In Japan, many people are reluctant to buy or rent homes where a sudden or violent death has occurred. These properties, known as "jiko bukken" (stigmatized properties), can remain vacant for years, creating a financial drain on owners.
A two-story house in a southern suburb of Yokohama exemplifies the issue. With metal shutters permanently drawn and an overgrown garden, the property could be renovated into a habitable home, but no Japanese wants it because of its history.
Kazutoshi Kodama, president of specialist property company Kachimode Co., has turned this problem into a business opportunity. His firm assists owners of stigmatized properties and offers a comprehensive "ghost investigation" service, demand for which is soaring.
"Japanese people sometimes regard death as impure," Kodama told DW. "Death equates to impurity and misfortune. Consequently, they believe that coming into close contact with death will bring them misfortune."
Renting or selling a "jiko bukken" is made harder by the legal requirement for estate agents to disclose a property's history. A website even reveals the location of every stigmatized property and the reason for its blacklisting.
In big cities, rent for such properties is cut by 30%, while elsewhere it is halved. Some properties remain vacant for up to 500 days, and Kodama is aware of one that was empty for over 1,000 days.
Kachimode's ghost investigation involves staff staying in the room from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., conducting video and audio recording, electromagnetic wave surveys, and measurements of temperature, humidity, and atmospheric pressure. The aim is to prove the property is clean and free of supernatural phenomena.
An overnight investigation costs 88,000 yen (€474). Kodama says equipment sometimes picks up anomalies, but in most cases, the perceived "impurity" cannot be replicated.
Joey Stockerman, co-founder of Akiya Mart which promotes empty properties, notes that Japan has 9 million vacant homes as of late 2024, accounting for 13.8% of all housing. Superstition contributes to this problem.
A business acquaintance of Stockerman bought a stigmatized property in a Tokyo suburb for less than $5,000 (about 5% of its true value), but it remained empty for two years before finding a tenant.
Akiya Mart now offers a service where a Shinto priest visits to "cleanse" a property of bad spirits. Kodama believes the sector has potential: "Because there are people in need."
Source: www.dw.com