Homes imported from North America and elsewhere are on the rise. In addition to price drops generated by yen appreciation, the government is backing efforts to promote housing imports in an attempt to rectify price discrepancies between Japan and other countries and to expand imports. Housing manufacturers, general construction firms, and trading companies are jumping on the bandwagon.
Most imported housing incorporates North American and north European methods of housing design. The main material employed is cheap foreign lumber cut to specification; the construction materials are imported and assembled at the construction site in Japan using what is known as the two-by-four method. As yet there is no clear definition of what constitutes imported housing, but in general the term is used to refer to housing in which more than 50% of all materials used are imported.
The thicker posts and plywood of imported housing make it stronger than domestic houses. Additional advantages are the liberal use of insulating materials in floors, walls, and ceilings, and the use of double window panes that make imported homes superior with respect to air-tightness and insulation.
Recently, yen appreciation and government efforts to promote imported housing have increased the number of firms working in earnest to import homes for the ordinary consumer. In 1990 one early entrant into the imported housing market even set up a school to train specialists in the techniques of the North American two-by-four method; since 1992 this company has been handling a series of low-priced models. In 1993 one trading company began full-scale imports of materials from 50 American manufacturers; these are stocked at its distribution center for immediate delivery to a construction site whenever an order is received.
People already living in imported houses seem highly satisfied with them, citing as reasons features like sound-proofing and roominess. Some people even say an imported house has fulfilled their dreams of living in a house with a fireplace.
Industry observers predict that in the future plants will be set up overseas to produce component materials to be imported into Japan, resulting in a further expansion of the imported housing market. The Japan External Trade Organization has set up model imported houses across the country and is taking other steps to promote housing imports. JETRO, which expects the price of imported housing to drop even further, also supports importers by actively distributing information from overseas.
(The above article, edited by Japan Echo Inc., is based on domestic Japanese news sources. It is offered for reference purposes and does not necessarily represent the policy or views of the Japanese Government.)