They left the USA and bought an abandoned Japanese house (ft.

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I've heard about abandoned homes in Japan (or "akiya") being given away for free or nearly free. Is this for real? And if so, what does the process look like to buy one?
Luckily I've met some former homesteaders from the USA who have done just that.
So I packed up my family in a tiny rental car, drove across Japan, and camped out on the beach down the street from them.
Just so I could learn what it's ACTUALLY like to buy and renovate a cheap Japanese house in the countryside.
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TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 - Intro
00:28 - Welcome to Omishima
01:49 - Meet Evan and Dani Benton
02:30 - How old is the house?
03:21 - The kitchen and bath
03:59 - Why Japan?
04:21 - Living rooms and engawa
05:35 - How do you legally stay in Japan?
06:53 - Upstairs bedroom
08:23 - How much does a house like this ACTUALLY cost? (Cost breakdown)
10:32 - Advice for those who want to buy an old Japanese house
WATCH NEXT:
What it's like as a foreign family in Japan (480sq ft apartment tour)
• What it's like as a fo...
ABOUT SLOWSTEADING:
We are Slowsteading, a formerly homesteading family of four embarking on a journey to explore alternative ways of living. We are challenging conventions about what a family needs to thrive, exploring ideas of minimalism, slow living, and location independence. We're currently travelling the world and learning from passionate creative entrepreneurs in unexpected places.
COME SAY HI!
Instagram: / slowsteading
MY GEAR:
Camera: amzn.to/3koDtjp
Lens: amzn.to/3GOF89n
Drone: amzn.to/3iOivtS
WHERE I GET MY MUSIC:
share.epidemicsound.com/3l66im

Опубликовано:

15 июн 2024

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Комментарии : 74

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

What do you think, would you buy a house like this?

@MosaicHomestead 8 месяцев назад

I have building experience, I would

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

@@MosaicHomestead You could pick up at least a few places at these prices!

@NekoAshiJapan 8 месяцев назад

Yes! We have just bought an akiya in Shimane :) Lots of DIY in our future. Evan and Dani are lovely people and we enjoy watching their progress.

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

@@NekoAshiJapan very cool, congratulations on your purchase! I'd love to see some pictures, where can I look?

@NekoAshiJapan 8 месяцев назад

@Slowsteading Thank you! We think it's cool too 😎 we have a video of our inspection of the house on our channel. Just about to launch into documenting our purchasing and restoration journey.

@coralieofjumpwithnofear 7 месяцев назад

This is really cool to watch, but I’d like to suggest that the volume of the background music be reduced quite substantially next time, as it made it quite a challenge to hear the dialogue. Really cool content, though. 😊

@dianemichellesobel3842 8 месяцев назад

Keep up the great work & transition! So grateful to be in touch with you, Dani!

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

Thanks for watching! It's very exciting to see the progress they've made with house 😁

@danielstanza6939 8 месяцев назад

Your videos are so well done. Keep them coming!

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

Thanks so much for watching!

@delaneyrohrer4440 7 месяцев назад

The quality of the videos you produce are amazing! Content and visuals. 10/10 subscribed instantly!

@MosaicHomestead 8 месяцев назад

9k for a abandoned house, that's cheap, how are the material prices there compared to the US, that would be my main concern, also if it would be mandatory to higher a contractor, I would have to do my own work to be satisfied with the quality.

@MasuseDeMojo 8 месяцев назад

Japan does have the equivalent of Home Depot and Lowes in the country. You just have to make sure of the legal issues for things like electric, gas, and heating mainly. Recommend you do your research and ask locals and contractors what the rules are on certifications for work done. I have helped with renovating a building in Japan to turn it into a church. All the work was done by people in the church and a master craftsman who flew over as a missionary to help with all the intricacies. We made sure our paper work was done correctly; and we were able to pass Japanese inspection with no issues. The majority of the men were all military, and we all had certifications from our jobs in the different areas of work.

@bentonhomestead 8 месяцев назад

Those are great questions! With the current inflation, I'm not sure what material prices are in the US currently, so it's hard for us to make a direct comparison. Before we left the US, we had some work done repairing the underside of our house in New Orleans, and at that time (2021), the cost of wood had recently tripled... So I just don't know what things cost there currently. I'll say I don't have sticker shock when looking at lumber and materials in Japan, so it's probably about equivalent to previous US prices. As far as being required to use a contractor, we only hired out what we didn't have experience with, or would require permits. The rest of the work we're doing ourselves, and I agree, that's the only way to ensure quality. Also, we're making it a priority to repair and keep as much historic material as we can, so we were sad when the contractors (without our knowledge) cut out a perfectly good old beam under the floor in one room, and replaced with new wood... Their jobs are done now, so now the rest of the renovation will be done by ourselves.

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

These are great questions! From what I could tell at the home centres, prices were comparable for materials back home. Whatever can be produced domestically is usually cheaper, but a lot of the wood is imported thus subject to price fluctuations of it's originating country. One thing @bentonhomestead mentioned to me was that although they were not required to, there was a sort of an implicit agreement that they work with that specific local contractor due to his relationship with the house/previous owners. I don't know the specifics about that arrangement, but it kind of illustrates that there are definitely cultural factors at play.

@MosaicHomestead 5 месяцев назад

Are you and your family Ok...I heard there was a earthquake there that was pretty bad.

@gracegood3661 5 месяцев назад

Hey team, please be mindful of the land taxes you are liable for. This the reason Japanese families aren’t keeping these properties when the olds die off. My Japanese wife is figuring about the viability of keeping her family home when her mum goes.

@Digityz 4 месяца назад

I love watching your videos, your storytelling and editing. I’ve been checking everyday for new ones. Hope all is good with you guys. My son lived inJapan for over a year, he moved back to US this week with his new wife from Japan.

@Slowsteading 4 месяца назад

Thanks so much, that means a lot! We took a bit of a break but hope to share more soon, all is well :)

@GaganUluvaru 8 месяцев назад

Hey guys, it was a great video. Moving to Japan & settling down is one of my biggest dreams & am happy when I see other people doing it. Hopefully one day I'll be able to do it. For now I've moved to Dubai to find a job & make enough money to do all the things I want to. It's been good one week here. Hoping to see more videos from you guys...💙💙💙

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

Wow congrats on the big move! Did you have to find a new home for your chickens?

@GaganUluvaru 8 месяцев назад

@@Slowsteading No, I used to live with my parents in our farmhouse. So now they are looking after thw chickens. And talking about them we hatched 11 new chicks couple of days ago.

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

@@GaganUluvaru congratulations on the new chicks! I wonder if you miss them, I think about our chickens often too :) Wishing you the best of luck in Dubai ✌

@GaganUluvaru 8 месяцев назад

@@Slowsteading yeah miss them a lot. Miss getting annoyed at my cats..💙

@truestory923 6 месяцев назад

Another excellent video. Super high production. You should be really proud! I love your videos. I just wish that RU-vid would suggest them to me!

@thepipingbagbakery4399 Месяц назад

I loved this look into what it takes to pull up stakes, follow your heart and cultivate a life worth living. Can’t wait to follow them and you on this fantastic journey!

@Slowsteading Месяц назад

Thanks so much!

@Lunearien 4 месяца назад

Americans moving to a cheaper country, inspiring others to follow suit, and soon raising the local housing market price, and makes it even more unobtainable for locals too. Yay!! 😂

@xXLunatikxXlul 3 месяца назад

That is literally going on all-over the world - hush your racist ass up.

@Slowsteading 2 месяца назад

No locals want to live in these areas 😂

@elimarshall1497 7 часов назад

America could have affordable housing like Japan if they didn’t have their cities designated to mostly only large single family homes.

@Venti9874 Месяц назад

Very interesting. Thank you.

@AlistairAVogan 5 месяцев назад

Haha. I just noticed the reference in the thumbnail for this video! Nice.

@Slowsteading 4 месяца назад

American Gothic 😂 The pitchfork was Evan's idea, but it fits so well

@atg1317 8 месяцев назад

What happened to the homestead? I would love to take over and take care of it

@margiestephens7281 8 месяцев назад

Guts & stamina!! But, the rewards will be a lovely & simple life.. which we all strive for. Keep up your ur channel please. I had many Japanese friends when I lived in Hawaii (Oahu) back in the 70’s & it was such an uncomplicated life

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

It definitely takes guts to take on a project like this! But I totally agree, great rewards only come from taking big risks and putting in the work. These guys are inspiring!

@aprendeingles2day 5 месяцев назад

⭐All your videos are great⭐

@htsnt8194 7 месяцев назад

You can find more good condition akiya with cheaper price, but at first you should decide where you want to settle, then try to find akiya around neighbour there...

@AlistairAVogan 5 месяцев назад

Aaaaah. Right. Tatami mat order. Thank you for reminding me. One of my orders of business has been to remove the tatami to double check what’s going on underneath. Had I removed them all and then tried to put them back I likely would have created LOTS of unnecessary heartache.

@Slowsteading 4 месяца назад

Fingers crossed for you that there are no surprises underneath!

@ZiKoN22 8 месяцев назад

Great video. I love watching videos about あきや .

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

Thanks for watching!

@RealRuralJapan 8 месяцев назад

Nice video the Benton’s have made huge progress with the project this far and I wish them all the best. If you are going to live in Japan the countryside is where it’s definitely at.

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

Seriously, they've done an amazing job. I hear they are planning to complete the reno by November to get the guest house up and running, I'll have to get back there for an update video! Couldn't agree more, the countryside > cities especially in Japan.

@1975normal 5 месяцев назад

Nice story of the struggles of living abroad

@Slowsteading 4 месяца назад

Definitely, the Bentons are really inspiring in how they have tackled a lot of the challenges head on

@user-fn2xe1np3y Месяц назад

Don't forget the Earthquake and typhoon when you buy a property in Japean. Good luck with your project 🍀

@MajikMedia 8 месяцев назад

Are ya gonna do it brother?!?!

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

If the right opportunity arises, anything is possible 😂😂

@davidcrawford219 2 месяца назад

Very interesting 🎉

@Slowsteading 2 месяца назад

Thanks, I think they have such a cool story to share!

@purplethumb7887 7 месяцев назад

What is the reason for these homes being abandoned? Very interesting. It looks like it would a lot of work and time invested, but something your family has already shown you can do. Looking forward to see what happens. Good luck!

@littlefairyland763 7 месяцев назад

There are so many abandoned houses in japan... Especially in rural area... No one heirs the home. Mostly the young people not married now.. Lack of kids

@Lunearien 4 месяца назад

@@littlefairyland763 They moved to big cities where there are more job opportunities

@RUMPLEforeskin25 3 месяца назад

Demographic collapse. Same thing is happening to Europeans.

@xperyskop2475 2 месяца назад

Building code changes. New building codes are more earthquake-resistant. It's usualy cheaper to destroy and build from scratch than refurbish to new standards. Population decline plays part too

@Slowsteading 8 месяцев назад

What do you think, would you live in a house like that?

@sandyfreyman3501 8 месяцев назад

Thaxs for even showing such an idea. The japanese have some cute lifestyles but again, at the end of the day i dont see it as worth it at all. Christian community is worth far so much more in America. When weather tragedys strike here, community comes together. That I love.

@dianetm8557 2 месяца назад

Please turn down or off the background music when talking. It was so difficult to hear the dialog. Nice video otherwise. 😊

@Slowsteading 2 месяца назад

Thanks for the feedback! The audio was tricky as the cicadas were ridiculously loud at that time of year, but yeah could have done some better levelling on my end 😅