly evaluated and rewarded," we are working to close regional and opportunity gaps.
Our remote-work model allows staff based in the regions to take on management work for properties in major cities, and we hope the resulting new jobs will help revitalize those regions.
We will keep strengthening our use of IT and data analysis to deliver further value to owners, working toward a society in which talented people anywhere in Japan can make full use of their abilities.
Since entering the rental management business, we have received strong reviews from many owners. Even so, our work has only just begun. Guided by the belief that "people create the future," we intend to keep offering innovative services and to help lead the transformation of the rental management industry.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q. How can INA offer rates starting at ¥1,100 per month?
By using remote work performed by regional talent, we avoid the need for large offices in major cities, which holds down fixed costs and personnel expenses. We pass that cost saving directly through to our management fee, which is how we achieve rates among the lowest in the industry.
Q. Can service quality be maintained under remote management?
We maintain quality on par with large management firms through our proprietary cloud system, the use of AI and big data, and a 24-hour call center. We also publish response records and repair progress in real time, which secures transparency as well.
Q. What is the single biggest difference between INA's management model and a conventional management company?
The biggest difference is that we eliminate information asymmetry. Direct rent transfers, electronic contracts, the absence of a designated restoration contractor, and real-time reporting together give owners a fully transparent view of the entire management process.
Q. What is the rental management model built on regional talent?
It is a model in which highly capable people who live outside major cities manage properties located in urban areas through remote work. It simultaneously supports regional revitalization and eases the talent shortage in property management, while standardizing on remote work also strengthens business-continuity planning in the event of a disaster.
