Leased land and leased buildings | NEEDS Property Research

The first distinction: 借地 (shakuchi) vs 借家 (shakuy)

Japanese property research begins with a binary question: is the interest in land or in a building? The Land and Building Leases Act (借地借家法) treats the two differently, and the difference determines which registry to search, which renewal rules apply, and what evidence a tenant or landowner must gather.

借地 (shakuchi), a lease of land only. The tenant owns the structure on it, or has the right to build one. The lease is registered against the land parcel.
借家 (shakka / shakuya), a lease of a building (or a unit within it). The landlord owns the structure; the tenant occupies it. The lease is usually not recorded in the land register because the structure itself is the leased object.

For due diligence, the decision rule is: identify which interest the record actually proves. A land lease (借地権) is an interest in the parcel; a building lease (借家権) is an interest in the structure. They create different registration entries, different renewal rights, and different documentation requirements.

Japanese real estate records

Japanese real estate (不動産, fudōsan) is recorded by parcel, not by address. A single structure can sit on multiple parcels, and a single parcel can hold multiple structures. This is why a redevelopment study must start from the cadastral map (地図, chizu) and the land register (登記簿, tōkibō), not from a mailing address.

The two registers are not fully integrated. The cadastral map shows parcel boundaries and parcel numbers (地番, chiban), while the land register records ownership, mortgages, easements, and other rights for each parcel. Both are maintained by the Legal Affairs Bureau (法務局, Hōmukyoku), but a boundary error on the cadastral map will not automatically appear in the land register, and vice versa. The National Land Numerical Information (国土数値情報, Kokudo Sūji Jōhō) is a separate digital dataset from MLIT; it is not a substitute for the official registers.

Documents to obtain for a purchase

登記簿 (tōkibō), the official land register for each parcel
地図 (chizu), the cadastral map for boundaries
建築確認申請 (kenchiku kakunin shinsei), the building confirmation filing lodged with the municipal authority
都市計画図 (toshi keikaku zu), the urban planning map showing zoning and road plans

A fixed asset tax register (固定資産税台帳, kotei shisan zei daichō) is held by the municipal authority, not by the Legal Affairs Bureau. It contains assessed values and structure details, but these assessed values are typically 50-70% of market price, so they cannot be used as a market proxy.

登記

登記 (tōki) means registration. The land register is divided into three sections:

Parcel identification (表題部, hyōdaibu), parcel number, area, and land category
Ownership (甲区, kōku), owner name, address, and acquisition cause
Rights and encumbrances (乙区, otsuku), mortgages, easements, and other rights

The registration system is not a single centralised database. Records are held by each local Legal Affairs Bureau, and a property search requires knowing which bureau has jurisdiction over the parcel. There is no unified national portal for private use.

A registration entry is not proof of a valid transaction. It is evidence that a transaction was recorded. If a seller has not recorded a transfer, the buyer may not appear in the register. This is why a title search must go back through the ownership chain, and why inheritance cases require the koseki (戸籍, family registry) to trace heirs.

Statutes to check before purchase

建築基準法 (kenchiku kijun-hō), the Building Standards Act, which governs structural safety, fire resistance, and site coverage
都市再開発法 (toshi saikaihatsu-hō), the Urban Redevelopment Act, which governs coordinated redevelopment projects
都市計画法 (toshi keikaku-hō), the Urban Planning Act, which governs zoning and land-use planning

Professionals: surveyor, scrivener, appraiser

A land and building surveyor (土地家屋調査士, tochi kaoku chōsa-shi) is the licensed professional who conducts boundary surveys and prepares registry filings. A judicial scrivener (司法書士, shihō shoshi) is the licensed professional who prepares and files court documents, including property registration filings. Neither is a substitute for the other. For a boundary dispute, the surveyor handles the field survey; for a registration filing, the scrivener handles the paperwork.

A real-estate appraiser (不動産鑑定士, fudōsan kantei-shi) is the licensed professional who produces formal valuation reports for litigation or financing. The Japan Association of Real Estate Agents (JAREA) publishes ethical standards and dispute-resolution guidelines, but it is not a government body and does not regulate agents.

Redevelopment Promotion Area

A redevelopment promotion area (市街地再開発促進区域, shigaichi saikaihatsu sokushin kuiki) is a designated zone where public-private redevelopment projects are encouraged. The designation is made by the municipal authority under the Urban Redevelopment Act. In such areas, the authority may publish redevelopment guidelines, and tenant relocation procedures are handled under the Urban Redevelopment Act.

The key point for a property owner: a designation does not force a sale. It creates a framework for a voluntary project, but the actual decision to participate is made by the owners. If a project is approved, the municipal authority may issue a public notice, and the owners may be required to participate or to sell their land. This is a separate process from a voluntary project.

Building Confirmation

A building confirmation filing (建築確認申請, kenchiku kakunin shinsei) is lodged with the municipal authority when a structure is constructed, enlarged, or substantially renovated. The submission includes drawings, structural calculations, and a site plan. The authority checks the submission against the Building Standards Act and the relevant local ordinances.

The filing is not a building permit. A building permit (建築許可, kenchiku kyoka) is a separate document. In practice, the confirmation filing is the document that is lodged, and the permit is the document that is issued. The distinction matters for a property search because a past approval may have lapsed if construction did not start within the statutory period.

Land price per square metre

Land price per square metre (地価, chika) is the price of a parcel divided by its area. The official fixed-asset valuation (固定資産税評価額, kotei shisan zei hyōka-gaku) is typically 50-70% of market price, so it cannot be used as a reliable market proxy. The published land price in the National Land Numerical Information is a separate dataset and is not a market price either.

For a redevelopment study, the relevant figure is the market price, not the official valuation. Obtain a market price from a licensed real-estate appraiser or from comparable sales data. The official valuation is useful for tax planning, but it is not a substitute for a market appraisal.

Structure age and seismic rating

Structure age (築年数, chikū nensū) is the number of years since construction. It is recorded in the building confirmation filing, not in the land register. A structure’s actual maintenance history matters more than its age on the register. A structure constructed before the 1981 seismic code revision may require costly upgrades, but a structure constructed after the revision is not automatically safe.

A seismic rating (耐震基準, taishin kijun) is based on design calculations, not on post-construction inspection. The rating is expressed as a scale (e.g., 1.0 or higher), where 1.0 represents the minimum standard. A rating of 1.0 or higher indicates that the structure meets the current seismic code, but the actual performance depends on the quality of construction and the condition of the structure.

Lease term and renewal rights

A lease term (賃貸借期間, chintaishaku kikan) is the term of a lease. The registered lease term may not reflect renewal rights under the Land and Building Leases Act (借地借家法, Shakuchi Shakuyahō). Under the Act, a tenant has a right to renew a lease for the same term, unless the landlord has a justifiable reason to refuse. The term of a lease is not the same as the term of the registered lease.

For a redevelopment study, the lease term matters because it determines the tenant’s right to compensation. The Land and Building Leases Act does not set a specific compensation amount. The compensation is determined by negotiation, and published guidelines are minima, not maxima. Actual negotiated amounts vary widely by project and by the tenant’s bargaining position.

How to assess your compensation position

Check the remaining lease term. A tenant with years left on a fixed-term lease has a stronger negotiating position than one on a month-to-month arrangement.
Measure the occupied floor area precisely, because compensation scales with space.
Obtain quotes for actual relocation costs: moving, fit-out of a comparable replacement space, and business interruption if applicable.
Compare the landlord’s initial offer against the published guideline minimum. Treat that minimum as a floor, not a target.
If the gap between the offer and your documented costs is large, instruct a judicial scrivener to review the lease registration and renewal history before you counter.

Relocation compensation band

Relocation compensation (立ち退き料, tachinoki-ryō) is the compensation paid to a tenant who is asked to vacate a property. Published guidelines are minima, not maxima. The actual amount depends on the tenant’s lease term, the remaining term of the lease, the size of the space, and the tenant’s relocation costs. The compensation is not a fixed amount per square metre.

For a tenant, the compensation band is the range of amounts that a court or a municipal authority might award. The band is not a legal ceiling. A tenant can negotiate for a higher amount, but the negotiation is limited by the tenant’s bargaining position, which depends on the lease term, the remaining term, and the availability of comparable space.

Encumbrance count

An encumbrance (担保, tanpo) is a mortgage, easement, lien, or other right that affects a parcel. The encumbrance count is the number of encumbrances recorded in the land register. A parcel with a single mortgage has an encumbrance count of one; a parcel with a mortgage and an easement has an encumbrance count of two.

For a redevelopment study, the encumbrance count matters because it affects the title. A parcel with a mortgage must be cleared before the title can be transferred. An easement (地役権, chieki-ken) is a right to use the parcel for a specific purpose, such as a road or a utility line. An easement may not prevent a sale, but it can affect the value of the parcel.

Steps to check encumbrances before bidding on a parcel

Request the full 登記簿 from the Legal Affairs Bureau that has jurisdiction over the parcel number (地番).
Read the 乙区 section entry by entry. Note every mortgage, pledge, easement, and provisional registration.
For each mortgage, confirm the secured amount and the creditor. Contact the creditor to obtain a payoff statement.
For each easement, obtain the original easement agreement from the bureau’s archived records and check whether the easement burden runs with the land or is personal to a specific neighbour.
If the encumbrance count is above two, instruct a judicial scrivener to prepare a redemption schedule before you make an offer.

Survey accuracy

A boundary survey (測量, sokuryō) is the measurement of a parcel’s boundaries. The survey is conducted by a land and building surveyor. The survey results are recorded in the cadastral map, but the survey is not automatically reflected in the land register. A boundary dispute may require a survey to resolve the dispute, but the survey is not a legal determination of ownership.

When to commission a new survey

The cadastral map shows a dashed or hand-drawn boundary line, indicating it was never confirmed by a surveyor.
The parcel area in the 表題部 section of the register does not match the area on the cadastral map by more than a few percent.
A neighbour has recently built a fence, retaining wall, or structure close to the apparent boundary.
The parcel is in a redevelopment promotion area and the project requires a current survey as a condition of participation.
The last recorded survey is older than the current seismic code revision (1981) and boundary markers may have been disturbed by subsequent construction.