Housing

You will need a Japanese guarantor (hoshonin) when renting an apartment. When signing the lease, you will need to have the equivalent of about six months’ worth of rent on hand to cover expenses such as deposit, the so-called “key” money (a sort of tribute to your new landlord that is customary in Japanese leasing procedures), advance rent, and finder’s fee for the real estate agent negotiating the lease.

Rent

Paid monthly, covering rent for the following month. Utilities charges for electricity, gas, and water are usually not included.

Deposit

The landlord will take some money as a deposit when you sign the contract. It will usually constitute 1-3 months rent and will cover any cleaning, repairs or unpaid rent when you move out. These expenses will be deducted from the deposit and the remaining money will be returned.

Key Money

Key money is a Japanese custom of paying 1-2 months of rent to the landlord and will not be returned to you when you leave the apartment. There are landlords that do not require key money.

Finder's Fee

Usually a sum of money equal to one month's rent is given to the estate agent as a finder's fee.

You may have to pay an apartment fund if you live in a communal situation such as an apartment block. This will go toward the upkeep of the communal facilities such as outdoor lighting. There are some apartments that do not require you to pay an apartment fund.

Parking Space

If your residence is equipped with a parking space, you will likely pay an extra fee to use it. In some lease arrangements, this fee is already included in the rent.

Cancelling a Lease

When leaving a residence, be sure to notify your landlord sufficiently ahead of time to satisfy the terms of lease cancellation notification specified in your original lease agreement. If you do not follow this procedure, you may be legally obligated to pay additional rent. After cancelling a lease, you may not sublet or otherwise allow the use of the residence by a third party for any remainder of your permitted residence period without the express permission of the landlord.

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Housing Division, Hamamatsu City Hall

• People who have a difficult housing situation. (As a rule, those currently living in municipal or prefecture housing, or those who own a house may not apply).
• People who live or work in city.
• Relatives living or looking to live together.
• People who are up-to-date with their resident tax (jyuminzei) payments at the time of application.
• People with a reliable guarantor. (The guarantor must meet the following qualifications)

• People seeking to live in wheelchair-accessible housing must be in a family of two or more with one member being a wheelchair user either level 4 or above status in the Physical Special Needs Handbook (shintai shogaisha techo) or A or B status in the Ryoiku Handbook (ryoiku techo).
• When relatives are planning to live together, their combined income must be within the specified limit on the day of application.
• Please contact the office where you wish to apply, in order to calculate your basic combined wage.

• Applications to Live in Municipal Housing are available from the beginning of the application period at the Hamamatsu Construction Foundation, Ward Offices and City Hall.

  Those who are chosen in the preliminary selection must prepare the following documents.

• Proof of the income of the applicant and relatives planning to live with them.
• The insurance papers (health and damage) for all people planning to live in the housing.
• Certificate of Completion of Foreigner Registration Application and Foreigner Registration Card
• Standard sized postcard (kansei postcard)
• Marriage certificate if applicable (form can be obtained at the Hamamatsu Construction Foundation).
• Other than the above, papers certifying your families work / school status will be required.

• Application related documents will not be returned.
• Close cooperation is necessary because of complex housing.
• In some cases, depending on the housing complex, car parking may not be available.
• A bond worth 3 months rent will need to be paid by the tenant.
• Keeping pets in municipal housing, such as cats and dogs, is prohibited.

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Shizuoka Prefecture Housing Branch

• People who have a difficult housing situation.
• Residents in Japan.
• Couples planning on getting married (can live together for 3 months from the first possible date of tenancy).
• Those whose income level is within the allowable income bracket (please ask the above organization about the income bracket).
• People with a certain and reliable guarantor.
• It is not possible to make an application that unnaturally seeks to break the household up.
• People wishing to live by themselves must also fulfill all the conditions.

By post:

Fill in the application to “Live in Prefecture Housing” and send by post (enclose 2 postcards). Only applications that are stamped as being within the application due date will be accepted.

In person:

Fill in the application to “Live in Prefecture Housing” and submit it (and 2 postcards) in person.

Notes

• One application per household/family
• Applications must be made for specific housing complexes
• Application related documents will not be returned

• Temporary and secondary qualifying persons will be selected by means of a public lottery. (Successful candidates will be notified by postcard).
• Temporary qualifying persons will be required to bring in the necessary documents to the evaluation office, and will undergo an evaluation. Applicants will be asked for a certain and reliable guarantor at this time.
• The result of the evaluation of applicants will determine the successful tenants. Where the applicant does not fit into the required tenant criteria, permission to move in will be denied. Where a number of disqualified persons emerge in the evaluation process, secondary qualifying persons will be given preference and will likewise undergo an evaluation.
• Applicants who are successfully waitlisted in regular recruitments of new tenants will be required to wait in turn until contacted and advised that an apartment has become available (valid for up to one year)
• In principle, apartment floor and building preferences will not be accepted. However, where the applicant is disabled in any way and thus will have difficulty with stairs, the applicant should mention so in their application.
• A bond worth 3 months’ rent will need to be paid by the tenant.
• A certain and reliable guarantor will be required.

• Certificate of Completion of Foreigner Registration Application and Foreigner Registration Card
• Certificate of Income
• Health Insurance Card
• Other: depending on the applicant’s employment situation, a tax withholding slip, tax return and certificate of resignation may be required for submission.

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