BoltC on Nostr: It has been amazing to meet so many awesome folks at #Nostrasia. I live in Japan and ...
It has been amazing to meet so many awesome folks at #Nostrasia. I live in Japan and I’ve talked about abandoned houses in Japan with a few people.
Japan has one of the oldest populations in the world and low birth rates. The current population is ~125M but it is predicted to decline by 15-30M over the next 30 years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Japan#/media/File:Population_Projections_for_Japan.svg
Japan also does not allow high rates of immigration, unlike the US or Australia. Low birth rates, younger people moving to the cities and lack of immigration to prop up the housing market means that there is a flood of abandoned houses across Japan. Primarily located in the countryside, there are an estimated 8-10M abandoned homes.
Each prefecture has what’s called an “Abandoned house bank” where people can register these houses for sale. These houses can be purchased for ~$5k-$100k USD, depending on where they are located and the condition they are in. Most prefectures also provide subsidies for renovation to try and incentivize people to move there.
In the area I live, I can purchase a reasonable house with some land for $20-30k USD, I then can get up to around $10k in subsidies to clean up and renovate the house. This is something I am considering doing. One of the main risk is that the infrastructure around me starts to deteriorate as tax dollars decrease, especially if more people move away. Over the coming years, that may require more self-sufficiency in terms of power and food.
What’s also interesting is that these houses are available for foreigners to buy, but they do not come with a visa attached. That means you can buy an abandoned house here in Japan, but you can only spend 90 days at a time here as a tourist. There are some visas available for foreigners, especially if you want to start a business.
Japan has a low cost of living compared to many other countries - food here is relatively cheap, especially if you buy from local farmers.
I wanted to share while the focus is on Japan and I know many within the Bitcoin and Nostr communities value self-sovereignty.
Japan has one of the oldest populations in the world and low birth rates. The current population is ~125M but it is predicted to decline by 15-30M over the next 30 years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Japan#/media/File:Population_Projections_for_Japan.svg
Japan also does not allow high rates of immigration, unlike the US or Australia. Low birth rates, younger people moving to the cities and lack of immigration to prop up the housing market means that there is a flood of abandoned houses across Japan. Primarily located in the countryside, there are an estimated 8-10M abandoned homes.
Each prefecture has what’s called an “Abandoned house bank” where people can register these houses for sale. These houses can be purchased for ~$5k-$100k USD, depending on where they are located and the condition they are in. Most prefectures also provide subsidies for renovation to try and incentivize people to move there.
In the area I live, I can purchase a reasonable house with some land for $20-30k USD, I then can get up to around $10k in subsidies to clean up and renovate the house. This is something I am considering doing. One of the main risk is that the infrastructure around me starts to deteriorate as tax dollars decrease, especially if more people move away. Over the coming years, that may require more self-sufficiency in terms of power and food.
What’s also interesting is that these houses are available for foreigners to buy, but they do not come with a visa attached. That means you can buy an abandoned house here in Japan, but you can only spend 90 days at a time here as a tourist. There are some visas available for foreigners, especially if you want to start a business.
Japan has a low cost of living compared to many other countries - food here is relatively cheap, especially if you buy from local farmers.
I wanted to share while the focus is on Japan and I know many within the Bitcoin and Nostr communities value self-sovereignty.