TOKYO - A hidden problem lies behind the seemingly ordinary streets of Setagaya Ward, Tokyo. A vehicle belonging to the ward’s government arrives at a heavily overgrown property. The team inside is part of a specialized task force dealing with abandoned homes, and today they are conducting an inspection of one such property.
The target is a building cloaked in thick vegetation. Its roof has collapsed, and ivy now clings to the remaining walls. Once there was a window, now only remnants remain. A narrow 97-centimeter-wide path is the only access to the building, making entry difficult.
Leading the team is Chiba, the head of Setagaya’s abandoned property countermeasures unit. “You can only get in by going through that path. This land belongs to a private owner, and without entering, we can’t proceed,” she says.
The property is designated as a “specified abandoned house,” a classification for structures that pose significant harm to their surroundings. Setagaya Ward has issued a demolition order, but the owner has yet to comply.
“This is a preliminary investigation to prepare for demolition,” Chiba explains. Due to the narrow pathway, regular heavy equipment cannot be brought in for demolition work.
Locals express unease about the mysterious, deteriorating property. An empty beer can was recently found at the site, raising questions about who might be entering the building. Beyond attracting vermin, such structures are considered potential sites for crime.
“It’s scary. If it collapses while someone’s inside... There’s corrosion in the steel beams and holes. It’s dangerous,” a neighbor says.
Setagaya Ward has so far designated 13 such properties as “specified abandoned houses.” Owners of these properties lose eligibility for housing tax benefits and must pay around six times the usual fixed asset tax. If owners continue to neglect their responsibilities, the ward can proceed with demolition and later bill the owner for the cost.
On another day, Chiba returns to a similar property for inspection. As the team approaches, the camera is asked to stop filming. “There are still items we might be able to retrieve,” she says. A broken lock allows access through a window, releasing a damp, musty odor typical of abandoned homes. “It’s the same smell we encounter in all of them,” she notes.
Photos from six years ago show the property once had a roof and windows. Now, the roof has collapsed and the second floor has rotted through, accelerated by recent extreme heat and torrential rains. Due to safety concerns, the team decides not to enter the building that day.
The impact of a single abandoned home extends beyond its walls. A study shows that one neglected property can lower the value of neighboring homes by 3%. Nationwide, efforts are underway to tackle the issue.
An estimated 9 million homes across Japan now sit vacant, with the number expected to rise. “If nobody does anything, our communities will be full of these abandoned homes,” a resident warns.
The problem often forces families to make difficult choices: whether to preserve or demolish a family home. “You can’t take it with you to the next life,” one participant says. Another adds, “My emotional attachment won’t let me leave.”
Roughly 90% of abandoned homes are neither sellable, rentable, nor easy to tear down. “We’re at a point where some owners are ready to give them away for free,” says one observer. “It’s really hopeless in many cases.”
In Setagaya Ward—Tokyo’s most populous area, with around 510,000 households—the issue is especially visible. Despite being a desirable area near Shibuya and including high-profile neighborhoods like Futako-Tamagawa, the ward leads Japan in the number of vacant homes, with about 58,000.
The increase is tied to rapid aging and depopulation in recent years. To address the problem, the ward repurposed an abandoned high school into a hub for abandoned home countermeasures. Here, Chiba shows a wall filled with files documenting properties they’ve investigated. By definition, an abandoned home is a building that has been unused for over a year.
However, the ward cannot simply seize or repurpose these properties, as they remain the legal property of individual owners. The process depends heavily on the owner's intentions and decisions, which often remain unresolved.
To help address this, the ward partnered with Wada, chairman of Aki Co., Ltd., a private company with expertise in abandoned property solutions. Together, they launched “Setagaya Akiya Navi” four years ago, offering a free consultation service that suggests possible solutions ranging from renovation to demolition.
“The biggest value of working with Setagaya Ward is public trust,” Wada says. One of his key insights is that the core issue is psychological. “Owners feel stuck. They don’t know what to do, so they put it off—and that’s how a home becomes abandoned,” he explains.
To address this, Wada hosts monthly “House Closure Seminars” to help owners plan before a house becomes abandoned. “The real problem is not knowing where to turn. People don’t know where to begin, so they end up doing nothing,” he says.
He even created a “House Closing Activity Handbook,” outlining three steps: awareness, preparation, and action. At a recent seminar, a woman from Oita attended. Her parents have passed away, and their house in Setagaya is now a burden. “It looks like selling may be the only option left,” she says as she leads the team to the family home.
Source: テレ東BIZ
