Owner’s Representation for Real Estate Projects in Japan
with Bridging Cross-Cultural and Practical Gaps
Kominka – Japan’s Traditional Homes
Viewing a Kominka
A Kominka Viewing Should Not Be a Room Tour
My personal view is that a property viewing should never be just a room tour, regardless of the type of property, but this is especially important with kominka.
Kominka are fundamentally different from newly built or relatively new pre-owned houses in urban areas, from their structure to their location conditions.
When viewing a kominka, there are many things that need to be checked carefully, and it is also necessary to estimate, as much as possible, the condition of areas that cannot be seen based on what is visible.
Of course, the situation is different if you plan from the beginning to strip the building down to its structural frame and carry out repairs. However, repairs of this type commonly cost more than JPY 30 million, so for many people this is not an easy option.
Even if you are planning repairs in stages, if the cost required simply to make the property minimally usable is high, it may not be a realistic option.
Repair costs carry significant weight in the acquisition and utilization of a kominka. There are many things that only become clear after repair work actually begins, but conducting a careful viewing before purchase is essential for at least performing a basic level of filtering.
Low-priced kominka, in most cases, have many problems: they may be in very poor condition, have outdated equipment, lack basic infrastructure such as a septic system, public sewer connection, or water supply, have poor transportation access, include farmland, have legal issues such as being ineligible for reconstruction, or lack proper road access. Here, “road access” refers to access to a road as defined under Japan’s Building Standards Act. For this reason, these properties require sufficient caution.
With that in mind, this article provides a simple overview of what you should pay attention to when actually viewing a kominka.
The content of this article is only a general overview, so what actually needs to be checked and how it should be judged will vary depending on the individual property and area. Also, even if you create a checklist, if you lack experience, you may not be able to make the necessary judgments. When viewing a property, it is advisable to be accompanied by an agent with knowledge and experience in kominka.
Once you have narrowed down the properties, it is safer to have an experienced carpenter conduct an inspection, or to use a kominka inspection service—which cannot be performed by an ordinary construction company—to carry out examinations such as an underfloor assessment and seismic assessment.
Key Points to Check When Viewing a Kominka
Carefully Check the Exterior
One of the most expensive parts of repairing a kominka is the roof. Do not simply look up at the ceiling from inside the house to check for signs of leaks; make sure to inspect the condition of the roof from outside as well.
It is also important to understand the property’s repair history in advance. Check not only the condition of roof tiles or sheet metal covering a thatched roof, but also whether the gutters are warped or damaged.
Of course, it is impossible to see the entire roof, so check the visible sections from a distance from the house. If there are windows on the second floor, also check the sections visible from those windows.
Do not forget to look up at the roof from below and check the condition of the eaves.
Checking the area around the base of the kominka is also important.
If weeds are overgrown, large amounts of objects are stored around the house, or the underfloor area is blocked with boards, poor ventilation beneath the floor may be affecting not only the underfloor area but also the columns.
Not only with kominka, but also with rural properties and pre-owned houses in general, it is common for boundaries not to be formally indicated. The boundary may not have been formally determined, and the line between the property and neighboring land may be unclear. Even so, visually check approximately how far the property extends.
Even when the boundary is not formally marked, in most cases it has been established by agreement with neighboring residents. Residents may have placed markers, or walls, waterways, and similar features may be used in place of boundary lines.
You should also carefully check the road access. Road access and road width can be important for matters such as obtaining a ryokan business license, but especially in heavy snowfall areas, snow removal must also be considered.
Depending on the road access conditions, a narrow or complicated road layout can make snow removal more difficult.
Kominka often have large sites, which means that maintenance and management can involve a significant amount of work, including mowing grass, maintaining trees, and removing snow in winter.
Large rocks and stones are also often found in gardens, and disposing of them can be expensive. In some cases, roof tiles that were replaced in the past have simply been left on the property, or old toilets remain somewhere on the site.
With kominka, the cost of removing or demolishing this kind of unwanted material can often be high.
Walls and Retaining Walls
Walls and retaining walls are often given little attention. However, you need to consider that these also carry legal responsibilities for the owner.
Unlike the house standing within the property, walls and exterior structures facing outward can cause damage to neighbors or other people if something goes wrong, and in such cases the owner may be held responsible. This makes them extremely important.
For example, if a wall in poor condition is left unattended, it may eventually collapse and injure a passerby, or roof tiles on top of the wall may be blown away by strong winds, damaging a car or obstructing traffic.
Retaining walls, which are commonly seen on sloped land and in mountainous areas, also remain the responsibility of the landowner if they collapse or are damaged and cause losses. If drainage holes become blocked, water may not drain properly, potentially causing serious problems such as landslides.
Retaining walls play a very important role in preventing landslides and other disasters, so inadequate maintenance directly affects safety.
Focus on Structural Areas Inside the House
Inside the house, visually check the structural elements as much as possible. Rather than simply checking the layout or looking at the size of the columns and beams, try to see whether columns are leaning or beams have shifted.
The walls and floors of a kominka largely serve as partitions, while the most important part supporting the house is its structure—in other words, its frame. If the frame is sound, then even if the walls and floors are in very poor condition, restoration is possible, although of course budget remains a major limitation.
If the frame itself is in poor condition, restoration becomes more difficult and the budget increases significantly.
It is difficult to see beneath the floor from inside the house, so you may want to check the condition of underfloor columns where possible by looking underneath the house from outside or looking beneath the raised threshold at the entrance.
When kominka were originally built, second floors were rarely used as living spaces. They were generally used for sericulture or storage. If the second floor remains in its original condition, in most cases you can see the underside of the roof from there.
However, there are also many cases where a ceiling has been installed on the second floor to create rooms, or where the entrance to the second floor has been blocked. In such cases, you cannot see the condition of the attic or the underside of the roof. I have also seen kominka where a new access opening had to be created during the inspection because the original entrance had been blocked.
Many kominka have had kitchens, bathrooms, and toilets repaired or renovated, or have been extended. In some cases, work has been carried out that obstructs ventilation, such as installing tiles over earthen walls or blocking underfloor areas.
There have also been cases where a previous owner poured concrete across the entire floor area of one tatami room to solidify the base and create a storage room.
If a kominka has been extended or repaired using conventional construction methods, the difficulty and cost will depend on whether you plan to keep those additions or restore the house closer to its original form.
There are also cases where renovations have been carried out using methods that are inappropriate for a kominka, but this is often impossible to determine visually during a viewing.
If you want a specific renovation style, or if you are planning a full skeleton renovation, it may be better to choose a kominka that has not been altered very much.
Wild Animal Entry
Kominka that have been left vacant for long periods often suffer damage from wild animals such as masked palm civets. Because kominka use very few artificial materials, they can also become comfortable nesting places for wildlife.
It is not unusual for ceilings to collapse because of animal waste from creatures living in the attic, or for ceiling boards to rot.
Wild animals may enter the house from trees growing close to the building, through gaps in walls, or from beneath the floor. In some cases, colonies of bats may also take up residence.
Regular human activity can significantly reduce wildlife intrusion, although this is also affected by how well the vegetation around the house is maintained.
Swallows, on the other hand, do not regard humans as predators. Rather, because their natural predators avoid people, swallows build nests under the eaves or near the entrances of kominka where people live or visit regularly. Once a house becomes vacant, swallows stop returning.
Therefore, if there is a swallow’s nest and it is still being used, the likelihood that wild animals have taken up residence in the property is lower.
About Termites
In Japan, termites basically come up from beneath the floor.
Because termites prefer humidity, termite activity also suggests the possibility of damage caused by moisture and wood-decay fungi, and repairs are usually required beginning with damaged columns and underfloor areas.
As a basic assumption, you should expect clear signs of termite activity in ordinary kominka, especially low-priced kominka that have been vacant for long periods.
Kominka with no signs of termites are limited to high-quality properties that have previously undergone repairs and termite treatment and have been regularly maintained.
Normally, during repairs after purchase, termite treatment is carried out together with repairs to damaged areas. Rather than trying to avoid any kominka showing signs of termites, it is more realistic to proceed on the assumption that such treatment will be necessary.
Other Points
During a viewing, it is important to check not only the condition of the building but also the smaller details that will matter when you actually use the property.
The locations of electrical outlets and lighting fixtures are often overlooked, but they affect the placement of furniture and appliances.
Adding electrical outlets later may require work that can only be performed by a licensed professional, and electrical wiring cannot be run inside the earthen walls of a kominka.
Kominka in rural and agricultural areas generally use either a night-soil collection system or a septic system rather than a public sewer connection.
If the building as a whole is in poor condition, the condition of the septic tank may also be a concern. It may ultimately need to be replaced.
If you want to add toilets or other plumbing facilities, additional piping work will also be necessary.
Of course, the condition of this kind of infrastructure cannot be checked visually. However, by looking at the overall condition of the building, how it has been managed, and its maintenance history, you can make a general estimate.
Even if a public sewer connection is available, construction costs can become high if the site is large, so careful judgment is necessary.
Summary
The purpose of viewing a kominka is to first understand its basic specifications and circumstances from the available property information, and then visually confirm its current condition on site.
If the person or agent showing you the property has limited knowledge or experience with kominka, important and necessary points may be missed during the viewing.
It is therefore important to choose the agent accompanying you carefully so that the viewing does not become no different from viewing an ordinary pre-owned house, or simply turn into a room tour.
The ideal process is to choose an agent with knowledge and experience in kominka, narrow down properties suited to your objectives together, narrow them down further through viewings, and then have the final candidates inspected by a professional carpenter or a kominka inspection service.
Repairs also need to be carried out in an appropriate sequence based on the condition of the property.
If the property is intended to generate income, the relevant business model and applicable laws must also be considered.
It is also extremely important to establish a realistic budget. Even if the property price itself is low, repair costs, infrastructure upgrades, and ongoing maintenance and management costs are by no means inexpensive.
Today, large numbers of kominka property listings are being distributed by scraping businesses, inexperienced agents, and other service providers. Do not be misled by the image they create. Take a prudent and realistic approach.