The following items are Essential
- For a long-term property then a long-term visa - if you have a 90 day visa then you can only rent short-term
- Your Japanese phone number
- An emergency contact person in Japan (usually a Japanese person)
- copies of your passport and visa
- three months' worth of payslips as proof that you are able to pay the rent. Typically, rental prices are set at 30% of a person's income, so you will need to show you make at least three times the amount your rent will cost to be accepted as a tenant.
- letter from your employer, or a certificate of eligibility from the immigration bureau for students
- A guarantor (hoshonin 保証 in Japanese) is required in Japan to rent a property. The guarantor acts like an insurance and guarantees the landlord that any outstanding dues will be paid. Ideally, your employer will be your guarantor, but some agencies only accept a guarantor company to fill this role. The fees for the guarantor company vary, usually around half a month’s worth of rent.
The following are Recommended but not essential
- Japanese bank account = few agencies are able to arrange payment via international transfer or credit card.
- In most cases the emergency contact is also the character reference, but some foreign applicants also choose to have a separate character reference just in case. Again, this should be a Japanese person who is willing to attest to your trustworthiness as a tenant.