Investing in Japan's "Special" Real Estate Market - Ziv Nakajima-Magen
Today we revisit Japan, this time doing a DEEP dive into their real estate investment landscape! We discuss what makes it unique, and look at both the buyer’s and seller’s sides from the ground up. Even if you’re not interested in Japan per se, you’ll learn a lot from this episode.
My guest is Ziv Nakajima-Magen, the cofounder of Nippon Tradings International – a firm that has helped broker international property deals in Japan for 10 years.
What we cover:
1:42 – Bad for capital gains, great for cash flow
3:35 – Why local realtors often don’t work with foreigners
8:44 – How an old population and low birth rate affect the market
13:10 – The buildings themselves: legislations, maintenance costs, etc
16:53 – Attractive areas in the commercial sector
23:21 – COVID impact: why the residential sector still did very well, etc
27:56 – Financing and mortgages, both pre- and post-COVID
31:36 – Rents: the numbers
36:22 – Rent negotiation
40:02 – Why people sell despite low capital gains and high cash flow?
44:28 – Who typically invests in Japanese real estate?
51:08 – Other emerging markets like Latin America and Africa
53:31 – Buyer’s journey through Nippon Tradings
1:00:19 – Property price negotiation and competition in Japan
1:04:38 – Challenges for Nippon Tradings as a company
