Stereotypically this is a symptom of strong renters rights laws. Its a tradeoff. I've rented in places where renters are treated little better than cattle, at

Stereotypically this is a symptom of strong renters rights laws. Its a tradeoff. I've rented in places where renters are treated little better than cattle, at least legally, and you show up with first and last in a cashiers check, they run a credit check while you wait (which I never had a problem with although I assume people must occasionally fail?), sign a one year lease, they hand you the keys, whole process is done in like 10 minutes. Then again if you don't pay up the judge will issue an eviction before the month is out, seen those papers posted on doors. And that's precisely why they'll rent on the spot to almost anyone with a pulse no hassle. Then again I've heard of places where women with children can't be legally evicted because the judges just won't approve, any code violation or maint issue means rent goes into escrow not to the owner, endless .gov permits and hassle. Thats nice that .gov has your back when there's a problem, but when there isn't a problem, you end up with key fees and guarantors and endless paperwork and social standing stuff. Given that experience, I would assume Japan is some kind of renters paradise when/if a problem occurs, whereas at a net cafe in Japan if a problem occurs either you walk out or are physically tossed out, although I didn't read anything in the article on that topic (Or I missed it if it was there)