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lifestyle

Japanese couples who want to try living together can now rent apartments for as little as one week

11 Comments
By Casey Baseel, SoraNews24

Unmarried couples living together have become largely accepted in Japanese society, but there are still some unique practical obstacles to the living arrangement. For starters, there are a ton of move-in costs when leasing a new apartment in Japan. Aside from security deposits and pre-payment of last and first month’s rent, a housing agency fee equal to one month’s rent is pretty standard, as is the charge known as reikin/”key money,” essentially a gratuity to the landlord that’s often as much as another two months’ rent.

Then there’s the fact that many Japanese apartments don’t come with air conditioning units, cooking stoves/ovens, or even interior lighting, so those are all things you’ll have to pay for. Oh, and if you live in a Japanese suburb or urban area, odds are you don’t have a car, which means you and your partner are going to have to hire a moving company to transport anything you don’t want to carry in your hands on the train to your new apartment.

Now, if you’ve found someone you want to share the rest of your life with, all of those costs start to sound like investments that are well worth it. But if you’re not 100 percent sure your love is going to last forever, there is a huge financial risk, especially since if it turns out you don’t like living together, moving back into apartments of your own means you each get to go through all those costs again. Add it all up, and it’s natural for Japanese couples to feel extra-apprehensive about moving in together, but that’s something Otameshi Dosei wants to help with.

▼ One of Otameshi Dosei’s furnished apartments

TD-5.png

Otameshi Dosei translates to “Trial Cohabitation,” and it’s a way for couples in Japan to try out living together to see how compatible their personalities are, and whether they’re ready for that step in their relationship. Offering short-term rentals of furnished apartments, with the cost of utilities and Wi-Fi bundled into the fixed price, Otameshi Dosei has just launched a new program that lets couples rent an apartment together for as little as one week, with prices starting at an amazingly low 15,000 yen. Configurations range from cozy studio apartments to more spacious four-bedroom layouts.

With no need to pay agency fees, reikin, or even to buy any furniture, couples can focus on whether their at-home lifestyles mesh and whether they really like spending so much time together, without having to spend hundreds of thousands of yen to get the answer. There’s also no need for a guarantor/lease co-signer, and Otameshi Dosei happily informs potential renters that its services are open to couples of any gender/nationality.

Otameshi Dosei offers apartments in Tokyo, Osaka, Sapporo (Hokkaido), and Naha (Okinawa), and requests for a current listing of one-week rentals can be made through its website here.

Sources: PR TimesOtameshi Dosei

Read more stories from SoraNews24.

-- What to do if you want to lower your apartment rent or avoid paying key money in Japan

-- Tokyo realtor will give you hundreds of dollars of anime decorations for your new apartment

-- Japan has a cat real estate agency, where every apartment lets you and your kitty live together!

© SoraNews24

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

11 Comments
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'Love' apartments! You go, Nihon! Japan is the only country I read about who occasionally make me smile with their wisdom and practicality...

-2 ( +4 / -6 )

I wouldn't rush out to DeBeers after just a week of Otameshi.

10 ( +10 / -0 )

Won't work and just gives a false sense of what someone is like. All that will happen is that they will both be on their best behavior for the duration of stay. Effectively is like traveling away with someone on holiday for a romantic week or two away.

8 ( +8 / -0 )

One week is not enough.

As for the so called difficulties when deciding to move it together, it’s the same in other countries. Some people never grow up and take adult responsibility for anything, including organising a home.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

If the price was really that low couples could use it for weekends and then linger periods as they transition from their single apartments

3 ( +4 / -1 )

When we got serious, I told my wife I want to live together for a while before making the big decision. We moved together for one year, things worked, and we got married. Probably it doesnt take one year for a Japanese couple to know each other, but for people who grew up in different cultures, I would say minimum one year is necessary.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

A big apartment is great for a family get-away. They may have just reinvented the affordable holiday retreat.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

So how is this different from renting an Air B&B for a week? What is a typical weekly rental rate?

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Good luck getting anything for anywhere near the low-end price.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

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