Average Price of New Apartments in Tokyo Metropolitan Area Exceeds 100 Million Yen... The Return of 'Okushon'

The average price of new apartments in the Tokyo metropolitan area has exceeded 100 million yen, or approximately 900 million won, for the first time, reviving the term "okushon" (a portmanteau of 100 million yen and mansion, used to describe luxury apartments during Japan's bubble economy era).

According to reports by the Asahi Shimbun and other outlets on the 22nd, the Real Estate Economic Institute in Japan announced that the average price of newly built apartments released for sale in the Tokyo metropolitan area reached 101.35 million yen, surpassing the 100 million yen mark for the first time.

This marks the sixth consecutive year of increases and the first time the average price for the first half of the year has exceeded 100 million yen since statistics began in 1973.

The Tokyo metropolitan area refers to "one metropolis and three prefectures," consisting of the capital Tokyo and the surrounding Kanagawa, Chiba, and Saitama prefectures.

The average price of new apartments in Tokyo proper also hit a record high of 142.49 million yen.

The price increase rate for new apartments across the one metropolis and three prefectures was surveyed at 13.1% compared to the previous year.

Among them, Tokyo recorded a growth rate of 9.1%, while Chiba Prefecture experienced a sharp surge of 56.8%.

Analysts attribute the rising apartment prices in the Tokyo metropolitan area to construction costs that have jumped by about 30% over the past five years, as well as a shortage of construction engineers driven by an increase in the construction of artificial intelligence (AI) data centers.

The sharp drop in new apartment supply in the Tokyo metropolitan area—from 95,635 units in the year 2000 down to 21,962 units last year—has also contributed to the upward pressure on apartment prices.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.