Renter in Japan pays $285 a month for a flat she says is haunted, nearly 30% below its usual rent

A Tokyo renter who says she shares her apartment with a ghost is paying nearly 30% less than the usual rent. For Ryua, an entertainer who keeps her surname private, the unusual arrangement has been worth sticking with for four years. 

Here's what to know

Ryua pays 45,000 yen ($285) a month for a 269-square-foot (25-square-meter) bedsit in Tokyo's fashionable Setagaya ward, compared with the usual 62,000 yen, according to the BBC. Before moving in, she was told that a man had died by suicide in the apartment.

Ryua believed she had seen a ghost glaring at her during the viewing because the estate agent saw no one else there. But that didn't deter her from renting the apartment. 

"I'm a bit of a contrarian, so I decided I wanted to become friends with this glaring male ghost," she told the BBC. 

This apartment belongs to a category known as jiko bukken, meaning "stigmatised" or "incident" properties, according to the report. In Japan, beliefs about yuurei — lingering, troubled spirits associated with tragic deaths — can make these homes difficult to rent or sell.

More background

The discounts extend beyond small apartments. 

Diane Tincher, a 69-year-old American tour guide who has lived in Japan for almost four decades, purchased a large three-bedroom house in rural Kagoshima for 20 million yen, according to the BBC. Comparable homes nearby typically fetch as much as 45 million yen. 

Tincher said the estate agent explained that the price was lower because an elderly woman had died alone in the house. Tincher, who does not believe in ghosts, welcomed the opportunity to purchase an affordable home.

"If there is a ghost I'm thankful to her every day... to live in such a splendid and affordable home," Tincher told the outlet. 

A 2025 survey cited by the BBC also found that, with living costs rising, most Japanese respondents were willing to rent a jiko bukken property at a low enough price.

Japan's 2021 guidelines require estate agents to disclose certain deaths to buyers no matter how much time has passed. According to the BBC, the rules cover suicide, murder, death by fire, and cases in which a body went undiscovered for a long time. 

For rentals, agents must disclose those deaths for three years.

Buyers and renters can also research homes through Oshimaland, a website founded in 2005 that Tincher said she used while investigating her house. The public can add listings and details about the events associated with jiko bukken properties.

Where can I learn more?

The trade-offs over housing costs and comfort extend beyond Japan.

• A homebuyer eyed a house beside a funeral home, then discovered concerns about its bowed floor.

• A woman rents a 260-square-foot home for $1,100 monthly to avoid roommates and work less.

• In the UK, a 52-year-old renter shares a home with three others to save money.

• A New York renter paying $5,850 sued over an odor the landlord denied existed.

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