Akiya

Japan’s akiya properties have been the subject of a great deal of media attention lately, whether among those seeking to escape the corporate grind in urban Japan or millennials overseas who see their dreams of property ownership slipping away with rising prices in their home country. You may have head of akiya houses in Japan selling for very cheap, and sometimes even being listed for free!...

Western news media homed in on the story of Japan’s depopulation crisis and the eerie ghost towns left behind about a decade ago now. More recently, though, the focus has been on the abandoned properties up for grabs. Headlines like Japan Is Giving Away 8 Million Abandoned Houses — Here’s How to Get One and Want a free country house in Japan? They’re giving them away may raise...

Gilles bought an akiya in Kyushu for under $10,000 and turned it into a lovely cafe / atelier / lodging.  Here’s his story! *All the photos on this page are of the house Gilles bought and the surroundings. Would you mind quickly introducing yourself to our readers? How long have you lived in Japan and what brought you there originally? Gilles: I am originally from France, and I came...