Hello! We are a couple with no kids moving to Tokyo in Dec/Jan, wanted advice on a few things
1. What are the best areas to stay in Tokyo? My office is in Kyobashi and my partner’s office is in Meguro. We would like to stay in a place where both of us can reach office in max 30 mins. What is the average rent like?
2. One of us is still finalizing on an internal job move and hence not having a sponsor for VISA. Hence have applied for dependent visa and will later get work permit after job confirmation as advised by the VISA agency. Has anyone done this process? How much time does it take?
3. Any other tips as we plan our move to Tokyo
4 comments
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**Hello! We are an Indian couple with no kids moving to Tokyo in Dec/Jan, wanted advice on a few things**
Hello! We are a couple with no kids moving to Tokyo in Dec/Jan, wanted advice on a few things
1. What are the best areas to stay in Tokyo? My office is in Kyobashi and my partner’s office is in Meguro. We would like to stay in a place where both of us can reach office in max 30 mins. What is the average rent like?
2. One of us is still finalizing on an internal job move and hence not having a sponsor for VISA. Hence have applied for dependent visa and will later get work permit after job confirmation as advised by the VISA agency. Has anyone done this process? How much time does it take?
3. Any other tips as we plan our move to Tokyo
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For question 1, honestly, do some research of your own. Make sure to familiarize yourself with the rules of this sub.
For question 2, as long as whichever one of you gets the dependent visa doesn’t start working until you get the correct work visa, that should be alright. A hasty change (within a couple months of getting here) could lead to some scrutiny, though.
For question 3, same as 1. There is loads of information in this sub; do some searching and come back when you have more specific questions!
Hello there!
Seems like you have a few options along the Namboku and Ginza lines. You’re mainly crossing three cites which are Meguro, Minato, and Chuo.
You could live in either end so that one of your jobs is walking distance and the other is a ~30 minute commute. Whichever one of you is pending work authorization could be the long commuter when their visa situation is resolved.
Minato is international and there are a lot of foreigners, one end is Roppongi; affluent on one end, and the other is party scene, and further on is seedy. You can get into a lot of fun and/or trouble in this area.
Chou/Kyobashi is going to be the most expensive. The Ginza line/area is ultra-fancy. Recommended if you have a lot of disposable income and discerning tastes in clothes, food, (people?), art, etc..
Meguro city is more affordable and is more convenient for getting around Tokyo in general because it can quickly take you to Shinjuku, Shibuya, Hiro-o, Roppongi, etc..
No matter which area you choose you will still enjoy a high quality of life and can experience the other areas at any time.
Welcome to Tokyo!
I love the minami Aoyama area and it’s on the ginza line that would fit your transport requirements. We looked at the kyobashi/ginza area for places and there aren’t many even with big budgets. Meguro, you can get some real bang for your buck there!!
When we were making a budget we used the suumo website to gauge how much is needed. Make a list of what you want in a place to make it feel like home. How many bathrooms, beds, size of kitchen and living room, balcony, gym? In our case, being away from home, we didn’t want to feel like we were sacrificing anything by moving here and it is a joy to live where we live.
We didn’t use suumo to finalise our place. We used an expat focused agency to settle everything. You can definitely pick some properties and take it to one of these agencies and they can advocate for you or let them tailor a search for you according to your list of requirements. I’ve also done it through straight domestic agencies in my youth and it is an uphill battle.
The expat focussed agencies are in the know about local scenes that relate to you and can offer practical advice. I’ve seen people say they are more expensive but I don’t think so, they get the same percentages as everyone else from landlords so they are already getting paid and compared to dealing with the hassle domestic focussed, it is worth it. Maybe some of the add-on services like movers or cleaners, shop around because that is charged at a premium. My agency is so awesome, I actually ended up actually working with them on a few projects!
Best of luck for the move. Get some warm jackets/hats/scarves for December! I also can recommend the heat-tec undershirts from Uniqlo if you want to dress light ✌️