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>but the $300k+ Japanese homes aren't that expensive unless you want a very big space / luxurious place. >houses in Japan are probably twice as expensive per

>but the $300k+ Japanese homes aren't that expensive unless you want a very big space / luxurious place. >houses in Japan are probably twice as expensive per unit area compared to the US You might be surprised this goes for most of the world. The US is spoiled in regards to cost per square meter after adjusting for office worker salary (let alone tech salaries). Until you go to the big cities, where the problems are far, far worse than e.g. Tokyo. >Salaries are low as well Salaries in most of Japan aren't even that low when compared to the remainder of the West. You can find quite a few anecdotes pointing out the opposite, calling Japan more affordable if anything (truth probably being somewhere in the middle). Try looking in big cities around most of Europe and even Canada. You'll find similar issues, both in salaries and in housing prices vs housing sizes.

bobthepanda 4y ago
Also, because of zoning regulations having minimum lot sizes, it is hard to find new construction in US cities that has comparable square footage, so you can’t actually take advantage of the lower sq ft cost by keeping the same amount of space.
seanmcdirmid 4y ago
Canadians and Australians have housing sizes comparable to the states.
- ido 4y ago
  Yes, and most of the world (and even most of developed world) are neither Canadian, Australian or American. Europe and Asia tend to have smaller homes & the latter alone accounts for more than half the world's population.
- BlargMcLarg 4y ago
  And you can find houses just as big in Japan, and in large parts of Europe. Not the point. Compare developer salaries with square meter prices. Anyone complaining about Japan being unaffordable clearly doesn't understand the problem is almost universal among developed countries. The only way you're getting past that is having a high income. Of course it's going to seem small for US developers used to being in the upper echelons of the middle class in a country with relatively low prices compared to CoL. The moment you're not an office worker and/or trying to live close to the city to not have a daily commute over an hour, you're pretty much in the same position as anywhere else in the developed world.

bobthepanda 4y ago

Also, because of zoning regulations having minimum lot sizes, it is hard to find new construction in US cities that has comparable square footage, so you can’t actually take advantage of the lower sq ft cost by keeping the same amount of space.

seanmcdirmid 4y ago

Canadians and Australians have housing sizes comparable to the states.

ido 4y ago
Yes, and most of the world (and even most of developed world) are neither Canadian, Australian or American. Europe and Asia tend to have smaller homes & the latter alone accounts for more than half the world's population.
BlargMcLarg 4y ago
And you can find houses just as big in Japan, and in large parts of Europe. Not the point. Compare developer salaries with square meter prices. Anyone complaining about Japan being unaffordable clearly doesn't understand the problem is almost universal among developed countries. The only way you're getting past that is having a high income. Of course it's going to seem small for US developers used to being in the upper echelons of the middle class in a country with relatively low prices compared to CoL. The moment you're not an office worker and/or trying to live close to the city to not have a daily commute over an hour, you're pretty much in the same position as anywhere else in the developed world.