This guide addresses a system that is distinctly Japanese. Unlike the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, or Singapore, Japan has no MLS-style public database of actual sold prices, no standardized attorney-run closing process, and no title-insurance industry standing behind the transfer. Instead, a single licensed real-estate intermediary (a takken gyōsha, 宅建業者) prepares a statutory pre-contract disclosure document, walks the buyer through it in person, and the deal closes through cash movements and legal filings that follow a very different rhythm from what a Western or Singaporean buyer expects. If you are purchasing a resale condominium apartment (chūko mansion, 中古マンション) in Japan for the first time, treat this article as the operating manual for that gap.
The practical points that prevent costly mistakes in a used-condominium purchase contract in Japan come down to three things. First, request the Statutory Disclosure Statement (jūyō jikō setsumeisho, 重要事項説明書) before the contract date and cross-check its figures against the ten legally mandated items for condominium units under Article 16-2 of the Enforcement Regulations of the Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act (Takuchi Tatemono Torihiki Gyō Hō Shikō Kisoku, 宅地建物取引業法施行規則). Second, calculate in advance the cash that changes hands on the contract date and the handover date — the earnest money deposit, the brokerage commission, and the stamp duty. Third, base your decision on the Condominium Ownership Act as revised, which took effect in April 2026, and on the mortgage tax credit rules that changed for occupants moving in during 2026 (Reiwa 8).
This article is written so that a first-time buyer of a resale condominium can decide, by the contract date, exactly what to verify, how much cash to prepare, and where the deal-breakers are. It uses the latest Greater Tokyo market data (a median transaction price of ¥52.08 million / approx. USD 347,000, at 63.02 sqm / 678 sq ft, and a building age of 27.48 years) as a running worked example, and it maps every checklist item down to the actual clause name in the relevant statute — with primary-source citations throughout. Currency conversions in this article use an approximate rate of ¥150 = USD 1 as of August 2026; treat them as directional, not exact, since exchange rates move daily.
Key takeaways
- The statutory cap on the brokerage commission (chūkai tesūryō, 仲介手数料) can be calculated as "sale price × 3.3% + ¥66,000" (tax included). For the Greater Tokyo average resale condominium of ¥52.08 million (≈USD 347,200), that works out to about ¥1.785 million (≈USD 11,900) — set by Ministry of Construction Public Notice No. 1552, last amended June 21, 2024.
- The cash that leaves your hand between signing and handover — brokerage commission, stamp duty, registration and license tax, and the prorated property-tax settlement — runs to roughly 4% of the purchase price. The earnest money deposit (tetsukekin, 手付金) is separate: it is applied against the purchase price, not an additional cost.
- Disclosure items unique to condominiums are set out in the ten items of Article 16-2 of the Enforcement Regulations. "The amount already accumulated in the repair reserve fund" and "the amount of the ordinary management fee" are both items the statute requires to be stated as figures, not just described.
- Whether a repair reserve fund (shūzen sekitatekin, 修繕積立金) is adequate can be tested against the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT, 国土交通省) per-sqm benchmark. For a unit of 63.02 sqm in a building under 20 stories with 5,000–10,000 sqm of total floor area, roughly two-thirds of real buildings fall in the ¥10,700–¥20,200/month (≈USD 71–135/month) range.
- For move-ins from 2026 (Reiwa 8) onward, the mortgage tax credit (jūtaku rōn genzei, 住宅ローン減税) for existing homes was extended to a 13-year deduction period — but only for homes that meet current energy-efficiency standards. Other resale homes remain on the older ¥20 million (≈USD 133,333) loan cap × 10-year schedule.
How Much Cash Actually Moves in a Used-Condominium Purchase Contract
Start with the conclusion. For the Greater Tokyo average resale condominium (¥52.08 million / ≈USD 347,200), you prepare on the contract date: an earnest money deposit of ¥2.604 million (≈USD 17,360), half of the brokerage commission at ¥892,000 (≈USD 5,947), and stamp duty of ¥30,000 (≈USD 200) — a total of approximately ¥3.526 million (≈USD 23,507). On the handover date, you then pay the remaining half of the brokerage commission, registration costs, and a prorated property-tax settlement.
For a US or UK buyer, this two-stage cash schedule is itself the first surprise. A US closing typically bundles most closing costs into a single settlement date, and a UK completion is similarly a one-time event once exchange of contracts has occurred. Japan splits the process into a contract date (keiyaku-bi, 契約日) and a separate handover date (hikiwatashi-bi, 引渡し日), often several weeks apart, each requiring its own wire of cash.
What Are Used Condominiums in Greater Tokyo Actually Selling For?
Before working through the cash math, it helps to establish the baseline. The Real Estate Information Network for East Japan (REINS, 東日本不動産流通機構) publishes a monthly "Market Watch" report; the June 2026 edition is the most current, and — importantly for international readers — it reports on actual closed transactions, not asking prices from listings. This is one of the closest things Japan has to a sold-price index, though it is aggregate market data rather than a per-property lookup tool of the kind an MLS provides in the US.
| Metric | June 2026 | Year-over-Year |
|---|---|---|
| Closed price (Greater Tokyo) | ¥52.08 million (≈USD 347,200) | −0.02% |
| Closed price per sqm | ¥826,400/sqm (≈USD 5,509/sqm, ≈USD 512/sq ft) | −0.8% |
| Closed exclusive floor area | 63.02 sqm (≈678 sq ft) | +0.8% |
| Closed building age | 27.48 years | 26.96 years (prior year) |
Closed prices by area were as follows.
| Area | Closed price | Closed exclusive floor area |
|---|---|---|
| Tokyo 23 Wards | ¥75.59 million (≈USD 503,933) | 56.60 sqm (≈609 sq ft) |
| Tama Area, Tokyo | ¥38.78 million (≈USD 258,533) | 66.04 sqm (≈711 sq ft) |
| Yokohama / Kawasaki | ¥43.68 million (≈USD 291,200) | 64.65 sqm (≈696 sq ft) |
| Saitama Prefecture | ¥31.10 million (≈USD 207,333) | 67.64 sqm (≈728 sq ft) |
| Chiba Prefecture | ¥31.75 million (≈USD 211,667) | 72.07 sqm (≈776 sq ft) |
Source: Real Estate Information Network for East Japan, "Monthly Market Watch Summary Report, June 2026" (published July 10, 2026). The same month recorded 4,241 closed transactions (−1.3% year-over-year) against an inventory of 45,995 listings (+3.5% year-over-year) — the fourth consecutive month of rising inventory. When listed inventory keeps building relative to sales, buyers gain more room to negotiate terms; this is a market condition worth noting for investors used to reading absorption rates in their home markets.
The Full List of Taxes and Fees Due at Contract and Handover
Most of the costs in a Japanese resale purchase are anchored to a specific statute and, in several cases, a specific expiration date for a temporary tax reduction. Knowing the caps and deadlines as hard numbers means you will immediately notice an unfamiliar line item on a cost estimate.
| Item | Legal basis | Rate / cap | Applicable through |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brokerage commission | Ministry of Construction Public Notice No. 1552 (amended June 21, 2024) | Up to ¥2M (≈USD 13,333): 5.5%; ¥2M–¥4M (≈USD 13,333–26,667): 4.4%; over ¥4M (≈USD 26,667): 3.3% (tax included). Quick formula: "price × 3.3% + ¥66,000 (≈USD 440)" | — |
| Brokerage commission (low-value vacant-home exception) | Same Notice, Article 7 | For properties ≤¥8M (≈USD 53,333): capped at ¥300,000 (≈USD 2,000) × 1.1 = ¥330,000 (≈USD 2,200) | — |
| Stamp duty (sale contract) | National Tax Agency (NTA, 国税庁) No. 7108 | Over ¥10M up to ¥50M (≈USD 66,667–333,333): ¥10,000 (≈USD 67); over ¥50M up to ¥100M (≈USD 333,333–666,667): ¥30,000 (≈USD 200) | Reduced rate applies to contracts executed through March 31, 2027 (Reiwa 9) |
| Registration and license tax (land ownership transfer) | Act on Special Measures Concerning Taxation, Article 72 | Standard rate 2.0% → reduced to 1.5% | Through March 31, 2029 (Reiwa 11) — extended by three years in the Reiwa 8 tax reform |
| Registration and license tax (residential building ownership transfer) | Same Act, Article 73 | Standard rate 2.0% → reduced to 0.3% | Through March 31, 2027 (Reiwa 9) |
| Registration and license tax (mortgage registration) | Same Act, Article 75 | Standard rate 0.4% → reduced to 0.1% | Through March 31, 2027 (Reiwa 9) |
| Real property acquisition tax | Local Tax Act | Standard rate 4.0% → 3.0% for residential buildings and land | Through March 31, 2027 (Reiwa 9) |
| Real property acquisition tax (assessment base for residential land) | Local Tax Act (special treatment for residential and commercial land) | The assessed value used as the tax base for acquiring residential or commercial land is compressed to one-half of the appraised value | — |
| Fixed asset tax (property tax) | Local Tax Act | Standard rate 1.4%. Assessment date is January 1 every year | — |
| City planning tax | Local Tax Act | Ceiling rate 0.3%. In principle applies to land and buildings within designated urbanization-promotion zones | — |
To use the reduced 0.3% and 0.1% registration and license tax rates for a residential building, you must attach a municipal certificate to the registration application (certifying, among other things, that the floor area is at least 50 sqm) and complete registration within one year of acquisition (NTA, "Notice Regarding Reduced Registration and License Tax Rates," April 2026).
Unlike a US closing, where most of these charges are itemized on a single settlement statement (a Closing Disclosure) prepared by a title company or attorney, in Japan there is no equivalent unified statement produced by a neutral third party. The brokerage firm typically calculates these figures for you, but you are cross-checking a set of independent tax rules yourself — which is exactly why memorizing the caps above pays off.
[Worked Example 1] Cash Breakdown for a ¥52.08 Million (≈USD 347,200) Resale Condominium
This example assumes a closed price of ¥52.08 million, an earnest deposit at 5% of the price, a mortgage of ¥40 million (≈USD 266,667), a fixed-asset tax assessed value of ¥6 million (≈USD 40,000) for the building, and ¥9 million (≈USD 60,000) for the land-use right (the assessed values vary widely by property — replace them with the actual figures from the Fixed Asset Tax Assessment Certificate for the property you are considering).
| Timing | Item | Amount | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| At contract | Earnest deposit (5% of price) | ¥2.604M (≈USD 17,360) | ¥52.08M × 5%. Applied against the purchase price |
| At contract | Brokerage commission (half) | ¥892,000 (≈USD 5,947) | Half of the ≈¥1.7846M (¥1,784,640) cap |
| At contract | Stamp duty | ¥30,000 (≈USD 200) | Over ¥50M up to ¥100M bracket (after reduction) |
| Subtotal at contract | — | ≈¥3.526M (≈USD 23,507) | — |
| At handover | Brokerage commission (balance) | ¥893,000 (≈USD 5,953) | Remainder of the cap after deducting the contract-date half |
| At handover | Registration tax (building ownership transfer) | ¥18,000 (≈USD 120) | ¥6M assessed value × 0.3% |
| At handover | Registration tax (land ownership transfer) | ¥135,000 (≈USD 900) | ¥9M assessed value × 1.5% |
| At handover | Registration tax (mortgage registration) | ¥40,000 (≈USD 267) | ¥40M loan × 0.1% |
| At handover | Prorated property tax and city planning tax settlement | ≈¥60,000 (≈USD 400) | Assuming ¥120,000 (≈USD 800) annual tax, calculated from January 1 with a July 1 handover: buyer bears 184 days (¥120,000 × 184 ÷ 365) |
| Subtotal at handover | — | ≈¥1.146M (≈USD 7,640) | Remaining principal of ¥49.476M (≈USD 329,840) is separate |
The critical point to hold onto: the earnest deposit is part of the purchase price, not a fee that disappears. What actually leaves your hand and never comes back is the brokerage commission (¥1.785M / ≈USD 11,900), stamp duty (¥30,000 / ≈USD 200), registration tax (¥193,000 / ≈USD 1,287), and the property-tax settlement (¥60,000 / ≈USD 400) — a total of roughly ¥2.068M (≈USD 13,787), or about 4.0% of the purchase price.
That 4.0% does not include the mortgage arrangement and guarantee fees, fire insurance premium, or judicial scrivener (shihō shoshi, 司法書士 — a licensed specialist who handles the actual registration filing) fee. These vary widely by lender and provider, and no public agency publishes a benchmark for them. We recommend recalculating with the actual figures your lender provides once you have a preliminary loan approval and financing plan.
[Worked Example 2] Comparing Against a ¥75.59 Million (≈USD 503,933) Purchase in the Tokyo 23 Wards
Running the same calculation on the Tokyo 23 Wards average of ¥75.59 million shows how much closing costs move by area.
| Item | Greater Tokyo average ¥52.08M (≈USD 347,200) | Tokyo 23 Wards ¥75.59M (≈USD 503,933) | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brokerage commission (cap) | ≈¥1.785M (≈USD 11,900) | ≈¥2.560M (≈USD 17,067) | +≈¥775,000 (≈USD 5,167) |
| Stamp duty | ¥30,000 (≈USD 200) | ¥30,000 (≈USD 200) | No change |
| Earnest deposit (5% of price) | ¥2.604M (≈USD 17,360) | ¥3.780M (≈USD 25,200) | +¥1.176M (≈USD 7,840) |
| Cash needed at contract (incl. half commission) | ≈¥3.526M (≈USD 23,507) | ≈¥5.090M (≈USD 33,933) | +¥1.564M (≈USD 10,427) |
Stamp duty stays flat because both prices fall in the same ¥50M–¥100M bracket. What moves is the brokerage commission and the earnest deposit. A 45% increase in price pushes the cash you need on the contract date up by roughly 1.44x. Budgeting from the sticker price of the property alone, without this adjustment, is the single most common way buyers arrive on contract day short of cash.
What You Cross-Check on Contract Day: The 10 Statutory Disclosure Items
The Statutory Disclosure Statement (jūyō jikō setsumeisho, 重要事項説明書) is a legally mandated procedure that a licensed real-estate transaction agent (takken shi, 宅地建物取引士) must perform before a sale contract is finalized (Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act, Article 35). It is long, and reading it for the first time in the room on contract day is not realistic. The lowest-risk approach is to ask the brokerage to send a draft PDF of the Statutory Disclosure Statement several days before the contract date, and cross-check it against the table below before you walk in. For the full picture, see our companion guide, 13 Points to Verify in a Condominium Purchase's Statutory Disclosure.
This is worth pausing on for readers used to a US or UK transaction: there is no equivalent to a US home inspection contingency clause bundled automatically into the process, and no UK-style conveyancing solicitor whose job is specifically to interrogate title on your behalf. The disclosure document and the agent delivering it are the primary consumer-protection mechanism, which is why cross-checking it carefully carries more weight in Japan than a comparable document might in your home market.
The 10 Statutory Items for Condominium (Sectioned Ownership) Buildings
Disclosure items specific to condominiums (kubun shoyū tatemono, 区分所有建物, buildings under sectioned/divided ownership) are listed as ten items in Article 16-2 of the Enforcement Regulations. Mapping the statutory item name directly to the real-world figure you should be looking for reduces the chance of missing something.
| Statutory item (Enforcement Regulations Art. 16-2) | What to look at | What happens if you miss it |
|---|---|---|
| (1) Type and content of rights to the land | Freehold ownership vs. leasehold, and the land-use-right ratio | A leasehold unit carries ongoing ground rent and renewal fees, and lenders often value it differently from a freehold unit |
| (2) Bylaw provisions on the common areas | Classification of window sashes, entry doors, and balconies | You assume you can replace a window, then discover the management association board must approve it |
| (3) Bylaw restrictions on use of the exclusive unit | Residential-only status, whether short-term rental (minpaku, 民泊) is permitted, and rules on pets, musical instruments, and home-based businesses | You were told "pets allowed," but the bylaws cap the number and weight of animals |
| (4) Bylaw provisions granting exclusive-use rights over part of the land or building to a specific owner | Monthly fee for a private garden, roof balcony, or parking space | A monthly charge for a private garden or roof balcony gets added on top of what you budgeted |
| (5) Bylaw provisions reducing or waiving costs for specific owners | Fee-reduction clauses for the original developer or commercial units | You buy without realizing residential units are structurally subsidizing another owner's reduced fees |
| (6) Bylaw provisions on the repair reserve fund and the amount already accumulated | Total reserve balance, per-unit balance, and any planned fee increase or special levy | A special levy of several hundred thousand yen lands on you right before a major repair project |
| (7) Amount of the ordinary management fee | Monthly management fee | Adding the management fee and reserve fund to your loan payment turns out to be a heavier monthly load than expected |
| (8) Name (trade name) and address of the management company | Management company name and structure (full outsourcing, partial outsourcing, or self-management) | A self-managed building may lack organized repair records or general-meeting minutes |
| (9) Whether the manager is a licensed condominium management company | Whether the building uses third-party (external) management | Decision-making at general and board meetings works differently than a self-run association |
| (10) Records of maintenance and repair history | Year of the most recent large-scale repair project and the pipe-replacement history | Plumbing was never replaced, and you face in-unit renovation costs shortly after moving in |
Of these ten items, (6) and (7) are ones where the actual figures themselves are the statutory requirement. A document that states only "repair reserve fund: ¥X/month" is incomplete — the true form of this disclosure also states the bylaw provisions and the amount already accumulated. If those fields are blank, request the "Statutory Disclosure Survey Report" (kanri ni kakaru jūyō jikō chōsa hōkokusho, 管理に係る重要事項調査報告書) that the management company issues.
Judge the Repair Reserve Fund by Adequacy, Not by the Sticker Number
A low monthly repair-reserve payment is not inherently good or bad. The benchmark is the per-sqm rate published in MLIT's "Guidelines on Condominium Repair Reserve Funds" (revised June 2024).
For readers from markets where a homeowners' association (HOA) fee or a UK service charge covers day-to-day upkeep, this Japanese structure is worth pausing on: unlike most US HOA dues, which fund ongoing operations, the shūzen sekitatekin is specifically a long-range capital reserve for major repairs decades out — closer in spirit to a well-funded US HOA reserve study than to a standard monthly HOA fee, and it is set against a government-published benchmark rather than left purely to a private management company's discretion.
| Above-ground floors / Total floor area | Range covering two-thirds of real cases | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Under 20 floors / under 5,000 sqm | ¥235–¥430/sqm/month (≈USD 1.57–2.87) | ¥335/sqm/month (≈USD 2.23) |
| Under 20 floors / 5,000–under 10,000 sqm | ¥170–¥320/sqm/month (≈USD 1.13–2.13) | ¥252/sqm/month (≈USD 1.68) |
| Under 20 floors / 10,000–under 20,000 sqm | ¥200–¥330/sqm/month (≈USD 1.33–2.20) | ¥271/sqm/month (≈USD 1.81) |
| Under 20 floors / 20,000 sqm or more | ¥190–¥325/sqm/month (≈USD 1.27–2.17) | ¥255/sqm/month (≈USD 1.70) |
| 20 floors or more | ¥240–¥410/sqm/month (≈USD 1.60–2.73) | ¥338/sqm/month (≈USD 2.25) |
These per-sqm rates exclude mechanical parking. If the building has mechanical parking, add a supplemental rate calculated as "(repair cost per space, ¥/space/month) × number of spaces ÷ total exclusive floor area." In MLIT's model case, ¥5,840/space/month (≈USD 38.93) × 30 spaces ÷ 4,900 sqm adds about ¥36/sqm/month (≈USD 0.24), bringing the benchmark average to ¥288/sqm/month (≈USD 1.92).
[Worked Example 3] What Is a Fair Monthly Amount for a 63.02 sqm (678 sq ft) Unit?
Applying the guideline rate to the Greater Tokyo average unit size of 63.02 sqm lets you cross-check a specific building's repair reserve fund directly against the actual figure in its Statutory Disclosure Statement.
| Above-ground floors / Total floor area | Monthly range at 63.02 sqm | Average monthly amount at 63.02 sqm |
|---|---|---|
| Under 20 floors / under 5,000 sqm | ≈¥14,800–27,100 (≈USD 99–181) | ≈¥21,100 (≈USD 141) |
| Under 20 floors / 5,000–under 10,000 sqm | ≈¥10,700–20,200 (≈USD 71–135) | ≈¥15,900 (≈USD 106) |
| Under 20 floors / 10,000–under 20,000 sqm | ≈¥12,600–20,800 (≈USD 84–139) | ≈¥17,100 (≈USD 114) |
| Under 20 floors / 20,000 sqm or more | ≈¥12,000–20,500 (≈USD 80–137) | ≈¥16,100 (≈USD 107) |
| 20 floors or more | ≈¥15,100–25,800 (≈USD 101–172) | ≈¥21,300 (≈USD 142) |
The process is simple: find the row matching the building's floor count and total floor area from the property materials, then compare the actual figure in the Statutory Disclosure Statement against that range. If the actual figure falls well below the range, the building is not necessarily "cheap" — it may be deferring a future fee increase or a special levy. For the underlying cost of a major repair project itself, see Large-Scale Condominium Repair Costs and How to Address Reserve-Fund Shortfalls.
Ask Directly About Payment Delinquency and the Reserve-Fund Method
Just as important as whether the rate is adequate is whether the money is actually being collected. MLIT's "FY2023 Comprehensive Survey of Condominiums" (令和5年度マンション総合調査) provides the numbers to ask about.
- The average repair reserve fund per unit per month is ¥13,054 (≈USD 87) (¥13,378 / ≈USD 89, including amounts funded from parking fees and similar sources).
- The reserve method is a flat contribution in 40.5% of buildings and a step-up (graduated increase) contribution in 47.1%. A step-up structure assumes scheduled fee increases will arrive on a set timetable after you buy.
- Only 62.1% of buildings report no arrears of three months or more in management fees. Flip that: roughly four in ten buildings have some level of delinquency.
- Older buildings show more delinquency. In buildings completed before 1984 (Showa 59), only 50.0% report zero delinquency, compared with 72.5% for buildings completed from 2015 (Heisei 27) onward.
Three questions follow directly from this data: "Is the reserve method flat or step-up?" "When is the next increase scheduled, and by how much?" and "How many units currently carry arrears of three months or more?" All three are answerable from the management company's Statutory Disclosure Survey Report.
For a US buyer used to reviewing HOA financial statements and reserve studies as a matter of routine, this section of the Japanese process will feel the most familiar of anything in this article — the underlying due-diligence questions are the same, even though the documents and terminology differ.
Utility Infrastructure Is a Disclosure Item Under Article 35, Paragraph 1, Item 4
"Can I choose my own electricity provider after buying a used condominium?" falls squarely within the scope of the Statutory Disclosure Statement, because the condition of the water, electricity, and gas supply facilities and drainage facilities is a mandatory disclosure item under Article 35, Paragraph 1, Item 4 of the Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act.
The Agency for Natural Resources and Energy (資源エネルギー庁) explains this specifically for condominium residents: residents can generally switch electricity providers individually, but if the management association has entered into a bulk electricity-purchase contract covering the entire building, that contract or the building's bylaws may restrict individual switching — so confirming with the management association is necessary.
This "bulk power supply" (ikkatsu juden, 一括受電) arrangement is now formally tracked in practice. The information-disclosure form for real-estate brokers attached to MLIT's Model Condominium Management Bylaws (revised October 17, 2025) explicitly lists, as one item under exclusive-unit usage restrictions, "whether unit-by-unit contracting is restricted under a bulk power supply arrangement." Asking your brokerage to confirm this item before the contract is the reliable way to check.
Confirm Whether a Building Condition Survey (Inspection) Has Been Performed
Since 2018, whether a building condition survey (inspekushon, インスペクション) has been performed on an existing building, and a summary of the results if it has, is a mandatory Statutory Disclosure item (Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act, Article 35, Paragraph 1, Item 6-2).
The survey is performed by an architect who has completed a government-registered training course (a "certified existing-home condition survey technician") through visual inspection, measurement, and non-destructive testing of structurally load-bearing elements and water-intrusion-prevention elements. According to MLIT's practical guidance, the survey typically takes one to three hours and costs from roughly ¥60,000 (≈USD 400).
A survey only counts toward the Statutory Disclosure if it was conducted within a defined recency window. Under Enforcement Regulations Article 16-2-2, that window is one year in general, but two years for reinforced-concrete or steel-reinforced-concrete apartment buildings — which covers most condominiums. If you are told a unit has "already been surveyed," confirm the survey date is within that two-year window. If you are considering a pre-1981 building under the old seismic standard, also see our companion article, How to Evaluate the Earthquake Resistance of a Used Condominium.
Easy-to-Miss Details in the Sale Contract and the Fixtures Schedule
Once the Statutory Disclosure briefing ends, you move into reading through the sale contract itself. What you need to verify goes beyond the contract body. Two attached documents — the Fixtures and Equipment Schedule and the Property Condition Disclosure Statement — determine who bears which costs after handover.
The Fixtures Schedule and the Property Condition Statement Serve Different Purposes
| Aspect | Fixtures and Equipment Schedule (futai setsubi hyō) | Property Condition Disclosure Statement (kokuchisho) |
|---|---|---|
| What it records | Whether each fixture will be handed over, and whether it has known defects | Conditions and history of the property that the seller is aware of |
| What it covers | Water heater, stovetop, range hood, bathroom dryer, air conditioners, light fixtures, screens, laundry racks, intercom, built-in fittings, etc. | Water leaks, termite damage, plumbing failures, past repairs, nearby construction plans, psychologically stigmatizing events |
| What "not included" means | It will be removed before handover. If it is left behind, the buyer bears the removal cost | A statement that the seller is unaware of an issue — not proof the issue doesn't exist |
| What "defect present" means | It is handed over in that condition. As a rule, the seller has no repair obligation | A disclosed issue is, in principle, treated as something the buyer accepted knowingly |
| When to check it | Before the contract. Cross-check line by line against the actual unit during your viewing | Before the contract. Ask verbally about any blank fields and request they be filled in |
| Relationship to non-conformity liability | Anything marked "defect present" is incorporated into the contract terms, making it harder to later claim non-conformity | Same principle. Conversely, if the seller knew about a fact and failed to disclose it, an exemption clause does not relieve the seller of liability (Civil Code, Article 572) |
In practice, the item that trips up buyers most often is air conditioners and light fixtures. If you accept them thinking you are getting a free upgrade, the replacement cost when they eventually fail — and the disposal cost if you don't want them — falls on you. Treat the Fixtures Schedule not as a question of "gain or loss," but as the document where you affirmatively instruct the seller to leave an item or remove it.
For a US reader, this is a meaningfully different allocation than what a standard residential purchase agreement typically assumes for included appliances; there is no default "all fixtures convey" presumption the way many US contracts treat built-in appliances. Every item is decided explicitly, line by line.
How Much Should the Earnest Deposit Be?
In the large majority of resale-condominium deals the seller is a private individual, and in that case there is no statutory cap on the earnest deposit amount. In practice, deposits run 5–10% of the price — for ¥52.08 million, that's ¥2.604 million to ¥5.208 million (≈USD 17,360–34,720). What matters more than the amount is where in the contract the deadline for earnest-money cancellation is written.
If the seller is a licensed real-estate business (takken gyōsha), additional statutory protections apply. The earnest deposit is capped at two-tenths of the price (Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act, Article 39, Paragraph 1); once the deposit has been received, the buyer may cancel by forfeiting the deposit, and the seller may cancel by tendering double the deposit amount (same Article, Paragraph 2) — but neither party can do so once the other side has begun performance of the contract. Escrow-style protective measures for the deposit are not required if the amount received is 10% or less of the price and ¥10 million (≈USD 66,667) or less (Article 41-2, Paragraph 1 proviso; Enforcement Order, Article 3-5). For how earnest-money conventions work and typical benchmarks, see Types, Market Rates, and Cautions for Earnest Deposits on Used Condominiums.
Compared to a US earnest-money deposit, which is usually held in a neutral escrow account by a title company or broker and typically runs 1–3% of the price, the Japanese tetsukekin serves a similar "skin in the game" function but at a materially higher percentage, and — when the seller is a private individual — without an equivalent statutory escrow-protection requirement.
The Term "Kashi Tanpo Sekinin" No Longer Exists
Older articles and contract templates still use the term "kashi tanpo sekinin" (瑕疵担保責任, latent-defect warranty liability) — a term that was abolished by the revised Civil Code that took effect in April 2020. Current sale contracts are structured around "liability for non-conformity with the contract" (keiyaku futekigō sekinin, 契約不適合責任) instead. Under this framework, if the delivered property does not conform to the contract in type, quality, or quantity, the buyer can demand cure, a price reduction, damages, or cancellation.
For resale condominiums with a private-individual seller, it is common to see a special clause limiting this liability to "three months from handover," or excluding it altogether. Between private individuals, such a clause is, in principle, valid. When the seller is a licensed real-estate business, by contrast, any special clause disadvantaging the buyer is void, except a clause setting the period referenced in Civil Code Article 566 at two years or more from the handover date (Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act, Article 40). Confirm, before the contract, which article number in your contract states this period.
This structure has no precise analogue in a typical US "as-is" residential sale, where implied warranties are often disclaimed broadly and a home inspection contingency does most of the practical protective work instead. In Japan, the length of the contractual non-conformity period is itself the negotiated variable, and it can be as short as three months when the seller is a private individual.
Whether the Seller Is a Private Individual or a Licensed Business Changes the Scope of Protection Substantially
| Issue | Seller is a private individual (typical resale) | Seller is a licensed real-estate business (e.g., buy-and-resale/flip) |
|---|---|---|
| Earnest deposit cap | No statutory cap. Set by the contract | Up to two-tenths of the price (Art. 39, Para. 1) |
| Earnest-money cancellation | Governed by the contract terms; deadline set by the contract | Cancellation by forfeiture or double repayment is available. Clauses disadvantaging the buyer are void (Art. 39, Paras. 2–3) |
| Escrow-style deposit protection | No such system | Required once the amount received exceeds 10% of the price or ¥10M (≈USD 66,667) (Art. 41-2; Enforcement Order Art. 3-5) |
| Non-conformity liability period | Shortening or full exclusion by special clause is valid. Three months or full exclusion is not unusual | Clauses disadvantaging the buyer are void, except one setting the period at two years or more from handover (Art. 40) |
| Liquidated damages / penalty cap | No statutory cap | Combined total cannot exceed two-tenths of the price (Art. 38) |
| Frequency in practice | The large majority of used-condominium transactions | Limited mostly to renovated ("kaisou") resale units |
What this table means in plain terms: most used-condominium transactions in Japan sit outside the zone where the law automatically protects you. That is exactly why the habits described in this article — obtaining the Statutory Disclosure Statement in advance, physically cross-checking the Fixtures Schedule, and confirming whether a building condition survey exists — function as your own protection. Who the seller is changes which clause of the contract deserves your closest attention.
The Money That Hits After You Buy (2026 Tax Rules)
Beyond the cash due at contract, there are costs that arrive one to two years after purchase: the mortgage tax credit, the real property acquisition tax, and the annual fixed asset tax. All three are governed by rules that changed in 2026.
The Mortgage Tax Credit for Move-Ins from 2026 (Reiwa 8)
The Reiwa 8 tax reform extended the credit's applicability by five years, now covering move-ins from January 1, 2026 through December 31, 2030. At the same time, existing homes with high energy-efficiency ratings gained a higher loan cap and an extended 13-year deduction period (the related tax legislation was enacted in March 2026).
| Housing category (existing-home acquisition) | Loan cap | Loan cap with child-rearing household uplift | Credit rate | Deduction period |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Certified housing (certified long-life-quality / certified low-carbon) | ¥35M (≈USD 233,333) | ¥45M (≈USD 300,000) | 0.7% | 13 years |
| ZEH-standard energy-efficient housing | ¥35M (≈USD 233,333) | ¥45M (≈USD 300,000) | 0.7% | 13 years |
| Energy-standard-compliant housing | ¥20M (≈USD 133,333) | ¥30M (≈USD 200,000) | 0.7% | 13 years |
| All other housing (typical resale homes) | ¥20M (≈USD 133,333) | No uplift | 0.7% | 10 years |
Source: Ministry of Finance (財務省), "Outline of the Reiwa 8 Tax Reform"; MLIT, "Cabinet Decision to Extend and Expand the Mortgage Tax Credit and Related Measures" (December 26, 2025 / Reiwa 7). MLIT defines "child-rearing households, etc." as "households with a child under 19" or "households where either spouse is under 40."
In practice, most used condominiums fall into the bottom row of the table — the ¥20 million (≈USD 133,333) loan cap × 10-year schedule — because relatively few resale condominiums carry certified-housing or ZEH-standard documentation. Given how large the gap is between rows, it is still worth asking the seller whether such certification exists.
The requirements are: total income for the credit year of ¥20 million or less, occupancy within six months of acquisition, a repayment term of ten years or more, and — specific to existing homes — the home must be "certified as meeting the earthquake-resistance standard" (NTA No. 1211-3). If a pre-1981 (old-standard) building cannot obtain a seismic-standard compliance certificate, the credit is unavailable outright. The floor-area requirement was relaxed to 40 sqm or more under the Reiwa 8 reform and now applies to existing homes as well — except that buyers with total income over ¥10 million, and those claiming the child-rearing uplift, still need 50 sqm or more. For a full walkthrough of the process, see The Complete Guide to Mortgage Financing for a Used Condominium in Japan.
A brief comparison for context: this credit functions somewhat like the US mortgage interest deduction in spirit — a policy lever nudging homeownership — but structurally it works as a direct tax credit against income tax calculated from the outstanding loan balance, not a deduction against taxable income, and it comes with hard eligibility gates (seismic certification, floor area, income cap) that have no equivalent in the US deduction.
The Real Property Acquisition Tax Deduction Depends on the Building's Construction Date
The real property acquisition tax (fudōsan shutokuzei, 不動産取得税) is a one-time tax, billed by the prefecture roughly a year after acquisition. For existing homes, a fixed amount is deducted from the assessed value (the fixed-asset tax appraisal, not the purchase price) before the tax rate is applied, and the deduction amount depends on the building's construction date. This produces a counterintuitive result specific to resale property: the older the building, the smaller the deduction.
| Construction date | Deduction amount |
|---|---|
| April 1, 1997 (Heisei 9) or later | ¥12M (≈USD 80,000) |
| April 1, 1989 (Heisei 1) – March 31, 1997 | ¥10M (≈USD 66,667) |
| July 1, 1985 (Showa 60) – March 31, 1989 | ¥4.5M (≈USD 30,000) |
| July 1, 1981 (Showa 56) – June 30, 1985 | ¥4.2M (≈USD 28,000) |
| January 1, 1976 (Showa 51) – June 30, 1981 | ¥3.5M (≈USD 23,333) |
| January 1, 1973 (Showa 48) – December 31, 1975 | ¥2.3M (≈USD 15,333) |
| January 1, 1964 (Showa 39) – December 31, 1972 | ¥1.5M (≈USD 10,000) |
| July 1, 1954 (Showa 29) – December 31, 1963 | ¥1M (≈USD 6,667) |
Source: Tokyo Metropolitan Government Bureau of Taxation, "Q&A on the Real Property Acquisition Tax." Eligibility requires that an individual acquires the property for their own residential use, that the floor area is between 40 and 240 sqm (50 sqm or more for acquisitions on or before March 31, 2026), and that the seismic-standard requirement is met. For a home built on or before December 31, 1981, the deduction is unavailable unless a seismic diagnosis certifies compliance with the current earthquake-resistance standard.
The Greater Tokyo average building age of 27.48 years corresponds to a construction date around 1998–1999 — which qualifies for the ¥12 million (≈USD 80,000) deduction, and if the building's assessed value is below that figure, the tax due is zero. The land portion is also reduced, by whichever is larger: ¥1.5 million (≈USD 10,000), or an amount equal to the tax rate applied to twice the floor area (capped at 200 sqm) of land value — which frequently brings the tax on the land-use right in a sectioned-ownership unit down to zero as well. For the detailed calculation, see Calculating and Reducing the Real Property Acquisition Tax on a Used Condominium.
The Fixed Asset Tax Rate Stays at 1.4% Whether the Home Is New or Used
This is a point of common confusion, so it's worth stating plainly. The fixed asset (property) tax rate is a standard 1.4% whether the home is new or resale. There is no lower rate for used homes. What actually drops for an older building is not the rate but the assessed value that the rate is applied to.
A building's assessed value is calculated as "replacement cost × age-based depreciation factor" — the cost of constructing the same building today, multiplied by a discount for the years elapsed since construction. As the building ages, the assessed value falls, and so does the tax bill. For land, a residential-land exception reduces the taxable base to one-sixth for the portion up to 200 sqm and to one-third for any portion beyond that. The city planning tax is levied at a ceiling rate of 0.3% and is billed together with the fixed asset tax.
One more point that affects contract mechanics directly: the taxpayer of record for fixed asset tax and city planning tax is fixed as whoever owns the property as of January 1 of that year. Even if handover occurs mid-year, that year's tax bill still goes to the seller. In practice, the sale contract therefore includes a private agreement to prorate the tax by the number of days on either side of the handover date. This is a contractual convention, not a legal requirement, and the amount changes depending on whether the proration is calculated from January 1 or from April 1 (the start of the Japanese fiscal year) as the base date. Read this clause carefully when you go through the contract together on contract day.
For a US or UK buyer used to property taxes being prorated automatically as part of a standardized closing statement, the point to flag is that in Japan this proration is a matter of private negotiation between buyer and seller, embedded in the contract text itself, rather than a fixed procedural step performed by a neutral closing agent.
How the April 2026 Revised Condominium Ownership Act Changes How You Should Evaluate a Used Condominium
For anyone buying a used condominium in 2026, the single biggest structural change is the revised Condominium Ownership Act (kubun shoyū hō, 区分所有法). Condominium-related legislation was revised in May 2025 (Reiwa 7), and the core piece — the revised Condominium Ownership Act — took effect on April 1, 2026 (Reiwa 8). In step with this, MLIT revised its Model Condominium Management Bylaws on October 17, 2025.
The backdrop is what MLIT describes as a "double aging" problem: aging buildings and aging residents together. A growing number of unit owners have become unreachable, making it increasingly difficult to pass the resolutions needed for major repairs or full rebuilds. MLIT lists the following as the core elements of the revision:
- Revised majority-vote thresholds for general-meeting resolutions
- Revised notice requirements for calling a general meeting
- Procedures for excluding unreachable owners from general-meeting resolutions
- Procedures around use of the domestic-agent (property-manager-of-record) system
- Preservation actions on exclusive units that become necessary in connection with managing common areas
- Permitted uses of the repair reserve fund
- Procedures around use of a condominium-specific asset-management system
- Representative exercise of damage-claim rights related to common areas
There is one thing to check as a buyer: whether the specific management association has begun revising its own bylaws in line with this reform. MLIT states explicitly that "each condominium's management bylaws will also need to be reviewed," and that any general meeting convened on or after April 1, 2026 must follow the revised law's quorum and resolution requirements.
If the general-meeting minutes or board agenda materials show active discussion of a "bylaw revision," that is a reasonable signal the association is an organization capable of acting when future large-scale repairs or a rebuild decision arise. If there is no mention of the reform at all, treat that as a prompt to check whether the association's day-to-day management has stalled. If you plan to hold the unit as a rental, also see How the 2026 Condominium Ownership Act Reform Changes Rental Property Management.
For international readers, this legislative context is a distinctly Japanese phenomenon: Japan's postwar condominium stock is aging in large volumes at the same time as its co-owner population, and — unlike a US condo association typically governed by relatively flexible state-level statutes and CC&Rs — Japanese condominium governance runs through a single national statute that just underwent its most significant amendment in years specifically to address unreachable, aging ownership. A building actively adapting to that legal change is signaling institutional health in a way that matters more in Japan's context than it might elsewhere.
From Contract to Move-In: What to Handle in Between
Once the contract is signed, there are two things to take care of before the handover date: switching your electricity provider, and notifying the management association. Both tend to get rushed on moving day itself, but knowing the steps in advance means they take only a few minutes.
Switching Electricity Providers, and What to Check in a Bulk-Power-Supply Building
Retail electricity in Japan is fully liberalized, and if the contract is in your own name, you may choose your retail electricity provider freely. Because the existing transmission and distribution grid is used regardless of provider, no new wiring is required, and power quality and outage risk are identical no matter which company you buy from.
The complication is a bulk-power-supply (ikkatsu juden) building. If the management association has entered into a single electricity-purchase contract covering the whole building, that contract or the bylaws may restrict individual contracting, meaning you cannot choose your own provider unit by unit. Conditions such as electricity being bundled into the management fee, or being locked into a single designated provider, are information you want before you commit to the purchase, not after. This is confirmable through the Statutory Disclosure Statement and a direct inquiry to the management company.
Notify the Management Association and Check the Usage Rules First
There is no official rule governing the amount or etiquette of a "moving-in greeting gift" for neighbors in Japan. Treat any source claiming a standard amount as unfounded — this is a social custom, not a regulated one, and it varies widely by building and neighborhood. There are, however, three procedures fixed by the bylaws — a primary source — that do matter. These follow MLIT's Model Condominium Management Bylaws (single-building type, revised October 2025).
- Notification of acquiring member status (Article 31): Anyone newly acquiring membership in the management association must promptly notify the association in writing (or electronically). Submit the notification form to the management company's office soon after settlement.
- Approval application for repairs to the exclusive unit (Article 17): Repairs, remodeling, or the installation or replacement of fixtures affixed to the building that could affect the common areas or other exclusive units require advance written approval from the board chair. The application must include design drawings, specifications, and a work schedule. Any pre-move-in renovation must wait until this approval is obtained.
- Notification even for work that does not require approval (Article 17, Paragraph 7): Even for work that does not need approval, if the association needs advance notice of contractor access, delivery of materials and equipment, or noise, vibration, or odor, advance notification to the board chair is required. Installing an air conditioner or replacing flooring commonly falls into this notification category.
From there, check the building's usage rules (shiyō saisoku, 使用細則). The commentary accompanying the Model Bylaws lists matters commonly addressed in usage rules: restrictions on keeping pets or playing musical instruments, parking- and storage-space usage and fees, package-delivery rules, and smoking rules. The move-in-day delivery route, elevator padding, and permitted working hours are matters covered either by these usage rules or by a direct question to the building manager. The extent of a customary greeting round to neighbors is likewise best confirmed by asking the building manager about that specific building's convention.
For a buyer accustomed to a US HOA's covenants, conditions, and restrictions (CC&Rs) or a UK leasehold's management pack, this three-step notification sequence will feel structurally familiar, even though the specific forms and the board-chair approval step are distinctly Japanese in their formality.
The Order We Follow When We Sit In on a Used-Condominium Contract
We've covered a long list of items to verify. In practice, there is an order to how we review them. When we at INA&Associates accompany a client through a resale purchase, this is the sequence in which we open the documents.
- Start with the maintenance and repair records. The pipe-replacement history and the year of the most recent large-scale repair tell you, before anything else, whether this is a building that has actually spent money on itself.
- Then the repair reserve fund's accumulated balance and reserve method. Cross-check against the guideline rate, and if it's a step-up method, confirm the timing of the next scheduled increase.
- Ask how many units carry arrears of three months or more. A management association with heavy delinquency cannot order repair work on schedule. This is a signal of the organization's health, and it shows up before the building's physical condition does.
- Read the usage restrictions and exclusive-use rights on the exclusive unit. This is the stage where we resolve any mismatch between how the buyer intends to live (pets, working from home, musical instruments, a car) and what the bylaws actually permit.
- Finally, the cancellation clauses in the contract. The earnest-money cancellation deadline, the mortgage-contingency deadline and which lender it names, and the length of the non-conformity liability period. These three are your exit routes if something unexpected happens.
A viewing tells you about the building's condition and layout. The health of the management association — this "invisible community" that runs the building — can only be read from paperwork. What we spend the most time verifying in a used-condominium purchase is not the building itself, but the management history behind it. That is because, when you go to sell ten years from now, this is exactly where the price difference shows up. We believe that telling clients the downsides honestly, not just the upsides, is what builds a relationship that lasts.
Summary
To recap the key points:
- The cash needed on contract day for a ¥52.08 million (≈USD 347,200) property is about ¥3.526 million (≈USD 23,507) — earnest deposit ¥2.604 million (≈USD 17,360) + half brokerage commission ¥892,000 (≈USD 5,947) + stamp duty ¥30,000 (≈USD 200). The non-refundable closing costs run to roughly 4.0% of the purchase price.
- Request the Statutory Disclosure Statement several days before the contract date and verify, in figures, the ten items under Enforcement Regulations Article 16-2 — especially "the amount already accumulated in the repair reserve fund" and "the amount of the ordinary management fee."
- Test the adequacy of the repair reserve fund against MLIT's guideline rate. For 63.02 sqm (678 sq ft) in a building under 20 floors with 5,000–under 10,000 sqm of total floor area, the benchmark is about ¥10,700–¥20,200/month (≈USD 71–135/month).
- "Kashi tanpo sekinin" has been replaced by "liability for non-conformity with the contract." The earnest-deposit cap and the length of that liability period both depend on whether the seller is a private individual or a licensed real-estate business.
- The fixed asset tax rate stays at 1.4% whether the home is new or used. What changes is the assessed value, which falls under the age-based depreciation factor.
- For move-ins from 2026, the mortgage tax credit's deduction period for existing homes was extended to 13 years — but only for homes meeting current energy-efficiency standards. A typical resale home remains on the ¥20 million (≈USD 133,333) × 10-year schedule.
- Whether a management association is actively working through the bylaw revisions required by the Condominium Ownership Act reform that took effect in April 2026 is a useful proxy for that association's overall decision-making capacity.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. When do I receive the Statutory Disclosure Statement for a used condominium?
By law, it must be delivered and explained "before the contract is concluded" (Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act, Article 35, Paragraph 1). In practice, if you ask the brokerage three days to a week before the contract date, you can receive a PDF draft in advance. At the same time, also request a copy of the Statutory Disclosure Survey Report that the management company issues — it includes information the Statutory Disclosure Statement alone doesn't cover, such as the repair reserve fund balance, delinquency status, planned fee increases, and the pet/musical-instrument usage rules.
Q. How much earnest deposit should I prepare?
For a used condominium sold by a private individual, there is no statutory cap; in practice, 5–10% of the price is the benchmark. For ¥52.08 million (≈USD 347,200), that's ¥2.604 million to ¥5.208 million (≈USD 17,360–34,720). If the seller is a licensed real-estate business, the cap is two-tenths of the price (Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act, Article 39), and escrow-style protective measures are required once the amount received exceeds one-tenth of the price or ¥10 million (≈USD 66,667) (Article 41-2; Enforcement Order Article 3-5). What matters more than the amount is confirming, before the contract, which article of the contract states the earnest-money cancellation deadline.
Q. What percentage of the purchase price should I budget for closing costs?
The brokerage commission, stamp duty, registration tax, and the property-tax proration together run to roughly 4.0% of the price (about ¥2.068 million / ≈USD 13,787 on the ¥52.08 million worked example). On top of that come the mortgage arrangement and guarantee fees, the fire-insurance premium, and the judicial scrivener's fee. These vary widely by lender and provider and have no published public benchmark — recalculate using the actual figures on the financing plan your lender issues at preliminary approval.
Q. The repair reserve fund is below the guideline range. How should I think about that?
It is not automatically a red flag. Check four things: whether a long-term repair plan exists, whether the reserve method is flat or step-up (step-up covers 47.1% of buildings nationally), when and by how much the next increase is scheduled, and how much has already been accumulated. Under a flat-contribution method with a healthy balance, a lower rate can still be adequate. Under a step-up method with a thin balance, plan your finances assuming a fee increase or special levy will follow after purchase.
Q. What about a moving-in greeting gift for neighbors?
There is no official standard for the amount or scope, so treat any source citing a "typical amount" as unfounded. What you should handle first instead are the association's actual procedural requirements: the notification of acquiring member status (Model Bylaws Article 31) and, if you plan any work on the exclusive unit, the board chair's approval application or notification (Article 17). The move-in delivery route, elevator padding, permitted working hours, and the local custom around greeting neighbors are all things you can confirm by checking the usage rules and asking the building manager.
Related Reading
Sources and References
- 東日本不動産流通機構 (Real Estate Information Network for East Japan, REINS), "Monthly Market Watch Summary Report, June 2026" (published July 10, 2026)
- 宅地建物取引業法 (Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act) — e-Gov Japanese Law Search
- 宅地建物取引業法施行規則 (Enforcement Regulations of the Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act) — e-Gov Japanese Law Search
- 宅地建物取引業法施行令 (Enforcement Order of the Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act; Article 3-5: ¥10 million / ≈USD 66,667) — e-Gov Japanese Law Search
- 国土交通省 (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, MLIT), "Compensation Amounts Real-Estate Brokers May Receive" (Ministry of Construction Public Notice No. 1552, last amended June 21, 2024)
- 国税庁 (National Tax Agency, NTA) No. 7108, "Reduced Stamp Duty for Contracts Related to Real Estate Transfers and Construction Work"
- 国税庁 (National Tax Agency, NTA), "Notice Regarding Reduced Registration and License Tax Rates" (April 2026)
- 国税庁 (National Tax Agency, NTA) No. 1211-3, "Acquiring an Existing Home and Moving In From 2022 Onward"
- 財務省 (Ministry of Finance), "Outline of the Reiwa 8 (FY2026) Tax Reform"
- 国土交通省 (MLIT), "Cabinet Decision to Extend and Expand the Mortgage Tax Credit and Related Measures" (December 26, 2025)
- 国土交通省 (MLIT), "Overview of the Reiwa 8 Housing Tax Reform" (Attachment 1)
- 総務省 (Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, MIC), "Real Property Acquisition Tax"
- 東京都主税局 (Tokyo Metropolitan Government Bureau of Taxation), "Q&A on the Real Property Acquisition Tax" (deduction amounts by construction date for existing homes)
- 総務省 (MIC), "Overview of the Fixed Asset Tax"
- 総務省 (MIC), "City Planning Tax"
- 国土交通省 (MLIT), "Guidelines on Condominium Repair Reserve Funds" (established April 2011, revised June 2024)
- 国土交通省 (MLIT), "Current State of Condominium Living and Management, from the FY2023 (Reiwa 5) Comprehensive Condominium Survey"
- 国土交通省 (MLIT), "Guide to Using Building Condition Surveys (Inspections)"
- 法務省 (Ministry of Justice), "On the Act Partially Amending the Act on Building Unit Ownership, Etc., to Facilitate the Management and Renewal of Aging Condominiums" (Act No. 47 of Reiwa 7 / 2025)
- 国土交通省 (MLIT), "Cabinet Decision on Related Cabinet Orders for Enforcement of the Revised Condominium-Related Laws — Preparing the Provisions Needed for the April 1, 2026 Effective Date"
- 国土交通省 (MLIT), "Revising the Model Condominium Management Bylaws" (October 17, 2025)
- 国土交通省 (MLIT), "Model Condominium Management Bylaws" (single-building type, revised October 17, 2025)
- 資源エネルギー庁 (Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, ANRE), "Frequently Asked Questions on Full Retail Electricity Liberalization"
