Japan Starts Designing a Way to Rate How Well Homes Are Maintained: What It Means for Resale Buyers in Osaka

The short version

Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) has started designing a system to rate how well a home has been maintained. The idea is to turn regular inspections, repairs and record-keeping into information that can be assessed, and to consider reflecting it in mortgages, defect insurance and resale transactions ^[4][2]. The working group handling the details held its first meeting on 9 November ^[1], and a draft summary is scheduled for March 2027 ^[5]. Nothing has been decided, but the direction is clear: a home's maintenance record is increasingly being treated as part of its value.

What happened

On 8 October MLIT held the first meeting of a study panel on systems for the maintenance and resale of housing ^[5]. The panel's papers frame the problem this way: with new housing starts falling and prices rising, letting people achieve the housing they want without excessive burden requires a stock of reasonably good-quality homes that can be passed on for a long time, and a market in which buyers of existing homes can transact with confidence ^[4].

Three working groups sit under the panel: maintenance and existing-home evaluation; housing history records; and defect-warranty and consumer protection ^[5]. The working group on evaluating maintenance status and the performance of existing homes met for the first time on the morning of 9 November. The meeting was closed to the public, with materials to be posted on the MLIT website afterwards ^[1]. On the draft schedule, the panel meets again on 7 December to hear industry groups and set out the issues, and a third time on 10 March 2027 to receive working-group reports and a draft summary ^[5].

What is on the table

The working group's papers set out the following direction, all still labelled as proposals ^[2]:

• Several evaluation tracks by scope. A basic track covers the main structural parts, waterproofing and plumbing areas. A "long-life quality" track adds earthquake resistance, energy efficiency and similar items, and a "performance evaluation" track adds performance items chosen by the owner on top of the basic track.
• Two stages: the maintenance plan and how it was carried out. First the plan is assessed, including inspection frequency, inspection items and how records will be kept; later, at any point such as a sale, the actual implementation is assessed. The papers give examples such as inspecting waterproofing every 5 years and structure every 10 years. Open questions include how to treat missed inspections and whether a certificate should still be issued when needed repairs have not been done ^[2].
• Existing homes checked according to what documents survive. Where a performance evaluation certificate or long-life quality housing certification from construction exists, a current-condition check is added; where design drawings exist, certification or evaluation is obtained from the drawings plus a condition check; where nothing exists, the basic track relies on a building inspection. The papers themselves acknowledge that many existing homes have no surviving drawings, so confirming quality can take considerable time and cost ^[2].
• Links to finance. The group will look at using ratings in residual-value mortgages, reverse mortgages and defect insurance ^[2].

According to the summary of the panel's first meeting, members broadly agreed that the time is ripe to improve the environment for trading existing homes. One member warned, however, that making inspections mandatory too hastily could lead houses to be treated as "land with an old house on it", with the valuation shifting to the land alone. The secretariat said any mandate would need very careful discussion and that the first step would be to encourage take-up by linking it to incentives ^[6].

Background: resale homes are now the mainstream

MLIT's papers show that between 2008 and 2025 resale transactions of detached houses rose from 142,000 to 177,000 units (+24.2%), and resale condominiums from 117,000 to 177,000 units (+51.0%) ^[3]. The resale share of all condominium transactions rose from 53.8% in 2015 to 66.3% in 2025, and for detached houses from 26.2% to 35.8% ^[3]. The same papers show new-build purchase prices in Japan's three major metropolitan areas rising between fiscal 2016 and fiscal 2025 from 38.10 million yen to 50.99 million yen for detached houses and from 44.23 million yen to 64.43 million yen for condominiums ^[3].

The problem is that maintenance information barely plays a role in the market. In a survey cited in the papers, only 0.6% of households hoping to buy an existing home ranked having a record of inspections, repairs and renovations as their top condition, and only 0.4% ranked disclosure of performance or inspection results first ^[3]. Among owner-occupiers of detached houses, about 22% said they inspect regularly and about 76% said they repair things when problems occur; among owner-occupier households overall, about 20% keep inspection and repair records ^[3].

What this means for buyers in Osaka

Resale transactions in Osaka are dominated by condominiums, so this discussion matters most for condo buyers. In the meeting summary, an observer from the condominium management industry association said registrations under its management-quality rating scheme are approaching 14,000, about 14% of condominiums nationwide, and a panel member noted early signs that highly rated buildings are trading at slightly higher prices ^[6].

No rules are changing yet, but a few habits are worth building now:

1. For a condominium, ask about management and repair records. Look at the long-term repair plan, the history of major repairs, the balance of the repair reserve fund, and whether the building holds a management-plan certification or a private management rating. This information may carry more weight with lenders and future buyers.
2. For a detached house, consider a building inspection. Either the seller or the buyer can commission one; a buyer needs the seller's consent ^[3]. The results and repair records will also be useful when you eventually sell.
3. Keep records after you move in. Save inspection reports, repair invoices and renovation drawings. Under the direction being discussed, having records could itself become something that is assessed ^[2].
4. Do not treat proposals as settled benefits. The scope and cost of any rating system, and whether it will be linked to mortgage rates, will only become clear with the March 2027 draft summary and the system design that follows ^[5].

Summary

At its core, MLIT's discussion is about making well-maintained homes visible in transactions and lending. For resale buyers in Osaka there is no need to change plans in the short term, but paying attention to management and repair records when choosing a property, and keeping your own records after moving in, will not hurt whatever shape the final system takes. If you are looking at a resale condominium or house in Osaka and want to know how to check a property's maintenance status, please reach out through our contact form.