Condo Fees in Japan: Kanrihi and the Reserve Fund Explained

Kanrihi and the reserve fund: the two mandatory charges

In Japan, every owner of a condominium unit — a manshon (apartment in a concrete building) — is automatically a member of the owners' association, the kanri kumiai (kanri kumiai), under the Condominium Ownership Act, the kubun shoyū-hō (-ku分所有法). You cannot opt out while you own the unit. The association almost always delegates day-to-day work to a professional building manager, the kanri kaisha (kanri-gaisha), which collects two separate monthly charges:

• Management fees — kanrihi (kanri-hi): the running costs. Cleaning, lift maintenance, common-area electricity and water, caretaker, the manager's own fee, minor repairs.
• The repair reserve fund — shūzen tsumitatekin (shūzen tsumitatekin): collective savings for the big cyclical works, the daikibo shūzen (大規模修繕), scheduled every 12-15 years: facade renewal, roof waterproofing, pipework, lifts.

Criterion	Management fee (kanrihi)	Reserve fund (shūzenkin)
Nature	Operating expense	Savings for future works
National average	≈ ¥11,500/month/unit (≈ €75)	≈ ¥13,000/month/unit (≈ €85)
Typical trajectory	Stable, moderate rises	Steep, frequent rises
Key pre-purchase question	Is the management contract competitive?	Does the balance cover the repair plan?

These charges are owed by the owner, never the tenant — so your rent has to absorb them. They come on top of annual property taxes and are apportioned by each unit's ownership share (in practice, by floor area). If you call them HOA fees or service charges, it is the same concept. For the bigger picture, start with our guide to buying an apartment in Japan and the full guide to buying property in Japan.

How much are condo fees in Japan? The official numbers

The benchmark is the national survey run by Japan's Ministry of Land (MLIT, Kokudo Kōtsū-shō), the manshon sōgō chōsa (mansion (copropriété)総合調査), conducted every 5 years — latest edition published in 2024. Per unit per month, the averages are: about ¥11,500 in management fees and about ¥13,000 in reserve contributions, i.e. ≈ ¥24,500 (≈ €165) in total. One striking fact: the average reserve contribution has been multiplied by nearly 1.8 over 25 years — the trend only points up.

The official per-m² guideline: the right yardstick

Per-unit averages blend studios with large family flats. MLIT therefore publishes a reserve fund guideline expressed per square metre: depending on the building's size and height, the recommended order of magnitude runs from about ¥200 to ¥360/m²/month (excluding mechanical parking). This scale was raised by roughly +50% in 2024 to track soaring construction costs — a fund calibrated on the old benchmarks is already behind.

Typical total charges by unit size

Private floor area	Management (kanrihi)	Reserve (shūzenkin)	Indicative monthly total
25 m² (studio)	¥4,000-7,000	¥3,000-6,000	≈ ¥7,000-13,000 (≈ €45-85)
55 m² (1-bed)	¥9,000-16,000	¥7,000-14,000	≈ ¥16,000-30,000 (≈ €105-200)
80 m² (family)	¥14,000-24,000	¥11,000-22,000	≈ ¥25,000-46,000 (≈ €165-305)
Tower (per m²)	¥250-400/m²	¥200-400/m²	Markedly higher

Two premiums to know about. Towers (tawā manshon): pools, concierges and high-rise facades push both lines up. Mechanical parking (kikaishiki chūshajō, 機械式駐車場): these car-lift stackers cost several thousand yen of maintenance per space per month — the MLIT guideline treats them as a separate surcharge. And remember these fees come on top of the annual Japanese property tax (koteishisanzei).

Why Japanese condo fees almost always rise

The first cause is how the reserve fund is accumulated. Two systems coexist:

Criterion	Level contributions (kintō tsumitate)	Stepped increases (dankai zōgaku)
Principle	Stable amount over 30 years	Low start, rises every ~5 years
Who uses it?	Recommended by MLIT	The majority of new buildings
Why?	Predictable, fair	Low fees at launch = a sales pitch
Risk	Low	Increases voted down → underfunded reserve

The stepped system dominates new builds: developers advertise low fees to sell, and the plan bakes in successive increases from day one — each of which must later be approved at the general meeting (sōkai, 総会). When owners vote them down, the fund falls behind its plan: per the 2024 MLIT survey, 36.6% of condominiums have a reserve fund short of their long-term repair plan.

Three more drivers of increases

• Construction cost inflation: materials and labour have surged — precisely why MLIT lifted its guideline by about +50% in 2024.
• Building age: the second major works cycle (around years 25-30: kyūhaisuikan pipework, window sashes, lifts) costs more than the first facade job.
• Labour shortage: caretakers and cleaners are scarce, and management fees track wages upward.

The practical takeaway: never judge a listing by its current fees. Demand the long-term repair plan, the chōki shūzen keikaku (chōki修繕計画), and look at the trajectory of charges over 10-20 years.

The real impact on your rental yield: a worked example

Take a realistic case: a 25 m² studio in eastern Tokyo, 8 minutes from a station, bought cash for ¥20M (≈ €133,000) and let at ¥95,000/month. Purchase costs ≤ 6%: say ≈ ¥1.1M, for a total budget of ¥21.1M (≈ €141,000) — the line-by-line breakdown is in our guide to property purchase costs in Japan.

Annual item	Amount	Share of rent
Gross rent (¥95,000 × 12)	¥1,140,000 (≈ €7,600)	100%
Condo fees (¥16,000/month)	− ¥192,000 (≈ €1,280)	≈ 17%
Property tax + city planning tax	− ¥60,000 (≈ €400)	≈ 5%
Rental management (≈ 5%)	− ¥57,000 (≈ €380)	≈ 5%
Home insurance	− ¥10,000 (≈ €65)	≈ 1%
Net income (before vacancy)	≈ ¥821,000 (≈ €5,500)	≈ 72%

Result: 5.7% gross yield on the price, but ≈ 3.9% net on the total budget — and condo fees alone swallow nearly 17% of the rent. This is THE line that separates tempting listings from genuinely good deals.

The stress test: what if the reserve doubles?

A frequent scenario under a stepped plan: the reserve contribution jumps from ¥7,000 to ¥14,000/month around year 12. Cost: +¥84,000/year, and the net yield slides from 3.9% to ≈ 3.5%. On a studio, every extra ¥1,000/month of fees shaves roughly 0.06 points off net yield. Always run your assumptions — current AND future fees — through our rental yield simulator. One piece of good tax news: for a landlord these fees are deductible from taxable rental income, as explained in our article on rental income tax for non-residents. And if you delegate, add the cost of remote rental management to the maths.

Special assessments and the seller's arrears: legal traps

When the reserve fund cannot cover the works that have been voted, the association has three options: postpone the works (the building decays), borrow (future fees repay the loan), or vote a special one-off assessment — the ichijikin (一時金). These assessments commonly reach several hundred thousand yen per unit, sometimes more on a major project. A starved fund today is a cheque you will sign tomorrow.

The seller's debts follow the unit

A little-known but crucial point of law: under Article 8 of the Condominium Ownership Act, the buyer of a unit — the "specific successor", tokutei shōkeinin (特定shōkei人) — is liable for the unpaid charges left by the seller. If the previous owner owes ¥300,000 in arrears (tainō, 滞納), the association can claim them from you after the sale. The association's claim even enjoys a statutory lien (sakidori tokken, 先取特権) over the unit.

The defence is simple: demand the condominium status report, the jūyō jikō chōsa hōkokusho (重要事項調査報告書), issued by the building manager, which lists the fund balance, the works already voted and any arrears attached to the unit. Any outstanding amount must be settled by the seller or deducted from the price at closing. This check is part of the legally required explanation of important matters before signing — see our article on the jūyō jikō setsumei.

Expert tip: also ask for the building's overall arrears rate. Widespread unpaid dues across several units reveal a fragile association — it is the collective health that underwrites your asset's value.

Auditing the fees before you buy: a 5-point method

Before any offer on a condominium, put the building's finances under the microscope. Five checks weed out 90% of nasty surprises:

1. The reserve fund balance, relative to the number of units and the building's age. A 30-year-old building with only a few million yen in the kitty for 50 units is under-capitalised.
2. Comparison with the MLIT guideline: a contribution far below ~¥200-360/m²/month needs a justification (recent building, works already done) — otherwise a rise or an assessment is coming.
3. The long-term repair plan (chōki shūzen keikaku): does it exist, has it been updated within ~5 years, and are the increases it schedules already voted?
4. The general-meeting minutes (gijiroku, 議事録) for the last 2-3 years: rejected increases, disputes, big projects under discussion, a change of manager.
5. Arrears: those attached to the unit you want (they would follow you) and the building's overall rate.

Immediate red flags: no repair plan, self-management (jishu kanri, 自主kanri) without in-house expertise, a major project voted with no funding in place, fees kept "low to stay attractive". Conversely, a condominium certified under the management plan certification scheme (kanri keikaku nintei seido, kanri計画nintei制度, in force since 2022) sends a positive signal.

This analysis is part of our complete Japan property purchase checklist. Since every document is in Japanese, this is exactly the kind of verification our personalised buyer support covers — reading, translating and second-guessing every page.

Can you reduce condo fees in Japan?

The honest answer: at the margin, and collectively. Fees are set by vote at the general meeting — a lone owner can neither refuse nor negotiate them alone. The levers that actually work:

• Re-tendering the management contract: the number-one lever on the kanrihi. A competitive bid between kanri kaisha can sometimes save 10-20% on the fee for identical service.
• Renegotiating technical contracts: lift maintenance by an independent firm rather than the manufacturer, common-area electricity contracts, cleaning frequency.
• Optimising the building's insurance and cutting little-used services (24-hour staffing, plants, unused lounges).

By contrast, cutting the reserve fund is not a saving: it merely shifts the cost to a future assessment, and it is a negative signal at resale — Japanese buyers increasingly scrutinise a building's financial health. Beware of associations that "control fees" by sacrificing maintenance.

If you want total control over these decisions, the answer is not a condominium: it is the whole income building (ikkatsu), where you alone set the works budget — in exchange for carrying 100% of the maintenance.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Comparing properties on sticker price alone. Two identical ¥20M studios with ¥9,000 versus ¥18,000 in monthly fees have very different net yields: always annualise the fees before comparing.
• Believing a low reserve fund is a bargain. It is the opposite: the catch-up will come as a rise or an assessment — and 36.6% of condominiums are already behind their plan.
• Ignoring the schedule of increases already voted. Under a stepped plan, year-12 fees can be double year-1 fees: read the plan, not just the listing.
• Forgetting that the seller's arrears follow you (Article 8 of the Condominium Ownership Act): demand the manager's report before signing.
• Underestimating mechanical parking: heavy maintenance, costly replacement, and often-vacant spaces that drain the common budget.
• Overlooking the overall arrears rate: an association that collects poorly is an association that maintains poorly.
• Buying a studio "because the rent covers it" without a stress test: redo the maths with fees +30% and one month of vacancy — if the deal no longer works, walk away.

Conclusion: healthy fees beat low fees

Japanese condo fees are not an administrative footnote: at ≈ ¥24,500/month on national average and nearly 17% of the rent in our worked example, they are the first variable separating advertised yield from real yield. The reading grid fits in three questions: is the reserve fund at the official guideline level, are future increases already written in, and does the unit carry arrears? A building with slightly higher but well-managed fees will always protect your capital better than a "cheap" under-maintained condominium.

To go further: our step-by-step guide to buying property in Japan, pre-audited properties in Our gems, and our tailored buyer support to have the condominium you are eyeing analysed before you commit a single yen.

Frequently asked questions

What is kanrihi in a Japanese building?

The kanrihi is the monthly management fee of a Japanese condominium: cleaning, lifts, common-area electricity, caretaker and the building manager's fee. National average: about ¥11,500 per unit per month (≈ €75), per the MLIT survey.

How much are average condo fees in Japan?

About ¥24,500 per unit per month (≈ €165) on national average: ≈ ¥11,500 in management fees plus ≈ ¥13,000 in reserve contributions. Budget ¥16,000-30,000 for a 55 m² flat, and markedly more in a tower.

Who pays condo fees in Japan: owner or tenant?

Always the owner. The tenant pays rent (and sometimes separate common-service charges under the lease), but the kanrihi and the reserve fund remain the landlord's responsibility — your rent has to cover them.

Are condo fees tax-deductible in Japan?

Yes. For a rented property, management fees and reserve contributions are deductible from taxable rental income, alongside property tax, insurance and rental management fees.

What happens to the previous owner's unpaid condo fees?

They follow you: Article 8 of Japan's Condominium Ownership Act makes the buyer liable for the seller's arrears. Demand the manager's status report (jūyō jikō chōsa hōkokusho) and have any arrears settled or deducted before closing.

Can condo fees double in Japan?

Yes, especially the reserve fund: most new buildings use a stepped plan whose increases are scheduled from day one, and the national average contribution has been multiplied by nearly 1.8 over 25 years. Read the repair plan before buying.

Does a detached house in Japan pay condo fees?

No: no owners' association, so neither kanrihi nor reserve fund. But all maintenance is on you — experts recommend self-provisioning an equivalent works budget for the roof, facade and pipework.

How do I know if a building's reserve fund is sufficient?

Compare the contribution with the official MLIT guideline (roughly ¥200-360/m²/month depending on the building), and check the balance against the long-term repair plan and its update date. Below the guideline with no justification, expect increases.