Debating buying an almost 30 year old apartment in Fukuoka

14 comments

1. 30 years is not that old for an apartment building. Should be okay for another 20 years.
   Please note that your tsumetatekin may go up as it is pretty cheap now.
   Of course I am not an expert and if this particular apartment is no good, I wouldn’t be able to say.

2. 44m in Fukuoka for a 81m3 condo is really quite expensive and add into that a 30 year old building. For context, we own a new construction 105m3 4LDK single family home with a yard and 3 parking spaces 10 minutes from the beach and it was only 34m yen. There are new houses in our city for as little as 27m yen. This is 25 minutes by train outside of Hakata, but still, for 44m apartment I would expect at least a new building, if not more space.

3. Close to the airport line and the park, good size and such. The age is not really a concern for me provided the right stuff is updated. It was built after some big earthquake laws. I would just check maintenance and management fees, as well as what repairs, if any, were done to the place in the last 30 years.

   Does seem a bit pricey to be honest.

4. It’s not bad but need to consider that the 修繕積立金 can get expensive the longer you live there since it’s old and there will be lots of broken stuff to fix. 30 years is when the building starts to require major repairs. There’s stories of ppl who bought it initially thinking it’s cheap then gets shocked of how much they have to pay for the 修繕積立金。It’ll be important to calculate an estimate of how much you’re expecting to pay every month (修繕積立金+管理費).

   Just some extra notes: from investment perspective, the resell value is not that great because of the age, so by the time you’re living in there, the newness of the renovation is gone and you’re left with an old building. It’ll be quite hard to sell it.

   Edit: maybe this [webpage](https://ieul.jp/column/articles/44997/) might help give you more insight?

5. The maintenance fee is extremely low and well below the recommended amount. In addition this is a small condo with only 26 units and presumably in an area with not much turnover. If your fellow owners are all in their 60s and 70s and have been there since day 1, they are going to be tight-knit and aren’t going to be thinking about future livability and property values but about reducing their current costs.

   Be sure to check the amount available in the sinking fund for maintenance and if there’s enough for the long-term maintenance plan. Check if large-scale maintenance has been carried out (it should be done every 12 years or so), when the next one is scheduled, and whether there’s enough funds for it to be carried out.

   Tax reduction will apply for this property. This building is on the new (current) earthquake standard.

6. I don’t k ow your pocket, but I wouldnt buy it. Take the money and buy a stand alone house with yard space. I was looking at apartments to buy but when I think about being stuck with crazy neighbors or them setting fires and ish, I declined. I got a great used house in a top neighborhood and my neighbors were the main reason I bought it. They’re all doctors and one family lived in NZ for 2 yrs and knew the challenges.

7. I used to live in Fukuoka and at that price you are mainly paying for the location – walking distance to Fukuoka Tower, the Dome and that lovely Momochihama beach. Its one of the most desirable parts of the city.

   When I lived there I was on the opposite side of town – Higashi Ku, which isn’t as nice but was way cheaper and also had access to nice beaches, etc.

   One thing to question is whether you intend to just have one child. If you might have another one then that apartment will get very crowded very quickly (I bought my house when we had just one, but we added another after moving in and the place that seemed so spacious at first is now insanely crowded, and we’ve got 105 sqm).

8. Thanks all, obviously the main appeal is the location and it’s walking distance to my work. I could live somewhere like Itoshima and buy a brand new place, but it would be great to avoid the hassle of getting on a train and this area is close to nice some of the nice parks in the city.

   Still, the points about zero resell value are valid. I will take a look at it but possibly Meinohama would meet most of my requirements too at a cheaper price.

   Appreciate all the solid advice!

9. I just bought a unit in a building that is exactly 30 years old. Built during the bubble by some top level companies in partnership it’s solid as a rock. IMO it’s how it was built and where more than how long ago – if it meets the newer quake standards.

10. That’s almost as much as we paid to buy land and build a new custom house with everything we wanted.

11. My wife’s family lives in the same apartment she did growing up. I think thats at least 35+ years and it looks quite nice still.

12. Shit deal that only a foreigner would buy

13. Don’t do it. Unless you know for a fact the condition of the building and all apartments. Which is near impossible to know.

14. One thing to consider is that street two blocks away gets heavy traffic as the nearby highway that cuts right through Momochihama. If you and your family are not sensitive to air pollution, may not be an issue, but it may not have the best air quality.