Ghost Country?

Is it a failure of housing policy or a result of unexpected increase of aged people? Empty houses, or rooms in collective houses, in Japan marked new record of 8.3 million in 2013, occupying 13.5% of all houses. Poverty prevents residents from reforming houses in local towns, while growing number of aged people in big cities causes more unoccupied rooms after the residents’ death. Phenomenon of ghost town is rapidly sprawling everywhere in Japan.

Empty houses are causing breakdown, giving motivation of putting fire or providing crimes with safe haven. To dismantle useless houses, it costs certain amount of money, which is unable for some owners to pay for. In most cases in local cities, owners could not pay for the cost and had no choice other than leaving the houses empty. Although some cities has local legislature to support the dismantlement, it is limited to the communities that can afford to do that.

Tokyo area has another problem. In and around 1970s, a great number of houses and rooms were supplied to core families. Those parents have eventually passed away and children grown up in those houses would not come back, because they are already have their own. As its result, no resident would succeed those houses. Local communities around Tokyo metropolitan area are losing its density.

The East Japan Great Earthquake also caused deteriorated stats on housing. Houses suffered from the disaster amounted to three hundred thirty thousand, and forty percent of those abandoned them. Making a great contrast, Miyagi prefecture was ranked on the top of less empty houses in all prefectures, because many families moved in from devastated area.

It is clear that houses have been supplied too much, while population is decreasing. Consumers explored new houses leaving old ones unoccupied. Tax system for land property requires more payment for empty land than for housing, making owners hesitate for dismantling old houses. The legislators are arguing for new law that will allow local government to enforce breakdown of old houses.

But fundamental reason is in politics. Leading parties, mostly Liberal Democrats, have been positive for tax relief on building new houses as a populist policy for stimulating economy. In other words, politics has been looking only at new houses, leaving old houses behind. Empty houses might even cause crimes such as kidnapping, stalking or murder. Strengthening ties between residents is definitely necessary for maintaining comfortable environment for the nation.