move · housing
renting in japan, key money and all.
what moving in actually costs, how to read the apartment alphabet, and how i ended up with a 2dk in kanagawa for what a tokyo shoebox charges.
the number that shocks everyone
moving in costs 4-5× your monthly rent. here's the stack.
your target monthly rent: ¥75,000
rough, typical numbers. every listing stacks these differently. some waive key money, some want two months' deposit. the shape is what matters.
first month's rent
前家賃
¥75,000
deposit
敷金 · usually refundable-ish
¥75,000
key money
礼金 · a gift. yes, really.
¥75,000
agency fee
仲介手数料 + tax
¥82,500
guarantor company
保証会社 · because you have no japanese guarantor
¥37,500
fire insurance
火災保険 · flat-ish
¥20,000
lock change
鍵交換 · flat-ish
¥15,000
move-in, all-in
¥380,000
≈ 5.1× your monthly rent · before you own a single fork
the floor-plan decoder
1r, 1k, 1dk, 1ldk. the alphabet, decoded.
tap a layout to see the shape of the space.
2dk
40-50 m² · ≈ 430-540 ft² on average
two rooms + dining kitchen. what i have. 40m² of it, in kanagawa.
mine is 40m² in kanagawa. tokyo 1k money, double the space.
choose your housing route
share house, or your own place?
i've lived both. a share house for my first month, then my own 2dk. tap a route and click through what's handled, what it's like, and the fine print.