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Moving to Japan. Help!

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A

AllenShrz

Member
I was just informed that I will be transferred to Tokyo. I’ll be working in the Chiyoda district.
I'm very happy about this but right now I'm a bit worried about expenditures, specially house rent.

My budget is about $1800 monthly for rent. I would rather not go that much higher than that if possible. So, will that be that be enough? Im a single male, so no worries for extra space. Any zone recommendations for where to stay close to Chiyoda?

Also, my extent of japanese is limited to what anime has taught me, therefore I cant go saying “onichaaan” or “masaka” everywhere, will english be enough to survive?
 
S

speedpop

Has problems recognising girls
Your finances sound a bit dire. There's only one thing left for it: you must sell your body to the yakuza.


On a serious note, English should be enough to survive. A majority of the younger generation up to the 30s/40s age bracket were taught English in school. If you gesture or even state that you don't speak Japanese then you should be fine even in the worst circumstances of language barriers. Unless you hike up a mountain and meet a hermit or something.

Also don't be surprised to start picking up useful random Japanese words while you live there. You're just naturally assimilating.
 
N

NinjaMouse

Gold Member
I wouldn't rely much on what you've learned from anime for Japanese language or culture, either.

I've visited Japan, but never lived there, but I can assure you it's pretty different from life here.
 
T

TheBryanJZX90

Member
Not knowing Japanese will limit your social life and ability to function in Japan, but you can still of course get by fine, you'll just be getting by fine with other expats and Japanese people that like hanging out with expats. $1800 a month is definitely doable for rent, but if you want to save some money and actually have a semi-decent amount of space to live in you will still probably want to live on the fringes of Tokyo proper, or across the border in neighboring Chiba or on the other side in Yokohama. Will your employer pay for your train pass?
 
P

Parakeetman

No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
AllenShrz said:
I can go higher, maybe max $2500 for rent but I rather use that extra money for savings and what not.



I dont think so... Is the train super expensive? is not like in Europe or US?
Click to expand...

It can be expensive depending on distance from work. If your employers are not going to pay for your expenses, why in the hell are they sending you to Japan? Better get that hammered out with them as being included in your contract.
 
F

Furio53

Member
OP:

I moved to Tokyo a few years ago for work, and my time there was honestly pretty easy. $1800 a month will be fine if you mean thats for rent only. I lived in Shinjuku and paid about that for a very nice, but small place.

As far as speaking Japanese, hell, I had never even been to Japan before I got off the plane with my suitcases. I knew about the culture some, and spoke no Japanese beyond normal greetings. I did fine. You'll pick things up, people are very considerate and polite for the most part.

Trains can be somehwat of a cost, usually employers pay for it. But just get a pass and put money on it, you'll be able to budget accordingly. I would imagine theres an addition to your salary for transportation. Ask your employer.
 
B

BattleMonkey

Member
speedpop said:
Your finances sound a bit dire. There's only one thing left for it: you must sell your body to the yakuza.


On a serious note, English should be enough to survive. A majority of the younger generation up to the 30s/40s age bracket were taught English in school. If you gesture or even state that you don't speak Japanese then you should be fine even in the worst circumstances of language barriers. Unless you hike up a mountain and meet a hermit or something.

Also don't be surprised to start picking up useful random Japanese words while you live there. You're just naturally assimilating.
Click to expand...

They study English, but many don't retain it. Its like taking a few Spanish classes in high school or college, but never using it in day to day life, it just gets forgotten. My time in Japan, few people really could speak English, even the younger ones while trying, really didn't understand.
 
A

AllenShrz

Member
Furio53 said:
OP:

I moved to Tokyo a few years ago for work, and my time there was honestly pretty easy. $1800 a month will be fine if you mean thats for rent only. I lived in Shinjuku and paid about that for a very nice, but small place.
.
Click to expand...

Did you have to play 6 months in advance?

Yes, 1800 only for rent. I could go higher but I rather not and save that money.

I'll have to ask about transportation. Never thought that transportation was to be considered.
 
L

lupin23rd

Member
Depending on what you want for a place you could probably get something decent for under 1800 as well. Tokyo isn't really the money sink its made out to be if you look hard enough and don't succumb to its various pleasures :)

I paid 800 for a tiny place in Nakano but it wasn't a dump, I don't think I would have had to jump 1000 to get something decent. Can vary whether you want to go the foreign owned route, the Japanese apartment route, or the baller expat furnished suite route.
 
T

TheBryanJZX90

Member
Yeah you should also check in with your company as to what kind of support if any they are going to give with your apartment search. If you're just looking for an apartment on the general market, expect to pay anywhere from 2-4x the monthly rent upfront, maybe some of which will come back to you when you move out. You'll also probably need someone willing to sign as a guarantor and just help in general negotiating your lease. There's also the expat focused market, which will be easier to navigate but with a much smaller selection.
 
S

Steelrain

Member
Live in East Tokyo. Sumida or katsushika wards are good. Easy access to Chiyoda Area, cheap rent, bigger apartments, lots of different nationalities, nicer people. Don't worry about not knowing Japanese. I didn't know a damn thing about Japan when I got off the plane except sushi. I've been here over three years now and everything is still going great. You'll pick some up here of there.
 
S

Steelrain

Member
SmartBase said:
$1800 is more than enough, just be ready to pay for reikin and other absurdities.
Click to expand...
That's easy to dodge when finding places now. A lot of landlords are hurting for tenants and finding a place that doesn't charge key money shouldn't be much of a problem.

A lot of them make it up by charging a management fee.
 
M

Michan

Member
SmartBase said:
$1800 is more than enough
Click to expand...

This. Not sure why people are saying $1800 is barely enough. I pay about $1100 per month for rent and live pretty centrally (Minato-ku).

Also, the train isn't too expensive (up to $5 per day if you're careful). Just check to find out what kind of station your work is near to (JR/overground or Metro/subway) and try to find accommodation beside a matching station type in order to avoid the transfer charge. This will save you 50% on your travel expenses.
 
A

AllenShrz

Member
Good, good!

Yes I'll receive help to find a place among other things.

5 dls doesn't sound bad for transportation. Nagatacho is I think the name of the street. I was told that that the offices are very close to the Imperial Palace.
 
MightyKAC

MightyKAC

Member
These guys helped me get a decent place in Japan when I first got back there.

http://en.leopalace21.com/

There apartments are a little small and a little expensive but the have english support and the rent includes almost all utilities and it come pre-furnished with a few essentials. So maybe they might be useful to you.
 
A

AllenShrz

Member
MightyKAC said:
These guys helped me get a decent place in Japan when I first got back there.

http://en.leopalace21.com/

There apartments are a little small and a little expensive but the have english support and the rent includes almost all utilities and it come pre-furnished with a few essentials. So maybe they might be useful to you.
Click to expand...


Looks useful, thanks! I will bring my belongings with me, nothing massive of course. I guess the sofas, dining table and other stuff will stay, maybe my bed too. I have no idea if my bed will be way too big for the small apartments over there, is queen size.
 
G

Guru-Guru

Banned
AllenShrz said:
About clothes.... How hard s to find clothes for a tall guy over there?, lets say 6.1 and fit.
Click to expand...
Not that hard. I'm also 6.1 and didn't have much difficulty finding clothes. A lot of the bigger retail shops (UNIQLO, H&M, etc.) will carry larger sizes. For me, sleeve length was sometimes a problem. Some stores will literally carry "foreign" sizes that fit bitter.

I'd advise you to buy a bunch of pairs of shoes before coming to Japan. I'm not sure the exact size, but I am pretty sure no store I went to carried over a US size 10 shoe (or maybe it was size 11, can't remember). I'm size 13 which sucked..
 
S

Skinpop

Member
AllenShrz said:
Looks useful, thanks! I will bring my belongings with me, nothing massive of course. I guess the sofas, dining table and other stuff will stay, maybe my bed too. I have no idea if my bed will be way too big for the small apartments over there, is queen size.
Click to expand...

Just get 3 futons and line them up on the floor. I lived like that in Osaka for a while. The whole floor was my bed.

Would you mind sharing what kind of work you do?
 
J

Jabo

Member
$1800 is more than enough, I'm paying 1200 for mine now which is only a 22 square meter in shinjuku, but of course you could easily find way bigger and cheaper apartments if you start going out of Tokyo.

What I suggest is that you get a LeoPalace place for a couple of months until you find the perfect long-term place you want because sometimes looking for apartments is a bitch cuz of all the barriers they try to set up (based on my experience).

Also don't worry about surviving with English only, I landed here last year without knowing a single thing and managed to live fine for a while.
 
G

GunslingerVit

Banned
TheBryanJZX90 said:
You'll also probably need someone willing to sign as a guarantor and just help in general negotiating your lease. There's also the expat focused market, which will be easier to navigate but with a much smaller selection.
Click to expand...

You should definitely check with your company if they are providing a guarantor since it's essential for most apartments in Japan. Maybe they even have their own aparments (e.g. for interns etc.), which is not uncommon for big companies in Japan.

How long are you staying? Do you mind sharing the bathroom/kitchen? If not, then you could check out 'share houses' which are rather common in Tokyo and have decent prices - without all the additional fees like reikin, high deposits or a guarantor.

I had good experiences with Sakura House ( http://www.sakura-house.com/en/room-type/share-house.html ). My apartment was rather mediocre (or even low standard), but it was very close to the very convenient Yamanote-sen, the ring-subway around inner Tokyo, the district was fun (Taito-ku), and the staff was nice and also English speaking. The price was around 70.000 Yen/month all inclusive (Internet, garbage, electricity, water, etc.) which is around 700$.

Good luck and start planning in advance. All this stuff takes time and nerves. ;)

/edit
They also have apartments without the hassle the you usually will have with apartments:
http://www.sakura-house.com/en/room-type/apartment.html
 
A

AlexM

Member
yeah 1800$ should be more than enough. I don't live in Tokyo now, I live outside kyoto and pay 680$ for a huge nice modern place. I guess that's the benefit of living in the suburbs.

I've been looking at places in Tokyo for a potential job though and I dont think any of the places I looked at were above 1400$ and some of those were in Shinjuku and Shibuya. I'd have to believe that other places are cheaper.

I guess there's probably a lot more Japanese speakers in Tokyo but it can't hurt to learn some basic Japanese.

My favorite way so far is to use the website WaniKani. Teaches you the kanji and vocab at the same time. It really helped me learn how to read a lot of signs around my area and in stores etc while also learning how to say the words. You'd want to supplement it with some sort of conversation class or program though. It doesn't cover grammar.
 
M

mollipen

Member
AllenShrz said:
Also, my extent of japanese is limited to what anime has taught me, therefore I cant go saying “onichaaan” or “masaka” everywhere, will english be enough to survive?
Click to expand...

Learn Japanese. Don't be one of those foreigners who never learns the language while living there. You'll be in the best position to learn a language: being in the country and being forced to learn it to survive. Stay away from using English, and make the most of the great situation you'll be in.
 
Thaedolus

Thaedolus

Gold Member
Even knowing a few simple phrases and words goes a long way in communication. I had a semester of Japanese in college like 9 years ago and thought I didn't remember anything, but when we got there in November it all came back. By no means could I carry on a conversation, but I was light years ahead of my travel companions when it came to getting things done. Most people will know very little English, but if you supplement that with some Japanese on your end then you'll have a much easier time. Numbers are especially helpful.
 
A

AllenShrz

Member
Skinpop said:
Would you mind sharing what kind of work you do?
Click to expand...

Official stuff ;)

CoachKevin said:
Moving out there myself in a few months.

Check out Pimsleur's Japanese audio lessons. Been working great for me to pick up the language. The lessons are like magic to retain and learn the basic dialog skills.

http://www.pimsleur.com/
Click to expand...



Thanks, I'll check it out. I want to learn the language. I should be there in two months time approx.

GunslingerVit said:
You should definitely check with your company if they are providing a guarantor since it's essential for most apartments in Japan. Maybe they even have their own aparments (e.g. for interns etc.), which is not uncommon for big companies in Japan.

How long are you staying? Do you mind sharing the bathroom/kitchen? If not, then you could check out 'share houses' which are rather common in Tokyo and have decent prices - without all the additional fees like reikin, high deposits or a guarantor.
Click to expand...


I rather have my own bathroom and kitchen. I believe getting an guarantor will be easy for me. The office will help me on that kind of stuff.

I'll be staying over there minimum 3 or 4 years. max 6.

Synth_floyd said:
$1800 a month is pretty damn good. You single?
Click to expand...

Single, yes.


And thanks for the tip about the shoes! I will definitely buy more then.
 
A

AlexM

Member
do you know hiragana and katakana? That is learn-able in 2 months. Just go to this website for 15 mins a day until then.

http://www.realkana.com/

If you don't already know Katakana can be useful because it's used to pronounce mostly english words so you should be able to understand the majority of what you read.
 
A

AllenShrz

Member
AlexM said:
do you know hiragana and katakana? That is learn-able in 2 months. Just go to this website for 15 mins a day until then.

http://www.realkana.com/

If you don't already know Katakana can be useful because it's used to pronounce mostly english words so you should be able to understand the majority of what you read.
Click to expand...

Not a word, I always wanted to but German won that fight.

Which one would you remcoomed to try to learn first, Hiragana or katakana?
 
G

GunslingerVit

Banned
AllenShrz said:
Official stuff ;)
[...]
I rather have my own bathroom and kitchen. I believe getting an guarantor will be easy for me. The office will help me on that kind of stuff.
Click to expand...

Just in case things turn out to be more difficult: had also good experiences with that one for a longer stay. Like a hotel, but also like an apartment. Towels get exchanged, rooms cleaned, etc.
http://www.azabucourt.com/rate/standard/

Right in Hirô, a pretty and nice district crowded with foreigners, nice (but often expensive) bars, and it's in the middle of Chiyoda-ku.
 
H

hackdog

Banned
NinjaMouse said:
I wouldn't rely much on what you've learned from anime for Japanese language or culture, either.

I've visited Japan, but never lived there, but I can assure you it's pretty different from life here.
Click to expand...

I wish Japan was half as good as Yakuza 3. Not enough street brawling.
 
M

Michan

Member
GunslingerVit said:
I had good experiences with Sakura House ( http://www.sakura-house.com/en/room-type/share-house.html ). My apartment was rather mediocre (or even low standard), but it was very close to the very convenient Yamanote-sen, the ring-subway around inner Tokyo, the district was fun (Taito-ku), and the staff was nice and also English speaking. The price was around 70.000 Yen/month all inclusive (Internet, garbage, electricity, water, etc.) which is around 700$.

Good luck and start planning in advance. All this stuff takes time and nerves. ;)

/edit
They also have apartments without the hassle the you usually will have with apartments:
http://www.sakura-house.com/en/room-type/apartment.html
Click to expand...

I do not recommend Sakura House.

My girlfriend and I arrived here last year and we moved straight into an apartment with Sakura House. The tiny apartment was infested with cockroaches and silverfish – the moment we opened the door, one scurried out. In the first evening we killed several dozen cockroaches before calling it a night.

We visited their office the next day and not only were they were completely unhelpful, but the last thing they wanted to do was reimburse us (we were within our rights, since the apartment was not "fit for purpose" and therefore the contract was void). It was only through persistence and threats of litigation that were able to be reimbursed.

However, the main reason I would not recommend them is because they told us that it is "quite usual" for their apartments to be infested, and that we should expect this when living in Japan. No apartment we've seen within the same price range has had this issue.

Arrange for accommodation with your own company if you are able to, but absolutely not "the easy way" through a company like Sakura House. It'll be worth it in the long-term.
 
V

Violet_0

Banned
I have a room to share if you want
220px-CapsuleHotelCapsule.jpg
 
A

AlexM

Member
AllenShrz said:
Not a word, I always wanted to but German won that fight.

Which one would you remcoomed to try to learn first, Hiragana or katakana?
Click to expand...

They are both the same phonetically. Hiragana is for Japanese words and Katakana is for phonetically pronouncing foreign words.

I guess if you were in a hurry you would start with Katakana because it's immediately useful.

The good news is that once you learn one set the other is super easy to learn.
 
N

NinjaMouse

Gold Member
hackdog said:
I wish Japan was half as good as Yakuza 3. Not enough street brawling.
Click to expand...

Haha, I'm guilty of that, too. After playing Yakuza 3 and watching Sonatine (it's on Netflix if you haven't seen it already) I won't lie, I'm pretty eager to go to Okinawa now. I've been to Tokyo, and will be going back at the end of July for a few days...
 
A

AlexM

Member
yeah. I hate to say it but one of the reasons I wanted to go to Okinawa was because of that section of Yakuza 4.

\luckily it turned out to be one of my favourite parts of japan. I wish there was some way I could live there.
 
I

isny

napkin dispenser
You can rent with Space Design and get a decent fully furnished apartment for around $1700 a month.

http://www.space-d.co.jp/en/

They only rent to foreigners, so at the very least you'd always have company.

I used them when staying in Japan for a few months back in 2011 and they were extremely easy to do business with. (And the apartment was pretty amazing too)
 
K

Kenshin001

Member
You don't need Japanese. Just put a vowel on the end of every word and finish the sentence with desu and they will understand.

"Helloo myu nameu isu AllenShrzo desu."
 
T

TacticalFox88

Banned
If Japan had taught English the way Scandanavia and Germany does, it'd be practically their second language. Their current way of teaching it is completely and utterly asinine. Flawed doesn't even begin to describe it.

So, yeah, while you may get lucky every once in awhile, knowing some Japanese is going to help you tremendously
 
S

Skinpop

Member
AlexM said:
do you know hiragana and katakana? That is learn-able in 2 months. Just go to this website for 15 mins a day until then.

http://www.realkana.com/

If you don't already know Katakana can be useful because it's used to pronounce mostly english words so you should be able to understand the majority of what you read.
Click to expand...

i don't mean to brag but you can learn hiragana + katakana in a day or two. I did :)
 
H

Holly Caust

Banned
AlexM said:
oh my god yes. Don't go to an Italian restaurant in Japan. The fancy pizza is worse than the crap pizza.
Click to expand...

Not only that, but it's expensive for no reason. Some large pizzas are like 30 USD (or give or take 3,000 yen), where as in America a large pizza is about 10-12 USD at the same food chain such as pizza hut. Though it's like this with most fast food chains.


AlexM said:
yeah. I hate to say it but one of the reasons I wanted to go to Okinawa was because of that section of Yakuza 4.

\luckily it turned out to be one of my favourite parts of japan. I wish there was some way I could live there.
Click to expand...

Okinawa is the best part of Japan IMO, it's like Hawaii but it doesn't suck. My father got stationed @ Torii Station when I was younger and I had a blast, since where we lived off-base was right beside the beach. Yakuza 3's Okinawa/beach parts reminded me of those good times ;_;
 
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