Land values on Okinawa go down 21th consecutive year

NO DATA

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism announced official land on Mar. 21citing the as of Jan. 1, 2013.

According to the ministry, land prices in residential areas, commercial or industrial zones all went down by 0.5% compared to a year ago, marking the 21st consecutive year of decline. The good news is that the rate of decline is decreasing for the third year in a row.

Commercial land in Naha, Urasoe and a total of seven districts increased, and that is the first time in five years. Also land prices in three residential areas showed an increase. The reason seems to be the increasing population in Okinawa, and an increase in the number of transactions of housing and land sales. Officials in the ministry believe that the increased number of visiting tourists has an impact, too.

The Ministry researched 22 cities or towns in Okinawa at total 176 locations. The residential area land prices went down for the 18th consecutive year, and the rate of decline is 0.6% that is smaller than last year’s 1.1%. The figure has been smaller for three consecutive years, and it seems land prices are staying almost unchanged. The three areas where the prices increased are all in Shintoshin area in Naha. And the most declined area is Gishi district in Yaese town that went down 3.1% from last year. The area is old and built-up residential area, and that’s why it seems hard for younger people to settle in and build new houses, which would have a positive impact on land values.

Commercial land value also went down for the 22nd consecutive year, but the rate of decline is smaller for the 3rd year in a row. The decline this year is only 0.4 % when it was 1.4% last year.

The commercial land value rose most at the location of the Nippon Life Insurance Co. Naha building in Kumoji, Naha city, which increased 5.2% from a year ago. The land, on which the building sits, tops the price in Okinawa for the 12th consecutive year with one square meter valued at ¥755,000.

On the opposite end of the scale is commercial land in the Shimosato district or Hirara City on Miyako Island where the land value is 2.8% down.

The average of all land value, including residential and commercial areas is ¥87,700 per square meter. The top value residential area is the Omoromachi district in Shintoshin, Naha City, for the second consecutive year, and its ¥207,000 per square meter.