love from japan

Exactly one month to go until Japan, so I’ve started with the paperwork required for apartment rental.

It’s been narrowed down to two apartments. How exciting!

The first one is located in Sakaisuji-Honcho. The quote I received this morning works out to ¥103560, or ¥34520 each. That’s ¥2466 a night. In terms of AUD, trading at an exchange rate of ¥60 to AUD$1, that’s $41.10 per night or $575.33.

The second option is located in Shinsaibashi. The quote is priced at ¥109580 which is ¥36527 each, or ¥2610 per night. That’s $608.78 in total, or $43.48 per night.

I want to pay and settle everything by Monday

7:45am - Wake up.

8:30am - Arrive at <?aptstation>. Take <?train> to Kintetsu Namba station.
9:20am - Depart Kintetsu Namba Station on Kintetsu Nara Line Rapid Express. (¥540)
10:00am - Arrive at Kintetsu Nara station.

Walk to Nara Park, and thus Kōfuku-ji, Nara National Museum, Tōdai-ji, Kasuga Taisha, etc. More details soon. <3

Kyoto Day 2

Approximate wake-up time: 8:30am

From Kintetsu Nanba, take Kintetsu Nara Line Rapid Express train to Yamato Saidaiji, then change for Kintetsu Kashihara Line Express to Kyoto. Allow approximately 1 hour and 26 minutes for the trip. One way without the Kintetsu 5-day Pass is 920 yen.

Kyoto Itinerary temporarily unavailable.

Hey guys, I was looking at the following site and thought the price wasn’t too bad. I was thinking of staying in Yokohama overnight so we can spend 2 days exploring the area.

Here is the site, which is in English so you can have a look at it: http://www.japanhotel.net/data/room_rates_and_information.asp?HotelID=808&area=YOKOHAMA

8 970 / 3 = 2990
2990 x 0.6 = $49.83 for the one night.

It’s not definite, just a thought for now. Let me know what you think

A few options, ladies

First, looking at Yoshizumi Homes, who I dealt with in January. The following 3 apartments stood out; note that we don’t yet know whether they are vacant or not. Yoshizumi Homes ask for a guarantor, which may be hard for us to find. The numbers in bold are the total time taken to get to Shinjuku. All stations are on Marunouchi Line.

a) http://www.monthly-shintoshin.com/search/map.html?bukken_no=502 (Nishi-Shinjuku) 10
b) http://www.monthly-shintoshin.com/search/map.html?bukken_no=23157 (Honcho) 12
c) http://www.monthly-shintoshin.com/search/map.html?bukken_no=29926 (Nakano-Shinbashi) 15

Now, for prices!

a) {[5500 (rent) + 1200 (utilities)] x 15} + 31000 (cleaning fee)
= 131 500 / 3
= 43 833
Worst case price = $730.55 or $48.70 per night.
b) {[4200 (rent) + 1100 (utilities)] x 15} + 28000 (cleaning fee)
= 107 500 / 3
= 35 833
Worst case price = $597.22 or $39.81 per night.
c) {[3600 (rent) + 1100 (utilities)] x 15} + 28000 (cleaning fee)
= 98 500 / 3
= 32 833
Worst case price = $547.22 or $36.48 per night.

As the location of b) and c) are extremely close, the latter would be wiser to save a bit of money. Option a) is all-round the closest one to Shinjuku, which could be somewhat convenient.

Now for option 2. WM Tokyo, who according to the email do NOT ask for a guarantor.

a) http://www.wmtokyo.com/SN_nakanoyayoi.htm
b) http://www.wmtokyo.com/SN_sinjukufurawa.htm

These prices are off a quote that was made for our situation (3 people) personally. “Surcharge” refers to us being 3 people and not 1 (which is what the base price is aimed at). These are based on 14 days (as opposed to 15 days as above).

a) 116 000 (Rent) + 5 800 (Consumption tax) + 8 820 (Energy) + 10 000 (Linen) + 21 000 (Surcharge)
= 161 620 / 3
= 53 873
Worst case price = $897.88 or $64.13 per night.
b) 80 000 (Rent) + 4 000 (Consumption tax) + 8 820 (Energy) + 10 000 (Linen) + 21 000 (Surcharge)
= 123 820 / 3
= 41 273
Worst case price = $687.89 or $49.13 per night.

There are a few others floating around but it doesn’t get any cheaper than this, I don’t think. We need to find a guarantor.

More soon.

以下の不動産屋は全部保証人不必要です。

Weekly Monthly Tokyo: http://www.wmtokyo.com/ 問い合わせは12月１日。
TOHTO Monthly: http://www.t-monthly.jp/monthlylist.html 
Monthly Kanto: http://www.monthly-kanto.net/tokyo/2005.html 
Monthly Mansion Tokyo: http://www.monthlymansion-tokyo.com/
AT Monthly: http://www.at-monthly.com/ 場合によって違うが不要って書いてある。3人対応マンション無い様。

Firstly, neither company featured in this post are asking for a guarantor. Thank God.

There are a few options for Osaka. These two are perhaps the best I’ve seen, in particular, the first one is excellent but is not currently vacant, which is a shame. We have to hope that the people who are there don’t renew their contract … Both apartments are fairly close to Osaka city, but the first one is on the edge of Osaka city itself which means savings in terms of travel, while the second one is in Shinsaibashi, a fairly trendy part of Osaka (near Namba).

a) http://www.osaka-monthly.com/contents_81916.html
b) http://www.osaka-monthly.com/contents_81870.html

As for pricing, please note that they are both worked out using 17 days as the duration of stay (20 Jan - 5 Feb).

a) 82 110 (Rent) + 9 350 (Utilities, etc) + 7 800 (Consumption fee) + 34 000 (Surcharge)
= 133 260 / 3
= 44 420
Worst case price = $740.33 or $43.54 per night.
b) 78 370 (Rent) + 9 350 (Utilities, etc) + 7 800 (Consumption fee) + 34 000 (Surcharge)
= 129 520 / 3
= 43 173
Worst case price = $719.55 or $42.32 per night.

Also, we received a quote for this apartment from TAKUTO-Net. The apartment is a 4 minute walk to Shin-Osaka station, and then a 4 minute train to JR Osaka station. This one uses 14 days as the duration.

a) http://takuto.good-server.com/search/shousai.html?bukken_no=27793
75 600 (Rent) + 22 050 (Energy) + 18 800 (Maintenance) + 1 500 (Other)
= 117 950 / 3
= 39 317
Worst case price = $655.27 or $46.81 per night.

What to do with the shitty exchange rate …….

Kyoto Day 1

Approximate wake-up time: 7:30am

From Kintetsu Nanba, take Kintetsu Nara Line Rapid Express train to Yamato Saidaiji, then change for Kintetsu Kashihara Line Express to Kyoto. Allow approximately 1 hour and 26 minutes for the trip. One way without the Kintetsu 5-day Pass is 920 yen.

Kyoto Itinerary temporarily unavailable.

Previous plans temporarily removed.

9:00am - Wake up.

10:00am - Depart <?aptstation> for Nanba on <?train>. (¥300?)
10:30am - Explore Nanba.

12:00pm - Lunch in Nanba. (¥800?)

1:30pm - Walk towards Shinsaibashi (Amemura).
1:50pm - Arrive Shinsaibashi (Amemura), walk around.

3:30pm - Walk towards Nipponbashi (Den Den Town).
3:50pm - Arrive Nipponbashi (Den Den Town), walk around.

5:30pm - Walk towards Dotonbori (Kuidaore).
5:40pm - Arrive Dotonbori (Kuidaore), eat dinner at a restaurant. (¥1000?)

7:30pm - Not yet planned.

10:00pm - Depart from Nanba station on <?train>.
10:30pm - Arrive at <?aptstation>. Walk home; sleep early as the next day includes an early start.