So I’m due to move to Japan in March, and Interac is already trying to push the Leopalace apartment on me, also asking me if I want it furnished and want to rent a futon from them, and if I want wifi. I’ve heard stories of how Interac/Leopalace is overpriced and poor quality, so I’m a little worried. Should I just take the Leopalace? Should I let them go ahead and furnish it? Or could I get all this cheaper by doing it on my own?
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If you want a place that can remind you of your stupid drinking days by allowing you to punch through a wall by accident even though you have no muscle mass, go for it.
In reality, it depends on where you’re being sent to. Look at the housing situation there. There are some places where Leopalace is the best of all available options (vomit).
Might as well take the LeoPalace if you’re not going to stay long. It’s shitty, small, and made of cardboard but it’ll do if you’re only staying a year or something. It’s definitely going to be overpriced though as you’re paying out the nose for the included appliances and such.
That said, I’d take whatever option lets you escape English hell the fastest. Maybe see if there’s a share house you could rent a room in. It’d be cheaper and your need for appliances/furniture would be met, plus easier to move out of and you wouldn’t get suckered into their scheme for a housing loan and shit.
Take it because getting your first place can be annoying.
But move out the second you can, they massively overcharge you.
Avoid any loans/assistance if possible , though if you have limited language ability or no connections here to help you it could be difficult.
Leo Palace can be anything from semi decent to a burning dumpster full of roaches and black plague.
Rent as little as possible from them. On this side, I spend a lot of time helping saddled interac employees get out of car leases, apartment rentals, loan schemes, and other services that benefit interac at the ALTs expense.Most interac employees I know are house poor and stuck in indentured servitude thanks to all the “assistance” interac offers.
Everything Interac offers, Leopalace, phone plans, wifi, futons, car rentals, etc. are all a matter of convenience vs. overpriced and poor quality.
If you have the knowledge or even just the willingness to look on your own, you can find far cheaper and better quality options. Short term, it’ll be easier to rely on Interac to supply you, but long term, you’ll be overcharged (ripped off may be more accurate) and have to deal with whatever junk they give you.
I’m in a leopalace on JET. It’s decent but yes, overpriced.
Don’t rent anything that you don’t need to. A futon is cheap enough to buy at the store. Fridge and microwave should be included.
Wifi is ¥2000 a month in my apartment but I didn’t sign up for it and just use my Mobal Wifi hotspot. My predecessor said that the speed was so so but that will vary by area.
At the end of the day, beggars can’t be choosers and being a foreigner trying to rent in Japan makes us the chief of beggars. So take it, don’t rent any appliances, and work to save up to move to a better place.
Enjoy Japan!
If you’re in a city could easily find a share house or something to get you started while you search for something on your own. Rural might be harder.
Reason being Interac is overcharging you to make a profit. You could move into the same exact leopalace yourself and pay less.
Also it’s just better to not have anything in your life dependent on interac since they are a terrible company.
Make sure it isnt next to a level crossing. That drove me insane in my first year. The worst location to live ever ever ever
As someone who was a former Interac employee:
– if you don’t want to hunt for accommodation when you first get there, take the rental but be prepared to sink money into moving out of it. If you’re fine with looking for accommodation, then don’t take their rental. I’d still suggest you go through an estate agent that works with foreigners because a lot of places do not rent to foreigners.
– as for the quality, it varies wildly. Friends of mine got a new build so the quality was good, I got a building older than myself and had to deal with roaches. There’s really no telling what you’re gonna get until you get it. I moved out after a few months, but I had enough money to eat the moving costs. The problem with moving in Japan is that you need to pay key money and guarantor money, which, combined, is unpredictable in how many 10,000s of yen it will be.
– if you go with the Interac accommodation, get furnished. It’ll be a desk and chair and not much else, but they’ll also take them away if you move out, so you don’t need to buy big pieces of furniture until you find somewhere better.
– for rent prices they’re actually not bad in general. I think it’s usually ~50k yen per month in rent, which is decent, but it also depends on the area you’re in.
– their futon is pretty cheap. You can rent it through them for convenience but I’d suggest you get your own eventually.
– do not get the pocket wifi, it’s a rip off. Get your own wifi if needed through NTT (they have an English service). However, if it’s Leopalace wifi, go with that (it’s usually fine, but again, experiences vary).
– have your phone unlocked and take their rental SIM (but not the rental phone). I had 0 problems with just the SIM card but I’ve heard of people having issues returning the rental phone. Getting the SIM card through Interac saves a lot of hassle.
– will it be cheaper doing it by yourself? Most likely not, because of all the additional costs you still have to pay regardless of whether Interac is involved, but you should probably do it by yourself anyway because you’ll most likely find something better.
My leopalace is ok, but the wifi was trash so i got out of that as soon as I could and got a pocket wifi that was only marginally more expensive
Get the futon and furniture yourself. I know it’s costly and difficult, but the stuff I got via Interac was the worst. The bed was terrible. Really bad. Some of the other stuff was already damaged too.
So my Leo Palace wasn’t bad at all. The downside for me is they put me in an apartment priced at an extra 10k yen compared to a downstairs option. I’m thinking it has to do with what apartments they are given by Leo Palace which drives the price up. If you can somehow get a Leo on your own then you might find a cheaper room in the same building. Just no support from Interac.
The lease term with no penalty is only 6 months though, so it’s probably worth getting a Leo Palace.
I wouldn’t recommend renting a futon or the other services.
Be aware that there was a recent scandal whereby Leopalaces were built not up to earthquake code. The problem was so bad that the company ‘promised’ to only deal with the most severe violations meaning you could live in an apartment that may not be fully earthquake safe.
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Also, Interac has a contract to get ALT’s into Leopalaces.
Leo palace is absolute trash, and the furniture rental is a scam. However…finding an apartment on your own and before you arrive will be next to impossible. They know this and take advantage of people because of it.
Leopalace is fine, I’m in a newer one on the top floor corner apartment. It’s quiet and price is similar than the apartments around me.
I use their wifi but bought my own router.
In terms of furniture I would check the sayonara sales Facebook groups around you.
And get your own phone contract too, rakuten is cheap and easy to get with unlimited data.
Rent a futon?
Rent a…*futon*?
I’m disgusted but intrigued. How much are they charging for a used bedding item you can buy for a couple thousand yen at Shimamura?
living in a ‘leo’s phallus’ is not terrible if you’re out most of the time but it can be difficult if youre a homebody or if you like to cook
Depends where you are. Middle is no where, take it. It would be a lot easier having a “home” that not having one when you first start.
if you’re in a large city, then stay in a share house. You can then take the time to find a good apartment.
I am currently with LeoPalace, however I arranged it myself, rather than having the dispatch company arrange it for me, as this allowed me to view/choose the place I wanted from what was available based on location, price, and more importantly age/state of the appartment. This allowed me to get a relatively new, newly renovated apartment, which I pay a reasonable amount for but it is definitely worth it compared to some of the ****holes you can end up with if your dispatch company arranges it. Plus rather than going for a futon initially, I opted for buying an air mattress as you can buy a pretty decent one for a reasonable price most homegood stores. The advantage being not only do you not have to constantly hang/air it out which can be a nuisance if you don’t have an outside allocated space, but also it very portable for when you move as a futon can be bulkier/heavier. Plus obviously it won’t be possible in every case, but the appartment fee for me includes unlimited wifi, which is reasonably priced and have not had any connectivity issues since moving in back in April, 2022. Mine also includes water (also available in many of their appartments), with electricity and gas being separate (fun setting up if you don’t know basic conversational Japanese so if you go that route have someone available who can do this for you if you know very little Japanese).
I have no idea how helpful Interac is with newcomers, but I’ve definitely worked for places that give zero assistance. If they’re leaving you to do other things on your own i.e. banking, city hall things, etc. I wouldn’t want to be looking for an apartment as well. I’d also ask if they’re willing to act as guarantors for you if you do find another apartment. If not, then you’re probably SOL. Even apartments that don’t require guarantors will suddenly change their tune when a foreigner gets involved. I have to pay an annual fee for a special guarantor company for my apartment. Also a ton of places will just outright reject having foreigners in them, regardless of your work or ability to provide a guarantor. If you’re in a big city this might be less of a problem.
If your current language ability is less than conversational, just take the leopalace. I’ve stayed in two and one was pretty nice, the other was meh. Both were more expensive than any other apartment I’ve lived in and they were less than half as big. It sucks, but you’ll hardly be the only foreigner who’s had to do it. Aeon requires it.
Internet comes with teh apartment. Buy your own router, don’t use whatever pos router they give you. Buy your own bedding. I currently live in one of those leopalaces. Its no grand hotel, but its comfortable enough. Yours may differ in how it’s arranged. Mine has a loft area when I sleep. The ceiling is just high enough to climb into bed.
I wouldn’t say they are overpriced, per say, but finding a place on your own might be difficult. But, if you did, you could live wherever and choose your ISP. You’ll notice the speed difference when everyone is home, like I did during covid lockdowns, if you are in a leopalace.
Some leopalace apartments are very nice. Others are total shit. The newer ones are much better, but not THAT much better.
Ive gotten two people out of Interact leases saving their random non-compensated Saturday tire changes and shaken. You need a local dealer and a beater car for 20-30man that the dealer will let you pay in installments for. Not easy to find on your own but if you’re in Tohoku I know a guy. Both interac employees I helped in this regard went from combini poverty to being able to afford monthly trips with extra spending money. We also found out that their leases were being priced up 10-15% by interac.
Someone advised me not to take a Leopalace and I did, if I had to do it over, I’d take a sharehouse and take your time looking for your own place. My space is not bad, but they over price the accommodation, it’s crazy.
Don’t furnish it, but if you’re overseas it’ll be difficult to rent a place on your own, so you might want to take it unless you’re confident you can get it all covered by March. Leopalaces vary a ton; mine is pretty nice and weirdly has two floors, but I’ve seen other people’s where it’s a super cramped one-room studio.
A decent futon and all the stuff with it is like 10,000 yen, so there’s no reason to ever rent that. A Leopalace will already come with some furniture and (bad) wi-fi (installing another company’s takes forever but might be worth it if you do gaming or etc.), because that’s sort of the point of Leopalaces. Mine came with a fridge and washing machine and TV, but nothing else; others might have more but I think this is going to be the minimum anywhere you go. If your apartment doesn’t have them, set aiside 20-30k and buy all the chairs and desks and shelves you need when you get here. Just, uh, make sure to bring a pillow and blanket in your suitcase in case you don’t have time to buy a futon on your first day moving in.
“I don’t know what to do anymore, I’m 26 years old and autistic and I have a worthless degree and I’m stuck working at Popeyes and I’m stuck in this capitalist hellhole i want to die help me”
You are also a part of the so-called “Furry” community.
I am more concerned about you being a teacher here
The rent a car is a fucking scam as is eveyrthing else with that shitty company, get yourself a junker for way cheaper
You never go full Interac.
Leo palace is garbage and overpriced.
Interac is just…garbage.
Try literally any other company if possible.
Good luck!
Just to add to the discourse… I was substituting my first two years in Japan… i must’ve lived in 8-10 leopalaces during that time. Never had a problem, no complaints. Totally satisfactory even in retrospect for what I was paying for them.
Absolutely not! I got a Leopalace when I worked for NOVA (very shady business btw) and they were charging me more than twice what my Japanese neighbors were paying. If you need a cheap place to lay your head down and you don’t mind dormitory style living, share houses are a great option!
Don’t do it. Interac are a scam. Just do some research on the company
By the way, regarding futons: Fergeddabout renting one. Buy the cheapest one you can on your first day. Nitori sells a set in a box for like 6,000 yen. Then join the local Facebook groups for foreigners and ask if anybody has old bedding they want to throw away. Same goes for most furnishings. If you speak Japanese and can drive, use Jimoty. Before I got married and bought a house, most of my furnishing and cooking ware came from other foreigners who were in the process of moving away.
If it’s your first time then yes I think it’s better to go with a leopalace apartment, after you’ve adjusted you can start finding an apartment you like. Don’t rent a futon, you can easily buy a cheap one from amazon and have it delivered to your apartment
I just moved into my own place a couple months ago and I gotta say that I think finding your own place while not in Japan is going to be difficult and you’ll probably end up in a Leopalace any way.
Like, I had a Japanese person help me and the company I rent through had an English translation of the paperwork, but i still managed to fuck it up in 3 separate places.
Also, I needed a copy of my bank book for automatic payment withdrawal.
It might not be worth the price for a “furnished” apartment. In my experience, that can mean anything from ‘you get a chair and curtains’ to ‘dishes and a vacuum cleaner’. For the futon, you might be better off just buying one off Amazon. They really aren’t that expensive.
Go for the Leo palace then find a partner (who will be the guarantor) and live together in new apartment , that’s what I did anyway. Car and phone loan was done under my partner’s name too, we split up after living together for 4 years but I managed to save a lot of money and improved my Japanese a lot because of her. So yeah basically when you get to Japan, find a gf .
The LeoPalace I got is pretty good TBH, can’t complain much. Don’t rent furniture though.