The effect of Japanese housing regulations on tourism
Unpacking Japan · Produced by ZenStudio
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Show Notes
Meet Chai Kanda, CEO of Shiki Properties in Kyoto, who sits down to talk about Japan's short-term rental market. He talks about his work restoring machiya for vacation rentals, Japan's tourism boom, and how regulations affect Japan's tourism industry.
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0:00 Intro
0:45 Meet Chai
1:07 What brought Chai to Japan
2:07 Chai’s childhood in Japan
2:27 Leaving Sydney for Japan
2:51 Chai’s original vision for Japan
3:52 Chai’s first job in Japan
4:11 Staying in Kansai long term
4:36 Discovering real estate
6:43 From rentals to acquisitions for Chai
9:30 The pros and cons of machiya investment for Chai
11:38 The charm of machiya
12:15 Chai on Airbnb in Japan
13:58 Chai on renovation budgets
16:27 Chai navigating funding and partnerships
17:35 Chai on customer demand for machiya
18:55 Adapting to rapid growth
20:17 How booming tourism affects regulations
24:32 Kyoto-specific rules
25:29 Expanding beyond Kyoto
29:02 Expanding into Japan's "Little Venice"
32:37 Chai comparing markets
34:20 The usual process of starting in a new area
36:56 Tourism and neighborhood change
39:55 Evaluating sustainable tourism markets
43:09 Chai on overtourism in Japan
45:13 Crowded buses and local frustration
47:27 Transit expansion challenges
48:10 Untangling the tourism challenge
50:27 Chai’s long-term vision
52:36 From real estate to hot sauce
54:12 The reality of launching food products in Japan
56:04 Chai’s Scoville rating
56:55 Key lessons from two decades in business
58:25 The fear of failure in Japan
1:00:39 Being prepared for business in Japan
1:03:26 Wrapping up
1:04:01 Outro
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Shiki Group:
https://linktr.ee/shikigroup
Shiki Properties IG:
https://instagram.com/shiki_properties
Shiki Real Estate:
https://linktr.ee/shiki.realestate
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