{"id":247,"date":"2026-10-13T08:59:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-12T23:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/?p=247"},"modified":"2026-10-08T07:48:00","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T22:48:00","slug":"room-hunting-then-and-now-today-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/?p=247","title":{"rendered":"No Guarantor? Can You Still Rent in Japan? | Room Hunting, Then and Now: Today \u2460"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"No
Photo: handing over keys at the door (Jakub \u017berdzicki \/ Unsplash). For illustration. The red stamp, which reads \u4fdd\u8a3c\u4eba (hosh\u014dnin<\/em>, \u201cguarantor\u201d), is also an illustration.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

This is the English edition of our Japanese series \u300c\u304a\u90e8\u5c4b\u63a2\u3057\u4eca\u3080\u304b\u3057\u300d (Room Hunting, Then and Now). \u65e5\u672c\u8a9e\u7248\u306f\u3053\u3061\u3089<\/a> \uff0f All English articles<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the first \u201cToday\u201d episode. I look at common worries about renting in Japan and check them against government and city sources. First: the guarantor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Sapporo Housing Support Council lists this as a typical consultation: \u201cI could not find a guarantor and was refused a contract.\u201d Having no one to ask is not a rare problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About 80% of leases now use a guarantee company<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

According to material from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), a rent guarantee company is used in about 80% of rental contracts (fiscal 2021 survey of management companies).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A rent guarantee company takes a fee and guarantees your rent to the landlord. Instead of asking a person for a favour, you pay a company. That is now the usual way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is also a national registration system for these companies. Registered companies are listed on the MLIT website: 125 as of 30 September 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Edo had the same business<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This is not a new idea. In the Edo period, too, there were people who acted as guarantors for a fee. I wrote about them in Edo \u2461<\/a>. The problem of having no guarantor is about 300 years old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
Then: an old Japanese book (Photo: Dr. C.K. Huang \/ Unsplash). It is not an Edo guarantor\u2019s deed. For illustration.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

You will still be asked for an emergency contact<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Many people think that with a guarantee company you do not have to write down anyone\u2019s name. Not quite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An MLIT survey (fiscal 2023, preliminary figures) found that about 80% of guarantee companies ask for an emergency contact, and many require it to be an individual such as a relative or a friend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An emergency contact is not a guarantor. The notes to MLIT\u2019s standard lease contract say the contact may be asked to reach the tenant, and to help in case of sudden illness, a welfare check or a water leak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you ask someone, tell them clearly: \u201cI am asking you to be my emergency contact, not my guarantor.\u201d And check in the documents, before signing, what that person is being asked to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes both are required<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One more point. A casebook published on the MLIT website (March 2022) notes that some properties require a guarantee company even when you have a joint guarantor. The reverse also appears in government material: a tenant who used a guarantee company and was then asked for a guarantor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conditions differ by property and by company. Even if the listing says \u201cno guarantor required\u201d, check the conditions before you apply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How much is the fee?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

MLIT\u2019s Apartment Search Guidebook for foreign residents says the fee is often \u201cabout half a month\u2019s rent for a two-year guarantee\u201d. An MLIT document from 2016 said many companies charged 50% of the monthly rent at first, then 10,000 yen a year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both documents are a few years old. Fees differ by company and plan, so check the estimate. Ask about the renewal fee as well as the first payment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
Now: check what the documents say before you sign (Photo: Dimitri Karastelev \/ Unsplash). For illustration.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The rules for asking a person have changed too<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The rules for asking a parent or relative changed in April 2020. According to the Ministry of Justice, when an individual gives this kind of open-ended guarantee, the contract is void unless it sets a maximum amount. MLIT material says this applies to joint guarantors of residential leases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the person you ask, it means the contract now states the most they could ever have to pay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other routes<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

UR rental housing.<\/strong> UR\u2019s official site says no key money, no agent fee, no renewal fee and no guarantor. A guarantee company is not needed either. There are application conditions such as income.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A consultation desk in Sapporo.<\/strong> \u201cMina Sumairu Sapporo\u201d, run by the Sapporo Housing Support Council, helps people who have difficulty securing housing, such as older people and people with disabilities. It introduces housing information, living-support services and welfare desks. Consultation is free and by appointment only, on the 2nd floor of Sapporo City Hall. Please check with the desk about languages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For foreign residents.<\/strong> MLIT\u2019s Apartment Search Guidebook is published in several languages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summary: three things to check before you apply<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

1. Can you use a guarantee company? Is a guarantor also required?
2. What are the conditions for the emergency contact?
3. How much is the guarantee fee, at first and at renewal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Guarantee companies screen applicants too, so I cannot say \u201cyou will definitely be able to rent\u201d. But having no guarantor does not leave you with only one road. I can help you look for a property that fits your conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sources (all in Japanese unless noted): MLIT material on guarantee companies and emergency contacts<\/a> \/ MLIT list of registered guarantee companies<\/a> \/ Standard Residential Lease Contract (March 2018 edition)<\/a> \/ Consultation casebook on private rental housing (March 2022)<\/a> \/ MLIT, \u201cThe State of Rent Guarantees\u201d (October 2016)<\/a> \/ MLIT Apartment Search Guidebook (multilingual)<\/a> \/ Ministry of Justice pamphlet on the Civil Code revision<\/a> \/ MLIT casebook on the revised Civil Code (March 2021)<\/a> \/ UR rental housing<\/a> \/ Sapporo Housing Support Council<\/a>. Checked on 8 October 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next \u201cToday\u201d episode is about move-in costs: which money comes back and which does not. Tomorrow is Meiji history: the deposit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking for a home in Sapporo?<\/strong>
Message us on LINE: https:\/\/line.me\/ti\/p\/u2qP4VZ5ZU<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Please note:<\/strong> Lease contracts and the legally required explanation of important matters (j\u016by\u014d jik\u014d setsumei<\/em>) are provided in Japanese.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

No one to ask to be your guarantor in Japan? I checked the options against government, UR and Sapporo city sources: guarantee companies, emergency contacts, typical fees and a free consultation desk in Sapporo.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":245,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-247","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=247"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":293,"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/247\/revisions\/293"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/245"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=247"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=247"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.iiie-r5.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=247"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}