Japan has 9 million empty homes. Are they a good investment?

Summary

Real Estate Without Borders: Episode Summary

Title: Japan has 9 million empty homes. Are they a good investment?

Release Date: May 5, 2025
Host/Author: Real Estate Without Borders

---

1. Overview

In this episode of "Real Estate Without Borders," hosts A and B delve into a captivating real estate phenomenon: Japan's staggering 9 million empty homes, locally known as "Akiya." As global urbanization intensifies housing shortages in major cities, Japan faces a paradox of abundant vacant properties in rural and suburban areas. The hosts explore the investment potential of these homes, comparing Japan's situation with similar trends in other countries, and discuss the challenges and opportunities for international investors.

2. Japan's Empty Home Phenomenon

The episode opens with B introducing the central topic:

B [00:07]: "Welcome to another eye-opening episode of Real Estate Without Borders. Today we are diving into the most fascinating property phenomenon in our time, which is Japan's Ikea Aki A."

Japan's "Akiya" are largely abandoned homes scattered across the country, available for remarkably low prices—sometimes as little as a dollar. This situation stems from significant cultural shifts, demographic changes, and urban migration, resulting in a unique investment landscape that attracts both seasoned investors and curious newcomers.

Key Points:

• Scale: Japan's issue is unparalleled, with approximately 9 million vacant homes as of 2023.
• Location: Predominantly in rural and picturesque villages, reminiscent of settings from anime like Princess Mononoke.
• Government Involvement: Official documents confirm the extent of the vacant properties, highlighting a national concern.

3. Similar Trends in Other Countries

The discussion broadens to include similar phenomena in Italy, Spain, Greece, and South Korea, where rural depopulation has led to ghost villages and abandoned properties.

A [03:30]: "And you have to like spend a certain amount to like 20k euros or something. So like it's... it ends up not actually being that good of a deal..."

Highlights:

• Italy: Rural villages offer homes for as little as €1 to rejuvenate abandoned communities, often requiring buyers to renovate within a set timeframe.
• Spain: Regions like Galicia and Asturias have entire hamlets up for sale, with opportunities to transform them into resorts or other ventures.
• Greece: Many islands and rural areas face similar abandonment due to younger generations moving to urban centers.
• South Korea: Parallels Japan's situation with demographic challenges leading to rural property abandonment.

4. Investment Models and Opportunities

A significant portion of the episode focuses on investment strategies to capitalize on Japan's Akiya, particularly highlighting Shu Matsuo's innovative model.

a. Shu Matsuo's Model

Shu Matsuo, founder of Post Fee and co-founder of IKEA Hub, presents a "done-for-you" service tailored for international investors aiming to purchase, renovate, and monetize Japan's vacant homes.

B [07:39]: "Shu Matsuo's model of profiting from IKEA for short term stays and exploring different ROI avenues."

Features of Shu’s Model:

• Acquisition Assistance: Handles sourcing, purchasing, and renovating properties.
• Property Management: Manages rentals through platforms like Airbnb, targeting high rental yields (5-10%).
• Overcoming Barriers: Addresses language, cultural nuances, and logistical challenges, making it appealing for non-residents.

b. Anton Wurman's Experience

Anton Wurman, a content creator and real estate investor, exemplifies successful investment in Japan's Akiya market.

B [20:20]: "Anton Wurman... ended up buying a place in Japan. And six years later, he owns seven Ikeas and works as a full-time content creator and real estate investor in Japan."

Anton’s journey illustrates the potential for substantial revenue, with his properties reportedly generating six figures annually.

5. Challenges and Barriers

Despite the enticing low entry costs, several obstacles make investing in Akiya complex.

a. Demographic Decline

Japan's population peaked around 2009 at approximately 128 million and has since declined to about 124 million.

A [06:20]: "Japan's population looks to have peaked at like 128 million in 2009, and now it's down to about 124 million."

This shrinking population exacerbates the demand-supply imbalance, as fewer people are available to purchase and occupy homes outside urban centers.

b. Cultural and Logistical Hurdles

Investors must navigate Japan's cultural landscape to ensure successful integration and acceptance within local communities.

B [21:40]: "Local communities may resist outsiders, especially foreigners, buying a Kia, fearing disruption or neglect cultural."

• Language Barriers: Non-Japanese speakers may find it challenging to manage properties without proficient language skills.
• Cultural Integration: Success requires active participation in community events and respect for local norms, deterring casual investors.
• Regulatory Hurdles: Navigating Japan’s property laws, visas, and residency requirements adds layers of complexity.

c. Financial Considerations

• Renovation Costs: Initial purchase prices are low, but renovation can demand substantial investment (e.g., a €1 home may require €100k in repairs).
• Property Taxes and Maintenance: Ongoing costs can erode potential profits, especially in areas with low rental demand.
• Market Saturation: With millions of vacant houses, competition among investors can limit rental yields and property appreciation.

6. Is It a Good Investment?

The hosts debate the viability of Akiya as a profitable investment avenue.

A [15:25]: "I think it's can be... Maybe you can get a loan and renovate the property and Airbnb it... it might just not actually be that good of an investment."

Pros:

• Low Entry Cost: Initial purchase prices make it accessible for investors with limited capital.
• Unique Opportunities: Potential to convert historic or scenic properties into lucrative rental assets.

Cons:

• High Upfront and Ongoing Costs: Renovations and maintenance can offset low purchase prices.
• Low Demand: Limited rental interest in remote or less desirable locations diminishes revenue potential.
• Cultural and Logistical Barriers: Significant effort required to integrate and manage properties effectively.

7. Conclusion and Future Outlook

The episode concludes with a nuanced perspective on Japan’s Akiya market. While there are opportunities for savvy investors willing to navigate the complexities, the challenges—demographic decline, cultural barriers, and financial risks—pose significant hurdles.

B [21:27]: "Shu Matsuo emphasizes respecting local sensibilities... you need to create a good community and good social network in Japan in order to make it successful."

The hosts express interest in further exploring the topic by inviting experts like Shu Matsuo and Anton Wurman to share deeper insights and firsthand experiences. They emphasize that while the Akiya phenomenon presents intriguing possibilities, it requires a strategic and informed approach to transform vacant homes into profitable investments.

Final Thoughts: Investing in Japan’s empty homes can be rewarding but demands thorough due diligence, cultural understanding, and a willingness to engage deeply with the local environment. As global urbanization trends continue, Japan's Akiya may serve as a microcosm for similar challenges and opportunities worldwide, offering valuable lessons for international real estate investors.

---

Notable Quotes:

• B [00:07]: "Imagine this... 9 million empty houses scattered across one of the world's most expensive countries, some selling for less than the price of your morning coffee habit."

• A [03:30]: "So like it's... it ends up not actually being that good of a deal because I really looked into those ones..."

• B [07:39]: "Shu Matsuo's model of profiting from IKEA for short term stays and exploring different ROI avenues."

• B [20:20]: "Anton Wurman... ended up buying a place in Japan. And six years later, he owns seven Ikeas and works as a full-time content creator and real estate investor in Japan."

• A [06:20]: "Japan's population looks to have peaked at like 128 million in 2009, and now it's down to about 124 million."

• B [21:40]: "Local communities may resist outsiders, especially foreigners, buying a Kia, fearing disruption or neglect cultural."

---

Join the Conversation:

Hosts A and B encourage listeners to engage by subscribing, leaving reviews, and sharing the episode with others interested in international real estate investment. They also express eagerness to connect with industry experts to provide deeper insights in future episodes.

---

Stay Tuned:

For those intrigued by the potential of Japan’s empty homes or similar global real estate trends, this episode offers a comprehensive exploration of the opportunities and challenges, setting the stage for informed and strategic investment decisions.

Transcript

[A]

Like the pauses aren't too long and people give us negative comments. Anyway, hit me with this intro.

[B]

Gotcha. Ready? Are you ready for the intro?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Let's go. Welcome to another eye opening episode of Real Estate Without Borders. Today we are diving into the most fascinating property phenomenon in our time, which is Japan's Ikea Aki A. For those of you that want to Google that because I probably said it wrong. Now imagine this. Okay. 9 million. I said that right. Million. Empty houses scattered across one of the world's most expensive countries, some selling for less than the price of your morning coffee habit. As housing crisis grip the major cities worldwide, Japan faces a unique predicament that's drawing attention from investors and dreamers alike. Crazy in.

[A]

In. Yeah, it is funny. Also, how do you know about my morning coffee habit? My expense.

[B]

Dude, that's. Honestly, though, I'm a big. I've been crushing the coffee here. You know Jimmy's coffee.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I'd love for them to sponsor me.

[A]

I like I'll be able to buy a house. Timmy is Timmy's.

[B]

You know what's funny? I haven't had Timmy's ex. I don't want. I need to ease into the. The North American or the Canadian food.

[A]

Yeah, you're. Well, yeah, it's. Tim's is full laxative. Right. Like, you're guaranteed. You don't. If you got. If you're backed up, just double.

[B]

You have to have your first sip.

[A]

You need to be. No, you can't. You can't do it in the road. You gotta have a bathroom nearby.

[B]

Disaster.

[A]

Anyway, that was not appropriate for the episode. In this episode, we're going to unravel how cultural shifts, demographic changes in urban migration have created a remarkable situation. It's not just happening in Japan, but we're going to talk about it in the context of Japan. We'll mention a couple of other places where this is happening, where you have these ancient homes in beautiful, picturesque Japanese villages. Think about the settings that you would see in Princess Mononoke, you know, like another anime. What's the one with no face? I can't remember. Like, I'm going to look that up. But anyway, I mean, these. These are basically being given away. And so we're going to. We're going to explore why these properties, which. Which might seem like the deal of a lifetime, have kind of come and trapped a lot of aspiring global investors who want to buy them. But they come with their own set of challenges and opportunities. So whether you're an investor, maybe a digital Nomad who thinks they're going to go live in the mountains in Japan, or someone just fascinated by global real estate trends. I think you're going to enjoy this deep dive into Japan's empty house phenomena. So before we get into that.

[B]

Sorry. Go, go, go.

[A]

No, yeah, I was just gonna say the, the. What are the other kind of countries where we're seeing something similar happening?

[B]

Man, I was. Sorry before I had to. What's the commission on that? Yeah, 30 cents.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah, I guess. Yeah. If you're getting 3%. Yeah. Three cents for a buck.

[B]

You gotta slang. Four million houses.

[A]

So this is why, this is why. This is why nobody's heard of these is because North American realtors haven't got a hold of them yet because there's no commission on them.

[B]

Fair enough. We're going to talk about. Basically, you can buy a house in Japan for a dollar. It doesn't sound real, but we're going to get to the bottom of this. Hang in there. Similar trends in other countries where this is also happening to an extent. Some of you might have heard of these more commonly than, I think, Japan, Italy. Many rural villages offer homes for little as €1 to attract new residents and revitalize abandoned communities. These incentives often require builders, or, sorry, buyers, to renovate the property within a specific time frame. I think it's like a year, two years maybe.

[A]

Yeah. And you have to like spend a certain amount to like 20k euros or something. So like it's. It ends up not actually being that good of a deal because I like really looked into those ones because I like. I love Italy, everyone.

[B]

I just. You know what? I've never been. But I got to go. I'm going to go. I actually just bought tickets to the Winter Olympics in Italy. I know. I'm going to go watch the hockey down there. I think that'd be super cool.

[A]

Yeah. That's sick.

[B]

Spain. Rural depopul. Depopulation has led to numerous ghost villages, particularly in regions like Galicia and Astronas, where entire ham.

[A]

I thought you learned Spanish in Mexico, dude.

[B]

I can't roll my R's, man. That's why I gave up, because I sound like an absolute idiot.

[A]

Just leaves Mexico. That's why I'm back in Canada now. Feel everybody made fun of me for the way I talked.

[B]

Ola. That's my where. What's where? Entire hamlets are sometimes up for sale. What's a hamlet?

[A]

So a little like you can literally buy an entire village in some of these places. Yeah, it's crazy, dude. There Was there was actually a deal announced like a couple of years ago where like a, a resort company, like literally bought one of these old villages. I think it was in Italy, but like, and they're going to turn into like a resort because it was like this tiny little like fishing village. And it was. Yeah, it was super.

[B]

Was it Flex as I'm going to put in my Instagram bio. Hamlet Multi. Multi. Hamlet owner. This guy's got, this guy's got endless hamlets. Also Greece. Many islands and rural areas face abandonment as younger generations move to urban centers, leaving behind traditional properties and family homes.

[A]

So yeah, we talked about this in the last. In the Missing Middle episode as well. Right. Like, people are, people are wondering, oh, why does everybody want to what? You know, the 15 Minute Cities conspiracy. But the reality is everyone's urbanizing. Like 80 of the global population is gonna be urban. People are not living on these old, you know, estates. Like, dude, there was a guy who's gonna come on the show that afford a home guy who, remember I sent you his thing. He like, it was like a olive, an olive farm in like Greece for like, for like 400 grand. And it was like 200 acre olive farm. Like, I'm like, like, I guess you need, at that point you need like a PJ or like some way to get. For sure because it is super remote. But yeah, man, like, this is the, the thing is a lot of these old rural properties, they're basically just being left because nobody wants to buy them. Everybody's going to live in the cities. And now you've got all these beautiful old rural estates like in the mountains or like. And yeah, I don't know, it's just super fascinating to me. Then I think Europe's like really a canary in the coal mine, which what could happen to a lot of other places in the world as their populations age and young people start leaving the, the suburban areas.

[B]

True. No, that's a good point. And lastly, we got South Korea, which is similar to Japan. They face demographic challenges leading to rural property abandonment. Like, we just talked about the same kind of thing. So. Yeah, dude, you gotta toss this photo up on the screen, man.

[A]

Yeah, I do for sure. So. And I think the thing that really makes Japan unique is that, that it's the, the sheer scale. Right? Like, nowhere else has this, this issue that's happening at 9 million of these properties. Like, you know, we can estimate it in some of these other countries, but like Japan's obviously it's a, it's a highly populous country and so and it went through a huge boom. And if you kind of look back at Japan's economy, like it, it peaked in like the early 90s, right. And then it went through this huge like deflation period. This, their stock market literally just hit like within the last year, just hit its peak.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

But, but all of this to say like, you know, Japan kind of went through this big period, this big population explosion and then now it's going through this demographic collapse similar to Italy and similar to a lot of these other countries that we just listed. South Korea is another one. Their birth rates collapsed. This is why. And Japan hasn't, hasn't backfilled a lot of that population decrease from their population aging and dying off. They haven't backfilled that with immigration. Like places like Canada or the US have or, or the UK is another good example. And so what this has resulted in is 9 million of these IKEAs, which is these empty houses across Japan. And that's according to official government documents as of 2023.

[B]

9 million is crazy. I'm trying to look into without getting too off, off the train here. It's. I wanted obviously we're going to cover how investors turn these liabilities into assets and like, for like rentals and renovations. It's saying here because I think I'm learning as we go, obviously discuss Shu Matsuo's model of profiting from IKEA for short term stays and exploring different ROI avenues. I'm going to dive into this for us later.

[A]

We're not going to do it right now. Just tell me. I'm intrigued. Suspense is killing me. She's going to hit me with that and be like, but sorry.

[B]

Okay, let me, let me give it to you. Shu Matsuo.

[A]

I don't know who that is, I have to say. So one of my favorite parts about like the fact that this podcast like is us traveling the world is getting to listen to you try and say words from other languages.

[B]

I'm still trying to master English, man. And you got me speaking Japanese over here. It's really unfair to be honest. All right. Shu Matsuo posts model for IKEA investment as discussed in the context of Japan's real estate market refers to his strategic approach to helping foreigners and investors purchase, renovate and profit from Japan's vacant homes. Yada, yada, yada. As the founder of Post Fee and co founder IKEA Hub, Shu leverages his expertise in real estate, investor, educator and bilingual, a consultant to simplify the complex process of acquiring and monetizing ikea. His model is particularly Appealing to international investors due to done for you service which addresses language barriers, cultural nuances and logistical challenges below. So I'll talk about this in a second. So understanding the model. It's. It's built on the premise that Japan's 9 million vacant homes represent a unique opportunity obviously for affordable real estate investment, particularly in rural or sub semi urban areas. Turning the properties into cash flowing assets for non residents and foreigners. Now let's see how. How education, transparency. So he. This, whoever this is. Shoot, we gotta. Who is this guy who's shooting?

[A]

I'm subscribing to his site right now though.

[B]

So yeah, let's follow this guy.

[A]

I'm clicking through. Oh we are. That's why I'm trying to join so I can figure out how to shoot a DM.

[B]

So he's always educating people through his YouTube channel. Post fee is the website or IKEA Hub offering free guides on how to buy as a foreigner or paid courses. Genius. What a scumbag though monetizing the he owes. I want some commission referrals for my 30 cents for every house I sell. Basically he's covering content on how to do due diligence, check for termite damage.

[A]

Yeah, you can click on his website IKEA Hub as well. He has post. Post Fi. I guess phi is financial independence. Is that what it's supposed to be?

[B]

I thought it was like a Japanese word like fi but I could be wrong.

[A]

I feel like it's like fi. Like that, you know like the Fira people fire financial independence, retire early. I think that's what it's supposed to be. Yeah. Anyway, I clicked through this so if you. I clicked to start my journey today thing here and then I.

[B]

How much is he charging?

[A]

Clicked on all these buttons. Well, I don't know, I'm gonna find out but you know it's like right here and I go Investment property Advanced. Clicked all my areas here. Then a hundred K, maybe more than a year. Ideal outcome. I'm just gonna see if it'll let me ghost that one. It did, that's cool. What is my Japanese proficiency level?

[B]

Well, Dave, my friend Dave, maybe slightly.

[A]

Slightly better than Dave's, but probably none. Tell us about yourself. I'm gonna fill it out and then let's just hit the send button, see what happens. Please review our terms.

[B]

You're supposed to sign up for a lifetime membership.

[A]

Signed away my kidney. And you gotta get my code from Gmail here. Anyway, I don't know.

[B]

Let's keep going.

[A]

Yeah, tell me more about this system that this guy's saying, okay, so he has that.

[B]

He also has a done for you service where he basically like you can buy within three months. They handle the entire acquisition from sourcing the property to purchase and renovation. And then they'll, they'll like actively rent do like rentals for you. They partner with platforms like a leasing agency to find you tenants. They do due diligence for you. They focus on cash flow and roi. So they prioritize properties with high rental Yield targeting like 5 to 5% through short term rentals like Airbnb and they'll do that for you. Interesting.

[A]

So, so it's 20 bucks USD a month for this IKEA hub. We're gonna have to get this guy on the show for sure.

[B]

He sounds genius model though.

[A]

Oh, it's a great model.

[B]

Interesting. Oh, connection. Oh, look my, I guess my chat GBT is trying to put us together here. It says connection to missing middle housing. Shoes model intersects with missing middle housing medium density typologies like duplexes or small multiplexes because Japan's flexible zoning allows such structures on small lots, unlike restrictive North American codes. For example, Japan's lack of single family residential, unlike pre2019 Minneapolis, which we talked about last episodes, permits a two to three story IKEA to be converted into triplexes or courtyard apartments. Done fitting that missing middle model.

[A]

I guess the question becomes, and this is my concern with this, these actually being an investment, because it's probably, I think you do one of those things where there's a catch, right? And you have to be careful.

[B]

There's got to be a catch.

[A]

Well, the catch is that the population's in contraction and unless they figure, you know, decide that they're going to start letting large scale immigration take place, there's really no growth scenario that exists. So yeah, maybe you can get a loan and renovate the property and Airbnb it. And what? Because you know, you'll get some travelers who want to use your triplex Airbnb and stay in it. You know, given that we're talking about this and this guy's got this program and there's tons of interest in this kind of thing, right? It might, might not. It might just not actually be that good of an investment. Right? Like, and it's not like the property value is going to go up because it's not. You know, look at the US and Canada. The reason property values are going up is because there's more, more buyers than houses.

[B]

Right.

[A]

You know, they have a housing shortage in Japan. They have the opposite you're competing with 9 million other vacant houses. So.

[B]

Well, that's, I, I, I'm, I'm, I'm trying to find out like why, why is nobody, why are more people not buying these? Why is it not more talked about? And there's a few points that exactly it, I think so. It talks about high renovation costs and hidden expenses. So it's like you could buy a house for 26,000, but it may need, you know, 100k to fix up because of, I guess it's, there's a lot of earthquakes in Japan. Is that a thing? I guess.

[A]

And then I guess there would be property tax too, right? Like your annual property tax, maintenance fees.

[B]

He's mentioned low, low demand. Like that's what I was thinking. If these, I'm assuming investors that are seeking out like Airbnb or like long term rental, like, I'm assuming these are in terrible locations like where nobody wants to be or they, yeah, like.

[A]

Well, yeah, because if it was, if it was in a good, if it was like, you know, center ice, well located.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Asset, then they wouldn't be needing to give it away, you know?

[B]

Right.

[A]

There's a reason that, that they can't give these things away and it's because they're, nobody wants them because they're not, not a good, not probably not a good deal. I mean, look, like to me it's like if you're an individual wants like a nice rural getaway in Japan to go and spend like one month of the year and you're gonna Airbnb it the rest of the year and it's a lifestyle play. It sounds like it's kind of like investing in a cottage in North America and you also Airbnb it when you're not using it. But you're, but really the true benefit and the true return that you get from it is the fact that you now get a cottage and maybe it's like it kind of pays for itself. You know, like when people used to like deal drugs in high school and they would do it just to like support their own. Like, you know, that's, that's kind of like what it's, that's kind of like, I think. Right.

[B]

There's a few other things. Like Ikea investments are often one off projects requiring significant time and effort. So to scale a portfolio, I think would, would take quite a long time, according to what this is saying here.

[A]

Yeah, well, like, I think it's like not a lot of like, I don't like again, if you're Going to be doing like big renovations and whatever. You might as well get a better return, like take a bigger project. Or you can, you know, like go build the missing middle like we talked about in the last one. If you' to be taking, you know, don't buy a $1 house and spend 100k on it to make like 5 grand a year or whatever. Right.

[B]

You. You mentioned something about the Japan's shrinking population. Can you say what's going on with that? It's been shrinking for. Since the nineteen nineteen nineties. Is that what you said?

[A]

Has been shrinking for the 90s? I actually don't know how long the population's been shrinking, but let's just look it up. Japan.

[B]

It also mentions like a weakening yen.

[A]

Yeah. So, yeah, so their population looks to have peaked at like 128 million in 2009, and now it's down to about 124 million. So.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, it mentions a weakening yen. I know.

[A]

My.

[B]

My fiance tried to trick me into a trip to Japan so she could buy some skincare stuff by. By bringing up a weakened yen. Like she knew what the yen was about. Yeah, yeah. She's like, we should go. It's a week yen right now. And I was like, that's. That's not the case. Yeah, what about. I'm. I'm just going to look into the visa and residency barrier. So non residents face challenges linking IKEA ownership to vis visas. Complicating. Okay, so like retirees like the UK buyer, you need. You just need a ton of legal guidance, adding costs. It's not something you can just like do very easily. Visa huddles hurdles that deter buyers seeking IKEA properties. It tied it back into Drake's album because I must have been talking from the last episode. But anyways, I don't know why I brought that out.

[A]

Just lots of chat. GPT is just listening in on your life. Right.

[B]

I gotta turn this off or something like that.

[A]

We're like live in a Black mirror episode right now. The.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Did you watch the like, people are always the new season? Yeah, I started watching just the first episode, but it's not. I fell asleep. I don't know. I don't have time to watch it. But it's not good.

[B]

No, no, I also do the same. I put it on fall asleep and then try to watch it like one episode over.

[A]

Like spend more time finding out where you fell asleep. Trying to find where you fell asleep. Yeah, but no, I like, I don't. You don't even like it's so like five years ago, Black Mirror was like really extreme. But now it's like, dude, like, this is. We're living this. Like, it's like, I know this isn't scary anymore. It's like AI is already trying to ruin my life by like keeping me glued to my phone and like, you know, like serving me. Like, you know, like changing my voting patterns and selling me products I don't need. Like, you know, it's like I. This is. I am Black Mirror. It's all good.

[B]

I almost bought. I almost bought. I got a shout out from Fixer. Fixer sent me a message, a dm, which is pretty cool. Fixer is the. This is not a paid ad. Fixer is a. Have you tried it yet?

[A]

Yeah, you. You sold me on it and I literally put it on my Gmail like today or yesterday.

[B]

What do you think?

[A]

It's. It's good. Yeah. It's startled you when you show up to respond to the email and there's like a perfectly email there.

[B]

Yeah. For the listeners, basically. This, this. Actually, you know what? Wait till they give me a. Wait till I get a fixer. Yeah, that's right. I'm giving them way too much clout. But I also almost got one yesterday. An AI that does for my. You. For my own personal YouTube channel. I do like a lot of like, like PDFs, not PDFs. What's it called? Like a PowerPoint. You know, like a. You hit next. What's that called? Presentation. Thank you. I do a lot of presentations and this like makes them for you. Like an AI that makes these crazy presentations based off of this guy who, who talked. It's a TED Talk. It's actually a really cool episode. The TED Talk talks about like how to like keep people engaged during a PowerPoint. Anyways, neither here nor there. I got excited about AI for a second, but that's it.

[A]

Oh good man. You're a huge, big AI tech guy now. So I guess in the. The last piece that we'll kind of mention here on the IKEA's is how it's attracting foreign buyers. Right? Because I think obviously the theme of this show is Real Estate Without Borders, talking about people buying properties in places that they don't live. So you could be. I don't care if you're from the US or anywhere else, but are you looking at buying these properties in Japan? Because it seems like there's a lot. They're really gaining the attention of overseas buyers. And the same thing seems to be the case with you saw it in Spain and Portugal where a lot of those digital nomads were moving to these cool places to live. Because it's like if you don't have to be near a workplace anymore, you can go. There's a quote here from some people. It says, I lived in New York for about two years and then I was basically all over Europe. There's no way they could buy a house in any of these places that I've ever lived in. Anton Wurman, a content creator and real estate investor, said, and then he fell in love with Japan after visiting it during a work trip. And he was 32 years old and he ended up buying a place in Japan. And six years later, he owns seven Ikeas and works as a full time content creator and real estate investor in Japan. So maybe we can ask that guy to come on the show too.

[B]

That's crazy. That actually would be such a cool thing to do for content. Like, I, I need to find this dude and watch his content because it's so unique and I think it's. What a cool thing.

[A]

Yeah, he's a, he's a YouTuber. He's a big YouTuber. We'll message him.

[B]

Is it the guy that we're talking about? Is it Shu?

[A]

No, it's Anton Lovewerman. Free Houses in Japan is the book he's reading. He wrote a book, Free Houses in Japan. I'm going to message him right now.

[B]

Send him a dm.

[A]

Oh, I'm gonna.

[B]

So our key. Okay, before we go, we got five, we got four minutes, five minutes before we go. Ikea's a good investment, I think. I don't think many people knew that they were homes basically for free. A dollar homes in Japan, which I think when most people think Japan, they think expensive. At least I did before this episode. So it's like, are they good? Are they a good investment? You know what? All women, they can be.

[A]

I think they can be, right?

[B]

Worm. Worm's got some input.

[A]

I read his quote. Yeah, or you got some from Chad.

[B]

No, no, no, no, I didn't Warman this next part.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

He continues.

[A]

Dude, what does he say?

[B]

Worman says yes and no. Today his properties are successfully bringing in six figures in revenue a year. But this wouldn't have happened if you didn't put it on the time and effort. Fair enough. Okay, that makes sense.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Oh, with the Japanese culture, language and the people. I did, I did read a section that I didn't say it out loud that it did mention. Hold on, bear with me. It said something here about perception of risk and stigma. Is that it? The. Nope. Hold on, hold on. Language and logistical hurdles. No. Cultural and community barriers. Local communities may res. This is one of the reasons why people aren't buying it. Local communities may resist outsiders, especially foreigners, buying a Kia, fearing disruption or neglect cultural. Cultural norms like participating in neighborhood events are expected but challenging for non residents. Shu Matsuo emphasizes respecting local sensibilities. But foreigners without Japanese language skills or local ties may face pushback. So the need for, like, cultural integration deters for casual buyers who can't commit to, like, community engagement, reducing the IKEA appeal. And that's crazy because I thought that was nonsense. But here it says from someone that has done this, this wouldn't have been successful if you didn't put the time and effort into becoming properly acquainted with the Japanese culture, language, and the people. You need to create a good community and good social network in Japan in order to make it successful. You cannot come without understanding the culture, without understanding how Japan works, and just throw money at it, because that would be a little. A little bit of a money pit. Crazy. We're trying to blend in and do it the right way. I think there's definitely a lot of opportunity, but more so, I think there's an opportunity to buy cheap real estate and actually utilize the real estate. Crazy. That was the best part.

[A]

Can't wait to get Anton on the show. We got two. Two amazing guests now that we had to go after. So if anybody knows Anton or was there the guy's name Shuo?

[B]

Yeah. Matsuo. Shu. Shu. Matsuo.

[A]

Yeah. We would. We would love to have them on the show. So if you can let them know and we'll. We'll interview them and otherwise we're going to. We're going to. We're going to go find them anyways.

[B]

That's right. Unreal.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

What an app.

[A]

Yeah, that was. I can't wait to dive into this a little bit more. I think I want to get, like. I just. It's one of those things that, like, we can talk about it as much as we can from, like, the outside looking in, but until we're actually, like, on the. On a line with one of these guys talking and, like, asking them all of the detailed questions. The same thing for Italy. Right. I think, like, that's just gonna completely change the game.

[B]

So I'm gonna send warmer DM after this.

[A]

I already did. I DM'd him, so. But you can't, too.

[B]

Awesome. Well, thanks for listening. Yeah, that was honestly, that was cool. That was a good episode. I appreciate it. If you guys can give us a follow like the podcast, give us a review. I know we had one. We had a few reviews about the lack of of communication and delays. Please be mindful. That was my Internet in Mexico. I'm back in Toronto. This was a. There was no delays here. So maybe, maybe if you're the listener that left the review, maybe you can listen to this episode and change the review because it's smooth sailing now baby. Or a rocket ship now that we're back in high wi fi zone. That's it.

[A]

Amazing. Well, thanks everybody for listening as always. Just ask if you share this episode with one person, ideally someone who's going to hit the subscribe button or get benefit from it at least. And if you get a chance, please hit the subscribe button as well. Leave us a review or a comment and we'll see you next week.