Overwhelmed - Where to Start Looking

[Haystack]

We are living in an older 3LDK in Southern Tokyo. It is subsidized by my wives work.

2-3 Years from now we would like to relocate to a new more livable place.

We would like:

A. A family friendly area, with good schools.
B. 90 minutes from central Tokyo (max)
C. 3LDKS+ or bigger
D. Small yard if at all possible.
..................
We are:

D. Dual income.
E. No Debt. 16mil yen in index funds, 6 million yen cash.
F. We have a young child in Hoikuen and possible one on the way.
..................

We are open to a 1st floor manshon or detached house. Renting or buying.
We are open to Kanagawa, Tokyo or possible Chiba.

Suggestion and comments are welcome. We don`t exactly have the time to visit so many different area blindly, we need a plan of attack. As well as an idea about what areas might best suit our needs

[Gareth]

The Tama area of Tokyo could suit your needs, particularly around Kodaira, Higashi-Kurume, Higashi-Murayama, Kiyose. Easy access to central Tokyo on the Seibu line. Plenty of quiet neighbourhoods. The houses prices aren’t too ridiculous. Can’t vouch for the schools but they have them!

[mighty58]

What's your budget?

[Haystack]

What's your budget?

That's difficult to say, we would be aiming 20-25 man a month, were could afford more but we are just gathering data at this point.

For what it is worth, I would hate to spend my days DIYing an old Japanese house, and a small yard for kids and maybe a dog. 1st floor newer construction, manshon perhaps?

[mighty58]

That's difficult to say, we would be aiming 20-25 man a month, were could afford more but we are just gathering data at this point.

If you view it through the lens of mortgage payments, and keeping some leeway for kanri-hi and repair funds, an 18man payment (35yr loan@1.5% fixed) would allow you to spend around 60m yen. At 60m, I'd say your choices are very wide, and would put you in the category of being able to afford perhaps 80%+ of those three prefectures in terms of locations.

As there are so many personal preference factors when it comes to choosing a place to live it's difficult to give suggestions, but in Kanagawa, where I'm most familiar with, if you prioritize access to Tokyo, the northern ku's of Yokohama (Kanagawa, Kohoku, Tsuzuki, Aoba) and parts of Kawasaki (Nakahara, Takatsu) will all be good choices, albeit at the top end of your budget. A 1F unit can be a decent choice if you want a manshon... usually lower priced than other units in the building due to perceptions about security, and very often you enjoy a higher ceiling, and don't have to worry about your kids thumping. I had a long hard look at a 95sqm one in Kawasaki when I was buying (although I ended up buying a house instead). No BBQ's allowed though

[zeroshiki]

I feel like Kanagawa (and the western area) is so clogged up now that people have been looking at the north (Saitama) and east (Chiba) for deals. I know someone who built a house in Nagareyama Ootaka no Mori and from what I've seen its only just now getting hit by sprawl so its starting to get cinemas, malls and the like. Granted I haven't been there a lot of times but it gave me Futako Tamagawa or Musashi Kosugi 10 years ago vibes. Its on the Tsukuba line and is an express station so the access to Tokyo is pretty good by train.

[captainspoke]

One--what is the reason/need behind the 90min from central tokyo? Eg, one of our kids lived in Odawara, which via the romance car, is almost exactly 90min from shinjuku. Or, shinkansen from there into tokyo station is 30min (and believe it or not, some people commute that). On the other hand, I once lived in outer Mitaka (ICU), and it always seemed like it took a long time to get downtown.

With kids, of course be thinking schools, but a tactic might be to focus on high schools, and convenient access to a couple better ones, and let primary and middle happen as they may.

[Haystack]

One--what is the reason/need behind the 90min from central tokyo?

Work. I work at a few different universities in the Tokyo area. My wife would most likely still be working in Eastern/Southern Tokyo along the keikyu.

I really appreciate everyone's input. This is all fantastic. I just need to start putting pins in a map.

Where does one setup roots? It is a difficult question. My wife seems like she doesn`t want to buy. She would prefer to rent a 1st Floor Manshon, 3ldK+. I am fine with that actually, if we can find such a rental. The rental market seems try for 3LDK+.

[captainspoke]

How about Machida? I've read that as being mentioned elsewhere as a reasonable place, and it seems to have lines into tokyo and also kanagawa (keikyu).

In order to choose, you may have to prioritize the commuting for either you or your wife--and go from there. Maybe try both those options, and see what each one would mean for the locations it would favor or open up and how it would affect the other's commuting. Good luck!

[Tkydon]

How about Edogawa-ku if you want to go east.
Property prices come off as you cross the river from Koto-ku to Edogawa-ku
Free Child Medical
15 min to Otemachi
1 hour to most locations - Ebisu, Shibuya, Shinjuku...
Public Schools OK. Couple of International Schools
Some nice parks - Rinkai Park
Close to Disneyland