bodyType

customContents

entityId

printArticlePageQuery

filter

article

body

urlAlias

articleSectionsContent

articleSeoArticle

articleSourceHeaderArticle

contentSchemaRenderContent

contentSubHeadlineContent

contentHeadlineContent

mainImagePrintArticleArticle

authorBlockPrintArticleArticle

contentSponsorTagContent

articlePianoPaywallContent

scmpYoutubeContent

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

query printArticlePageQuery(
  $entityId: String!
  $customContents: [CustomContentInput]
  $bodyType: BodyFormatTypeEnum
) {
  article(filter: {entityId: $entityId}) {
    entityId
    body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
      json
    }
    urlAlias
    ...articleSectionsContent
    ...articleSeoArticle_3o8td4
    ...articleSourceHeaderArticle
    ...contentSchemaRenderContent
    ...contentSubHeadlineContent
    ...contentHeadlineContent
    ...mainImagePrintArticleArticle
    ...authorBlockPrintArticleArticle
    ...contentSponsorTagContent
    ...articlePianoPaywallContent
    ...scmpYoutubeContent
    ...hooksTrackPageViewArticle
    id
  }
}

fragment articlePianoPaywallContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksPaywallPromiseContent
}

fragment articleSectionsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      ...helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection
      ...entityLink
      name
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment articleSeoArticle_3o8td4 on Article {
  ...hooksArticleSeoArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersGetArticleTypeArticle
  entityId
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
  summary {
    text
  }
  subHeadline {
    text
  }
  body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
    text
  }
  keywords
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  topics {
    name
    entityId
    id
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  images {
    style(filter: {style: "768x768"}) {
      url
    }
  }
  readingTime
}

fragment articleSourceHeaderArticle on Article {
  urlAlias
  ...entityLink
}

fragment authorBlockPrintArticleArticle on Article {
  ...defaultArticleDateContent
  ...authorNamesArticle
}

fragment authorNameAuthor on Author {
  ...entityLink
  name
  entityUuid
}

fragment authorNamesArticle on Article {
  authorLocations
  authors {
    entityId
    location
    ...authorNameAuthor
    id
  }
}

fragment blockquoteQuoteContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment contentHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  socialHeadline
  ...contentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
}

fragment contentNewsletterWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
    id
  }
  sections {
    value {
      relatedNewsletters {
        ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
        id
      }
      id
    }
  }
  ... on Article {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment contentSchemaRenderContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...blockquoteQuoteContent
  ...imageContent
  ...inlineWidgetContent
  ...photoGalleryWidgetContent
  ...scmpYoutubeContent
}

fragment contentShareWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  shortUrl
  socialHeadline
  headline
}

fragment contentSponsorTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentSubHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  subHeadline {
    json
  }
  summary {
    json
  }
  ...contentSchemaRenderContent
}

fragment defaultArticleDateContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksArticleDateUtilsContent
}

fragment entityLink on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  __typename
  entityId
  entityUuid
  urlAlias
  urlRedirect {
    toUrl
    id
  }
  application {
    entityId
    id
  }
  ... on Section {
    fullSectionPath {
      entityId
      id
    }
    parentSection
  }
  ...helpersAppBarVariantBase
  ...helpersApplicationBase
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersAppBarVariantBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsLiveArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...helpersSectionContent
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersApplicationBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
}

fragment helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection on Section {
  name
}

fragment helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle on Article {
  entityId
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  disableOffPlatformContent
  sponsorType
  published
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment helpersCheckIsLiveArticle on Article {
  flattenTypeIds
  liveArticle {
    status
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    paywallTypes {
      entityUuid
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsStyleArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersGetArticleTypeArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        entityId
        id
      }
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter on Newsletter {
  entityId
  name
  alternativeName
  description {
    text
  }
  summary {
    text
  }
  homepageDescription {
    text
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle on Article {
  authors {
    types
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersStyleSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersUseContentSponsorContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    sponsor {
      ...sponsorTagSponsor
      name
      type
      id
    }
    id
  }
  ... on Article {
    sponsorType
  }
  ...helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent
}

fragment hooksArticleDateUtilsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  createdDate
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
}

fragment hooksArticleSeoArticle on Article {
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle
  entityId
  headline
  socialHeadline
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
  images {
    generic_og: style(filter: {style: "og_image_scmp_generic"}) {
      url
    }
    styles(filter: {styles: ["og_image_posties_article", "og_postmag", "og_image_style", "og_image_scmp_analysis", "og_image_scmp_explainer", "og_image_scmp_editorial", "og_image_scmp_fact_check", "og_image_scmp_debate", "og_image_scmp_live", "og_image_scmp_obituary", "og_image_scmp_opinion", "og_image_scmp_review", "og_image_scmp_series", "og_image_scmp_generic"]}) {
      url
      style
    }
    type
  }
  urlAlias
}

fragment hooksContentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        name
        entityId
        description {
          text
        }
        id
      }
    }
    ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  }
  flag
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  ...hooksContentHelperContent
}

fragment hooksContentHelperContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle
  ...helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle
  ...helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle
  flag
}

fragment hooksPaywallPromiseContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment hooksTrackPageViewArticle on Article {
  entityId
  publishedDate
  headline
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  entityUuid
}

fragment imageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  ...checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent
}

fragment inlineWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentNewsletterWidgetContent
}

fragment mainImagePrintArticleArticle on Article {
  images {
    title
    url
    isSlideshow
    size_652x446: style(filter: {style: "652x446"}) {
      url
    }
  }
}

fragment photoGalleryDialogContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment photoGalleryWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...photoGalleryDialogContent
}

fragment scmpYoutubeContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  publishedDate
}

fragment sponsorTagSponsor on Sponsor {
  name
  type
  images {
    url
  }
}


sections

types

disableOffPlatformContent

sponsorType

published

headline

socialHeadline

authors

images

publishedDate

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

keywords

topics

readingTime

authorLocations

entityUuid

Gavin Blair

At the dizzy heights of Japan’s bubble economy, the land around the Imperial Palace in Tokyo was estimated to be worth more than all the real estate in California. In a reverse unthinkable in those heady days, there are now millions of hectares and millions of houses in Japan for which ownership cannot be established, are sitting empty, or even deliberately unclaimed by those who have inherited them.
The combination of a shrinking population, falling land values, patchy registration records and a tax system ill-suited to the current situation has left ownership unclear on an estimated 4.1 million hectares, an area larger than Taiwan. There are also approximately 3.5 million unoccupied residences – more than the entire housing stock of Hong Kong – that are not up for sale, rent or development. Although the government and non-profit organisations (NPOs) are working to address this, Japan’s skewed demographics mean it is set to only get worse in the coming decades.

According to surveys by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Tourism and the Ministry of Justice, registration records for 20 per cent of private land in Japan are older than 50 years. That rises to 26.6 per cent in rural areas, compared to 6.6 per cent in urban areas.
Shoko Yoshihara, research fellow at the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research think tank and a leading authority on the issue, points out that despite the age of the records, some of these tracts may have owners.
In Japan, millions of homes lie empty, and number only set to rise
“There is decreasing incentive to register land because of falling values, but that doesn’t necessarily mean there is no owner. It may remain registered in the same person’s name for more than 50 years, but because of increased longevity, they may or may not be deceased,” explains Yoshihara, author of Land Issues in the Era of Depopulation: Policy Considerations for Missing Owners, Inheritance, and Abandoned Homes.
Nevertheless, unidentifiable ownership is a very real problem and one that hampered reconstruction after the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The building of sea wall defences, relocating communities to higher ground and redevelopment all stalled in some areas because the owners of land could not be located.
“It is kind of an invisible problem,” says Yoshihara. “But it is important to find solutions for this before the next major earthquake or natural disaster.”

The problem exists even in areas where land is extremely valuable. The town of Niseko, Hokkaido, has attracted winter sports enthusiasts and investors from Australia to China, thanks to its famous powder snow.
“In Niseko, many small parcels of land were bought as investments before and during the bubble era, often without [the investors] seeing them. Those owners are now in their 70s or 80s and some are forgetting about them and their children don’t know about it,” says Yoshihara.
“There is no one, simple solution to this problem because it is structural and has many causes,” adds Yoshihara. “The tax system is another issue. Japanese governments implemented tax policies that were advantageous to house-building during the decades of economic expansion.”
Why Japan will profit the most from artificial intelligence
Under Japanese tax law, keeping a dilapidated house on a piece of land is much cheaper than paying for demolition. The annual tax rate on land with a house or building on it is 0.23 per cent, which increases six-fold if there is no structure on it, notes Toshikazu Suto, a professor of real estate science at Meikai University, just north of Tokyo.
In rural areas in particular, where values have fallen due to depopulation, it has become economically inviable for people to take possession of land they have inherited, thus depriving already struggling districts of tax revenue.
The government is examining legislation to simplify the current land registration system and make it automatic for heirs to become the official owner, but with only small fines for non-compliance.
“I don’t expect the government reforms to have much success because this is a problem of too much supply and not enough demand,” says Suto.

Establishing “land banks”, which identify empty land and houses, and trying to find buyers are “a small solution”, says Suto, but one he is engaged with in Kaminoyama, in Japan’s northeast.
The picturesque town, which boasts a castle and a row of preserved samurai houses, is a popular hot spring resort. But this has not made it immune to depopulation, says Hidetaka Watanabe, temporary head of the Kaminoyama Land Bank NPO. Ideally, places like Kaminoyama need to attract young families to help rebalance skewed demographics, though finances are a barrier even if they can find work locally.
“For young people and young families, the issue is that even though the empty houses look cheap, there are naturally costs to fix these places up. Then if they renovate the houses, they have to conform to fire regulations and building regulations,” explains Watanabe.
Japan’s building regulations are stringent, in large part due to the earthquakes and other natural disasters the nation is so prone to.
The NPO has been working closely with the local government and real estate agents since June 2019, building a database of 75 properties and lots, around half of which are now occupied. Land laws, which provide no structure for municipalities to receive donations of unwanted plots from owners and place restrictions on use, are a major barrier, according to Watanabe.
“And, of course, tracking down the owners; there are even Japanese people now living in Hong Kong who own land here,” he adds. ■


Japan’s invisible problem: enough empty homes to house Hong Kong and no known owners

There are 3.5 million unoccupied residences in Japan – more than the entire housing stock of Hong Kong – that are not up for sale, rent or development. Photo: Gavin Blair

Unclaimed land for Gavin Blair story. Photo: Gavin Blair

Abandoned housing sites remain empty after being swept by tsunami in Sendai, northeastern Japan March 12, 2011. Japan confronted devastation along its northeastern coast on Saturday, with fires raging and parts of some cities under water after a massive earthquake and tsunami that likely killed at least 1,000 people. Japan scaled back its tsunami warning for much of the country on Saturday, nearly 24 hours after a massive earthquake struck and set off a succession of tsunami, NHK television said. REUTERS/Jo Yong-Hak (JAPAN - Tags: DISASTER ENVIRONMENT)

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In Japan, ownership of an area of land the size of Taiwan is a mystery, and it’s causing problems for disaster relief programmes
Falling land values, tax quirks and patchy registration have left 3.5 million unoccupied residences, and an ageing population will make things worse



Japan has an ‘invisible problem’: ownership of an area of land the size of Taiwan is a mystery, and it’s causing problems for disaster relief programmes.


Japan

Ageing society

Asia housing and property

Japan’s invisible problem: enough empty homes to house Hong Kong and no known owners

In Japan, ownership of an area of land the size of Taiwan is a mystery, and it’s causing problems for disaster relief programmes Falling land values, tax quirks and patchy registration have left 3.5 million unoccupied residences, and an ageing population will make things worse

In Japan, ownership of an area of land the size of Taiwan is a mystery, and it’s causing problems for disaster relief programmes

Falling land values, tax quirks and patchy registration have left 3.5 million unoccupied residences, and an ageing population will make things worse