I don’t know when I’ll be able to come back to Japan. I may need to move home forever. I just put a mortgage down on a new house which was built only last year, and I’ve been living in this house for only 4 months, nobody lived here before me, it was fresh.
I need to go home soon for a family emergency. What are my options here? Can I sell a recently purchased house for similar price or am I screwed?
For context, the house is in Nagoya, Moriyama-Ku, Motogou.
If it’s possible, I’m only looking to revoke the mortgage and make my money back then completely wash my hands of the house. Please no condescending messages, this is my first mortgage and something completely unexpected has happened.
Thanks in advance for your help.
24 comments
Just want to say sorry about your situation and good luck on what you have to do. It is a really hard situation.
Your best options are to either sell the house quickly – you may have to take a small loss to move it quickly – or to sign on with a management company to rent it out and manage it.
It’s not impossible, I’ve seen new build properties sold for similar prices after 18 months lived in (just outside Nagoya), but only those with prime or decent location tended to do that. Perhaps need a good JR station.
I doubt you are going to sell for a similar price. You are guaranteed to lose money. And you have to pay the mortgage while you wait for it to be sold.
I wonder if bankruptcy or something might be useful for you, especially if you never plan on returning?
I’d like to see the plant/photos and your offer. I’m in Nagoya, I have PR and I wasn’t planning to buy a house right now, but for the right price who knows…
Another option is to change the type of loan you got and rent it.
I’m afraid you are just going to have to try to sell your house, probably for a decent sized loss.
Alternatively you could try converting the loan to an investment type and rent out the house.
My wife and I were in a similar situation back in 2018. We had purchased a house in Funabashi for 39M yen and put it on sale within a month of the purchase without actually moving in at all. Essentially a brand new untouched house. We managed to sell but it took almost 12 months and we lost 5M yen. Took a long time to recoup that loss and still makes me feel sick to this day thinking back on it.
As others have noted, you will take a loss. Buying a house in Japan is like buying a brand new car, it loses value as soon as it’s driven off the forecourt. It’s what puts most people off buying outside of central Tokyo, and even in central Tokyo, only the land appreciates in value —even that is not a guarantee over the long term either as there are lots of programs starting to reinvigorate surrounding cities and countryside.
If you can, hang on and try to avoid cutting the price too drastically for a desperate sale. Also, look into renting it out, or turning it into an AirBnB. In retrospect I wish we had done that with our house as we ended up back in Japan anyway. You can always sell it a few years down the line if you know you’re not going to come back. That said, even if it sits empty, you’re on the hook for property taxes, insurance, etc., and as far as I understand, you may also be classified as tax resident meaning you’re also on the hook for residence tax and pension/health insurance. Not an expert but I’m sure someone can chime in on that.
Here are a few ideas:
Why not pay the mortgage in your home currency, assuming it’s worth more you’ll pay off your mortgage sooner.
Or orrrr you can completely ruin the rental market by making it an Airbnb. Charge 5-900$ a night and hire a cleaning lady to fix er up after each stay!
Lastly why not rent it for the price of the mortgage, and then some for pocket cash? I think getting rid of your new house is a bad idea as it’s so difficult to obtain one in this generation.
Selling the house this soon will 100% result in a loss
Was in the same situation at one point.
It took some time to find the right company to sell who wasn’t trying to make a huge profit off of the sale, but eventually did it. (Takara Leben sold the place for me, and I only took a 3M compared to the original cost after a few years – loss included agent fee, which I consider to be decent for the Kanto Region.)
If there’s even a slight chance you might come back, at least talk to the bank where you got the loan. It doesn’t hurt to ask about possibly renting out the place.
Talk to a real estate agent first. And check the conditions with your mortgage with the bank.
Unless you bought the house cheap, you ain’t gonna make a profit or come even on selling it unless you’ve found a gold deposit under the house.
That’s why I always tell my clients to think about what they would do in a similar situation before they buy
You should talk to a realtor to get an idea of the value. Unfortunately new builds do tend to lose value.
Make sure you keep up your mortgage payments in the meantime or the default interest will pile up as well.
Can I have it?
Houses lose value very quickly here, usually the value is in the land. I see that your house is near a train station which would help retain the value. If lots of other houses are being built in the area that will also help retain value as an up and coming area.
I was wondering if you could rent to a foreign family that attends Nagoya International school, but the area isn’t within walking distance but it is a possibility.
sorry, but when you bought the house did you think you would never have a family emergency before you died?
Take a deep breath and first take the time to find out whether you will really have to leave Japan permanently. Emergencies aren’t a good time to make major financial decisions.
I’m not a really a family person so it could be rude but when my family has some troubles I always say them to imagine that I’m gone… Like forever. They are adults and if I decided to get in a mortgage I’ll tell everyone that I won’t be on their funeral.
Can you DM some details, I am in NZ but we (Japanese husband, and I) are looking at houses in Nagoya.
If it were me, I would rent it out temporarily.
You may well get more than the cost of the
Mortgage, and give yourself time to decide what to do next.
If it’s for a long time, you should tell the bank, but since the alternative is selling it out not paying the mortgage, they would likely grant permission. (And if it’s short term, they’re less likely to come along questions).
You can always ask the house later if needed.
So you have eijyuken? (I assume yes if you got a loan)
Rent. It. Out.
Find a way
You could reach out to a company that specializes in keeping spaces rented until the owner comes back? I’m not sure exactly how it would work but the company Japan Relocation often does it.
There is a reasonable chance you could sell it for near the same price. All you can do is put it on the market for the price you want and see if a buyer comes along. I sold my house in Nishi-ku, Nagoya after 10 years for a +25% profit (new house when I bought it). I just put it up for the price I wanted and waited. I did have to wait about 10 long months with my house on the market but someone who really wanted a house in my area came along and decided to go for it. The key point being someone who was looking for a house in my specific area meant they would pay a little extra than they would if they chose a similar house in another area.
Prices in Nagoya are going up and it is a good time to be selling houses, so you should just try and put the house up for the price you want and see if there is interest. One key point is how much competition you have around you (within 2-3km) in terms of nice, new homes of a similar price range.
Make a plan for how long you are willing to wait at what price and when you might consider lowering the price. Make a plan at the start so you don’t have to have weekly debates with your partner about if it is time to lower the price yet.
One thing to know is each time you lower the price, your house gets pushed up to the top of the online sites like sumo, or AtHome. I once lowered the price of my house and then put it back up 2 days later just to get it refreshed back up to the top.
Also, if you find someone who wants to buy your house directly, I know an estate agent who might do the paperwork a bit cheaper than a regular estate agent that may want 3% from you and 3% from the buyer. (He’s the estate agent who helped me buy my current property.)
Best of luck! If your house is still clean and undamaged, then you have a chance of getting a reasonable price for it.
Hey – please DM me. I would consider buying a house in Nagoya and Moriyama is great. I might be willing to buy it, can you send me some details about the general cost + condition + year of the house? I’ll be in Nagoya in a couple weeks.
Please make sure to make a decision when your mind is in a state of calm. We don’t want you to make a rash decision based on the stress of outside sources.