Aug 23 (Nikkei) - While most prices seem to be going up these days, one sector is heading the other way, Tokyo condo rents.
The average monthly rent for Tokyo condominiums declined 0.3% in July, the third consecutive month for the average to dip below the previous month's rate, according to Tokyo Kantei, a real estate data company.
The price per square meter in central Tokyo's 23 wards was 3,823 yen ($27.9) -- down 12 yen from June. It was also the first time in six months for the average monthly rent to decline on a year-to-year basis.
"Prices are going up but salaries are not," Masayuki Takahashi, chief analyst at Tokyo Kantei, told Nikkei Asia. "Consumers know they have to reduce living costs but can't cut expenditures for food and energy. It is only natural that they are trying to cut housing costs.
"Landlords know this and are reducing rent to fill up condos and lock in tenants."
Japanese consumers know that the worst is yet to come, Takahashi said, pointing to a survey by data analysis company Nowcast that shows supermarkets have been unable to raise store prices in line with announcements by food brands.
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