Join Our Newsletter
  • Visit Our Store
  • Come Write for J-List!
J-List Blog
Visit J-List - Your Favorite Online Shop and Friend in Japan
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan
No Result
View All Result
J-List Blog
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan
No Result
View All Result
J-List Blog
No Result
View All Result

New Black Friday Sale + Questions About Umaru’s Room

Peter Payne by Peter Payne
6 years ago
in Your Friend in Japan

Fistful Of Yen And Himouto Umaru

A New Black Friday Sale, and Questions about Housing in Japan

Black Friday is here, and J-List has…a new sale for you! Our awesome Black Friday and Cyber Instant Bulk Discount Sale gets you up to $40 off orders you make for the rest of November! Start shopping now!

Ever since the “All Your Base Are Belong To Us” video exploded our Hotmail accounts back in 2001, the Internet has been driven by memes. While memes are fun to share online, they often don’t translate well from country to country. You or I might be familiar with “Yo Dawg” or “I see you’re a man of culture as well” but Japanese would not, while most of us don’t know American comedian Atsugiri Jason and his famous line, “Why, Japanese people?!”, which every person from the age of eight to eighty here knows. One meme that does cross cultures nicely is “A Fistful of Yen” which seems kind of fitting for our big new sale…

I was watching the newest episode of Himouto! Umaru-chan the other day and realized that the room Umaru and her brother Taihei share might look unique to people living outside Japan. So I asked my Facebook, Twitter and Instagram followers if they had any questions on housing in Japan they’d like answered. Here’s what we came up with!

What are Japanese apartments like?
There are two types of apartments in Japan: apaato, referring to an apartment in a building made of wood, and mansion, a word that’s been redefined to refer to units in higher-end buildings made of steel and concrete. (This linguistic change causes Japanese people to perceive the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland differently from us.)

How big are rooms?
They can be smaller than you might be used to. There are words like “3LDK” which describes an apartment with three bedrooms and a large living-dining-kitchen. Umaru’s room is small, just a 1K, with one main room and a small kitchen and bath. Room sizes are always described by the number tatami mats that would fit in the room if it were a tatami room. The room Umaru and Taihei share would be about a 10-mat room.

How much is rent in Japan?
Housing in Japan can be surprisingly affordable, for a few reasons. The Japan Asset Bubble — during which all the land in Tokyo was worth more than all the land in the USA on paper — burst in 1991, leading to an economic hangover that made 2008-2009 look like a stroll in the park. The effects of that bubble are only just wearing off, and Tokyo land prices started rising for the first time in decades, partially because of the 2020 Olympics. (Remember that local salaries have also been held down by the bursting of the bubble.)

In Tokyo the average apartment goes for $900, though you can get that down to $450 if you’re willing to live farther from the train station or in an older building. In Gunma, 100 km north of Tokyo, it’s even cheaper, $400-500 for an apartment with 2-3 rooms. Two factors that keep housing cheap are, Japan builds tons of new housing every year, plus up to 20% of houses in Japan are empty, inherited from dead parents just not needed. These properties are hard to sell or redevelop, because who would want to live in a “used” house?

Can Someone Making Minimum Wage Afford to Live?
It’s definitely easier here than in many other places. The average part-time wage in Tokyo is 1000 yen/US$10.94/€9.25, at the current exchange rate, though you can earn more by doing jobs others don’t want to do. One thing I’m happy about is the number of women in Japan who are able to take five years off for child raising before returning to work, since it’s not impossible to get by on the husband’s salary alone. I consider this a major achievement of modern Japanese society.

Do Japanese really rebuild their houses every 20 years?
During the tail end of the Tokyo bubble it was fashionable to 立て直し (tear down your old house and replace it with a new one), as a way to show off your wealth. These days it’d be more common to “reform” (what the Japanese call remodel) your existing home to fit your changing needs. My house is 40 years old and has been “reformed” many times.

Got any more questions about housing in Japan? Talk to us on social media!

Black Friday Anime Sale

Our Black Friday and Cyber Instant Bulk Discount Sale is live! Here’s how it works: through the end of November, get $5 off $40 or more, $20 off $100 or more, or $40 off $200 or more. Make a big order of awesome figures, traditional items, snacks of “naughty products” and save.

Tags: J-ListJapanMegumi

More Posts Like This

J List Now Does Special Orders And Price Matching
Your Friend in Japan

J-List Announces Special Orders, Price Matching!

by Peter Payne
2 months ago

For more than 25 years, J-List has been your Friend in Japan®, bringing crazy and fun products from Japan to...

Thumb 1920 445809
Your Friend in Japan

25 Years of Anime Blogging…and American Godzilla?

by Peter Payne
3 months ago

I happened to notice that today marks the 25th anniversary of the Japanese release of the 1998 American Godzilla film....

Jlist Square New Shipping Rates V3

Enjoy Lower Shipping on the New J-List Site!

5 months ago
Jlist Status Report

New J-List Site Status Update!

6 months ago
Typhoon Nanmadol Dangerous

Five Ways Japan Might Try to Kill You!

1 year ago
You've Been In Japan Too Long When

The Ultimate ‘You’ve Been in Japan Too Long When…’ List!

2 years ago
Next Post
The Origin Of Hentai

The Origin of Hentai and Other Anime terms

Trending Today

Why Is Umi Yatsugake So Popular
Your Friend in Japan

Why is Umi Yatsugake The Most Popular JAV Actress?

6 days ago
Ayakashi Triangle Blu Ray Censorship
Your Friend in Japan

Are the Ayakashi Triangle Blu-rays Uncensored? YES THEY ARE.

2 days ago
Roxy Migurdia Blog Post
Figures

This is the Roxy Migurdia Figure We All Needed!

1 week ago
J List Staff Pick Waifus 2022 3
Featured

Fashionable Gyaru Girls in Anime

2 days ago
Megami Magazine November 2023
Anime Magazine

Need More Anime Posters? The New Megami Magazine is In Stock!

1 day ago
Get the Newest Figures from J-List - Your Favorite Online Shop and Friend in Japan
Megami Magazine November 2023
Anime Magazine

Need More Anime Posters? The New Megami Magazine is In Stock!

by Peter Payne
October 3, 2023

Anime Rewind! Let’s Look at Koi Kaze, the Best Sister Love Anime!

My Tiny Senpai, Episode 11: Smol Fan Wants Big Hug!

Tokyo Game Show Celebrates the Return of Cosplay

20 Years of Saya no Uta Pt. 2 — Story Analysis

TenPuru, Episode 12 [END]: Where Are You Looking?

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Discord
  • YouTube

© J-LIST. All trademarks, characters and images are property of their respective owners.

No Result
View All Result
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan

© J-LIST. All trademarks, characters and images are property of their respective owners.