Cheap houses in Japan: where they actually sell
17,862 houses sold for ¥5 million ($32,000) or less in Jan 2025 – Jun 2026 — 18% of all house sales in Japan. The most were in Hokkaido (1,558), Chiba and Osaka. In Hokkaido, a typical one had about 260 m² of land and a building around 47 years old. These are recorded sales, not listings.
Houses sold for ¥5M or less, by prefecture
| Prefecture | Sold ≤ ¥5M | Share of sales | Typical price | Land | Building age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hokkaido | 1,558 | 32% | ¥2.3M $15,000 | 260 m² | 47 yrs |
| Chiba | 1,047 | 17% | ¥2.6M $17,000 | 170 m² | 45 yrs |
| Osaka | 1,012 | 15% | ¥3.1M $20,000 | 60 m² | 50 yrs |
| Hyogo | 932 | 20% | ¥2.7M $17,000 | 130 m² | 49 yrs |
| Saitama | 769 | 11% | ¥3.0M $19,000 | 125 m² | 46 yrs |
| Ibaraki | 715 | 30% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 210 m² | 43 yrs |
| Shizuoka | 637 | 20% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 200 m² | 45 yrs |
| Fukuoka | 600 | 17% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 210 m² | 50 yrs |
| Mie | 546 | 36% | ¥2.3M $15,000 | 200 m² | 46 yrs |
| Gunma | 524 | 28% | ¥2.3M $15,000 | 230 m² | 48 yrs |
| Gifu | 506 | 35% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 200 m² | 48 yrs |
| Hiroshima | 471 | 23% | ¥2.4M $15,000 | 170 m² | 49 yrs |
| Niigata | 446 | 34% | ¥2.3M $15,000 | 210 m² | 47 yrs |
| Kagoshima | 432 | 36% | ¥2.3M $15,000 | 290 m² | 45 yrs |
| Kyoto | 423 | 17% | ¥3.0M $19,000 | 100 m² | 49 yrs |
| Wakayama | 391 | 47% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 140 m² | 46 yrs |
| Nagano | 378 | 23% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 310 m² | 49 yrs |
| Fukushima | 357 | 27% | ¥2.0M $13,000 | 280 m² | 47 yrs |
| Yamaguchi | 340 | 35% | ¥2.3M $15,000 | 245 m² | 48 yrs |
| Tochigi | 328 | 20% | ¥2.8M $18,000 | 255 m² | 45 yrs |
| Aichi | 320 | 6% | ¥3.0M $19,000 | 150 m² | 49 yrs |
| Nara | 309 | 25% | ¥3.0M $19,000 | 115 m² | 48 yrs |
| Miyagi | 306 | 16% | ¥2.1M $14,000 | 270 m² | 47 yrs |
| Okayama | 295 | 25% | ¥2.0M $13,000 | 220 m² | 49 yrs |
| Ehime | 262 | 33% | ¥2.3M $15,000 | 200 m² | 47 yrs |
| Aomori | 260 | 33% | ¥2.2M $14,000 | 240 m² | 47 yrs |
| Kanagawa | 258 | 3% | ¥3.4M $22,000 | 115 m² | 47 yrs |
| Kumamoto | 256 | 24% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 270 m² | 47 yrs |
| Toyama | 253 | 36% | ¥2.2M $14,000 | 220 m² | 51 yrs |
| Ishikawa | 228 | 21% | ¥3.0M $19,000 | 180 m² | 49 yrs |
| Nagasaki | 228 | 31% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 190 m² | 47 yrs |
| Akita | 220 | 39% | ¥2.0M $13,000 | 260 m² | 46 yrs |
| Kagawa | 220 | 34% | ¥2.4M $15,000 | 198 m² | 49 yrs |
| Shiga | 213 | 17% | ¥3.0M $19,000 | 185 m² | 47 yrs |
| Iwate | 202 | 33% | ¥3.0M $19,000 | 250 m² | 49 yrs |
| Yamanashi | 200 | 27% | ¥2.0M $13,000 | 230 m² | 46 yrs |
| Miyazaki | 186 | 22% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 230 m² | 44 yrs |
| Yamagata | 182 | 31% | ¥2.0M $13,000 | 265 m² | 50 yrs |
| Oita | 179 | 24% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 230 m² | 49 yrs |
| Fukui | 157 | 31% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 195 m² | 47 yrs |
| Shimane | 148 | 38% | ¥2.0M $13,000 | 230 m² | 50 yrs |
| Saga | 124 | 23% | ¥3.0M $19,000 | 250 m² | 47 yrs |
| Tokushima | 118 | 31% | ¥2.0M $13,000 | 170 m² | 49 yrs |
| Tottori | 112 | 32% | ¥2.5M $16,000 | 220 m² | 48 yrs |
| Kochi | 106 | 32% | ¥2.4M $15,000 | 150 m² | 48 yrs |
| Tokyo | 91 | 1% | ¥3.3M $21,000 | 115 m² | 48 yrs |
| Okinawa | 17 | 3% | ¥3.0M $19,000 | 195 m² | 51 yrs |
“Typical” = median of the houses that sold for ¥5M or less. Land in square meters (1 m² ≈ 10.8 sq ft). Building age = sale year − construction year.
Towns with the most houses sold for ¥5M or less
| Town | Sold ≤ ¥5M | Share | All houses (median) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asahikawa City, Hokkaido | 153 | 33% | ¥7.8M |
| Wakayama City, Wakayama | 140 | 41% | ¥8.1M |
| Himeji City, Hyogo | 122 | 30% | ¥14.0M |
| Gifu City, Gifu | 102 | 30% | ¥14.0M |
| Ito City, Shizuoka | 98 | 37% | ¥8.3M |
| Takamatsu City, Kagawa | 98 | 31% | ¥14.0M |
| Tomakomai City, Hokkaido | 89 | 33% | ¥8.8M |
| Kushiro City, Hokkaido | 88 | 46% | ¥6.0M |
| Nagasaki City, Nagasaki | 88 | 37% | ¥8.0M |
| Kakogawa City, Hyogo | 85 | 31% | ¥12.0M |
| Tsu City, Mie | 84 | 35% | ¥9.5M |
| Ichihara City, Chiba | 80 | 29% | ¥12.0M |
| Toyama City, Toyama | 80 | 24% | ¥13.0M |
| Higashiosaka City, Osaka | 75 | 19% | ¥18.0M |
| Hokota City, Ibaraki | 74 | 83% | ¥2.0M |
| Choshi City, Chiba | 74 | 78% | ¥1.4M |
| Hakodate City, Hokkaido | 73 | 29% | ¥8.7M |
| Takasaki City, Gunma | 73 | 18% | ¥20.0M |
| Kure City, Hiroshima | 70 | 45% | ¥6.8M |
| Maebashi City, Gunma | 67 | 20% | ¥14.0M |
| Fukuyama City, Hiroshima | 66 | 20% | ¥18.0M |
| Mobara City, Chiba | 64 | 46% | ¥5.8M |
| Yokosuka City, Kanagawa | 64 | 14% | ¥23.0M |
| Kanazawa City, Ishikawa | 64 | 13% | ¥18.0M |
| Kagoshima City, Kagoshima | 64 | 16% | ¥20.5M |
| Kitami City, Hokkaido | 63 | 38% | ¥7.5M |
| Otsu City, Shiga | 61 | 15% | ¥19.0M |
| Shimonoseki City, Yamaguchi | 61 | 29% | ¥10.0M |
| Aomori City, Aomori | 60 | 28% | ¥12.0M |
| Kurashiki City, Okayama | 60 | 18% | ¥20.0M |
| Nabari City, Mie | 59 | 58% | ¥4.4M |
| Muroran City, Hokkaido | 58 | 58% | ¥4.0M |
| Takaoka City, Toyama | 58 | 47% | ¥6.0M |
| Kirishima City, Kagoshima | 58 | 39% | ¥8.5M |
| Yokkaichi City, Mie | 56 | 22% | ¥17.0M |
| Iwamizawa City, Hokkaido | 55 | 60% | ¥3.2M |
| Ise City, Mie | 55 | 44% | ¥5.9M |
| Yachimata City, Chiba | 53 | 50% | ¥5.0M |
| Matsusaka City, Mie | 52 | 40% | ¥7.4M |
| Nara City, Nara | 52 | 15% | ¥25.0M |
Akiya and cheap houses
“Akiya” (空き家) means a vacant house. The tables above count every recorded sale of a house for ¥5 million or less, whether or not it was listed on an akiya bank. In this data, the median building among them was 47 years old in Hokkaido.
Source: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), Real Estate Information Library (https://www.reinfolib.mlit.go.jp/) — real estate transaction price information, aggregated and processed by Japan Home Prices. Not created by the Government of Japan. US dollar figures use the Sep 2026 average of European Central Bank (ECB) euro reference rates, cross-calculated to USD/JPY by Japan Home Prices (1 USD = ¥156.39). Excludes sales with special circumstances (auctions, related parties, private roads, etc.). Medians, not averages.
Prices are past transactions reported to Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) through its survey, processed so that individual properties cannot be identified. They are not listings or appraisals, and a single property can differ a lot because of land shape, road access, building age and condition. US dollar figures use a monthly average exchange rate and are approximate. This site does not give investment, legal or tax advice.