Platform comparison

Best FSBO websites in Japan

Japan has no single FSBO platform comparable to Zillow or FSBO.com in North America. The major portals (SUUMO, LIFULL HOME'S, At Home) operate as agent-centric, commission-on-sale models, and we found no evidence that private owners can list on them directly without a licensed broker. The owner-direct routes that do exist are narrower, and each wins on a different criterion. The municipal akiya bank network is the most robust owner-direct route and our top pick: government-operated vacant-home databases run by more than 1,000 municipalities across all 47 prefectures, with over 14,400 aggregated listings and no verified listing fees, so it wins outright on cost and owner control. The trade-off is fragmentation: many municipal systems are not connected to the national platforms, and listed properties often carry renovation or residency conditions. wagaya Japan wins on published reach: 150,000 monthly visitors and no fee unless the property sells (a maximum 3% brokerage fee on completion), but it is a hybrid brokerage where licensed agents facilitate the transaction, not a fully owner-direct route. Facebook Marketplace wins only as a free supplementary marketing channel; sources note it is rare in Japan for individuals to transact property directly between themselves. Whichever route you choose, a judicial scrivener (shiho shoshi) is required at closing to register the ownership transfer; no property transaction in Japan closes without one.

By Kenji Tanaka, Japan contributor. Reviewed June 11, 2026, fact-checked by Daniel Reyes

Platform Owner can list Cost Best for
Akiya Banks (Municipal Network) Yes. Property owners register directly with their local government, which lists the property and facilitates direct buyer-seller transactions. No listing fees verified for owners. Buyers and sellers handle transactions with optional municipal agent assistance. Transaction costs (registration tax, judicial scrivener fees, surveys) typically run ¥200,000 to ¥400,000. Best for owners who want a zero-fee, government-operated listing route and can work at municipal pace
wagaya Japan Partly. Owners list properties directly to the platform, but transactions are facilitated by licensed agents, so it is a hybrid brokerage rather than a fully owner-direct route. No upfront listing cost. A brokerage fee of at most 3% of the sale price applies only if the property sells: on a 20 million yen sale, that is at most ¥726,000, or roughly $5,000 USD. No fee if the transaction is canceled, and direct-to-agency purchases incur no fee. Best for owners who want a published audience with no upfront cost and will pay a capped fee only if the property sells
Facebook Marketplace & Social Channels Yes. Owners can post property listings directly as peer-to-peer classifieds. No verified listing fees for real estate on Facebook Marketplace. The standard marketplace operates on a commission-free basis for sellers. Best for owners who want a free supplementary marketing channel alongside a primary route

1 Akiya Banks (Municipal Network)

Akiya banks are government-operated municipal databases of vacant homes, and they are the most robust owner-direct route in Japan. Owners register with their local government, the municipality lists the property, and buyer and seller transact directly with optional municipal agent assistance. There are no verified listing fees for owners. The network spans more than 1,000 municipalities across all 47 prefectures, but it is not one system: many municipalities run independent databases that are not connected to the national platforms, and per one source, a single nationwide searchable database of vacant homes in Japan does not really exist, even in Japanese.

Good

  • No listing fees verified for owners, making this the lowest-cost route in the comparison
  • Government-operated, with over 1,000 participating municipalities across all 47 prefectures
  • Over 14,400 aggregated listings on the Akiya Banks and Akiya Japan platforms, the largest documented owner-direct inventory in Japan
  • Direct buyer-seller transactions, with optional municipal agent assistance

Watch

  • Coverage is highly fragmented: municipalities operate independent systems with varying accessibility, some Japanese-only, some PDF-only, some basic HTML pages
  • Listed properties often require renovation commitments or residency conditions
  • No unified national database: per one source, a single nationwide searchable database of vacant homes in Japan does not really exist, even in Japanese
  • Municipal responses to inquiries are slow and bureaucratic

Reach. Over 14,400 listings aggregated on the Akiya Banks and Akiya Japan platforms across all 47 prefectures, with Hyogo prefecture leading at 1,096 listings. Over 1,000 municipalities participate.

2 wagaya Japan

wagaya Japan is a real estate brokerage platform built for foreign property owners. Owners list properties directly to the platform's 150,000 monthly users, and licensed agents facilitate the transactions. The fee structure is transaction-contingent: nothing upfront, a maximum 3% brokerage fee if the property sells, and no fee if the deal is canceled. It is the only platform in this comparison with a published audience figure, but it is technically a brokerage, so agents, not owners, handle the transaction.

Good

  • No upfront listing cost: the brokerage fee, capped at 3% of the sale price, is due only if the property sells
  • Published reach of 150,000 monthly website visitors, the only documented audience figure in this comparison
  • Built for foreign property owners and overseas entities, with listing and transactions facilitated by licensed agents

Watch

  • Technically a brokerage platform: owners list, but agents handle the transactions, so it is not fully owner-direct
  • Specific listing inventory count is not published
  • Limited reach compared to the major portals

Reach. Published: 150,000 monthly website visitors. Specific listing inventory count not published. The platform targets foreign property owners and overseas entities.

3 Facebook Marketplace & Social Channels

Facebook Marketplace is a peer-to-peer classifieds channel where owners can post property listings directly, and in Japan it is used alongside traditional broker channels rather than instead of them. There are no verified listing fees and no commission for sellers. The legal caution from sources is blunt: it is rare in Japan for individuals to conduct real estate transactions directly between themselves, and a Marketplace deal still requires the mandatory judicial scrivener for registration. Treat it as a marketing supplement, not a standalone sales route.

Good

  • No verified listing fees, and the marketplace operates commission-free for sellers
  • Owners post listings directly, with no intermediary required to publish
  • Usable alongside traditional broker channels as an extra marketing channel

Watch

  • Per sources, it is rare in Japan for individuals to conduct real estate transactions directly between themselves
  • Not a standalone solution: completing a sale still requires the parallel legal framework, including the mandatory judicial scrivener for registration
  • No published data on real estate listing volume in Japan, so reach is unproven

Reach. No published data on real estate listing volume on Facebook Marketplace Japan, so reach is scored as unproven. It is used as a supplementary marketing channel by owners and agents, not a primary sales route.

Common questions

Can I sell my house without an agent in Japan?

Yes. Owner-direct residential property sales are legal in Japan when not conducted repeatedly as a business. Under the Real Estate Brokerage Act (Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act), licensing is required only for those engaged in real estate brokerage as a business or repeatedly; an individual selling their own property is exempt from broker licensing requirements. Practical requirements still apply: use a written sale and purchase agreement (oral contracts are valid but hard to prove), pay stamp duty at execution, and have a judicial scrivener prepare the registration documents, with registration tax due at the application. Beyond registration, there are no formal legal requirements.

Does Anyone.com operate in Japan?

No. Anyone.com does not operate in Japan, so this comparison covers local routes only.

What would a licensed agent cost instead?

Agent commission is capped by law under the Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act, by price tier: up to ¥2 million, 5% maximum; ¥2 million to ¥4 million, 4% maximum plus ¥20,000; over ¥4 million, 3% maximum plus ¥60,000. Consumption tax of 10% applies to all commissions. Example from our sources for a ¥30 million property: 3% of (¥30 million minus ¥4 million) is ¥780,000, plus ¥60,000 is ¥840,000, plus 10% tax comes to roughly ¥924,000, about $6,300 USD at 145 yen per dollar. A 2024 update caps commission for properties of ¥8 million or less at a maximum of ¥300,000 plus tax (¥330,000 with tax).

What is a judicial scrivener and do I need one?

A judicial scrivener (shiho shoshi) is the mandatory closing professional in Japan. Japanese law requires property registration to perfect the ownership transfer against third parties, and judicial scriveners handle the registration research, the legal documents, and the filing with the Legal Affairs Bureau. No property transaction closes without one, regardless of whether you sell through an akiya bank, wagaya Japan, Facebook Marketplace, or an agent. Typical fees run ¥80,000 to ¥150,000.

What is REINS and can I list on it as a private owner?

No. REINS (Real Estate Information Network System) is restricted to licensed agents only. When a real estate broker concludes an exclusive mediation contract, the property must be registered on REINS within 5 to 7 days, but private owners cannot access the system. This creates a two-tier market: agent-exclusive REINS listings are unavailable to owner-direct buyers, while municipal akiya banks and wagaya Japan operate outside it. Intermediaries themselves must be licensed by the prefectural governor for single-prefecture operations, or by the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism for multi-prefecture operations.

Why are SUUMO, LIFULL HOME'S, and At Home not in this comparison?

The major Japanese portals operate as agent-centric, commission-on-sale models, and we found no evidence that private owners can list on them directly without using a licensed broker. This comparison covers routes where owners can list directly. Japan lacks a single unified FSBO platform comparable to Zillow or FSBO.com in North America, and while the legal framework permits individual sales, cultural and practical norms strongly favor licensed intermediaries.

Platforms and sources referenced

Every legal, tax, and process claim on this page traces to one of these. We re-check them on a schedule and date the page when anything changes.

  1. Building Lots and Buildings Transaction Business Act (English translation)Japanese Law Translation · japaneselawtranslation.go.jp
  2. Akiya Banks municipal networkAkiya Banks · akiyabanks.com
  3. Every akiya bank in Japan: complete English guideAkiya Japan · akiyajapan.com
  4. wagaya Japan property sale listingswagaya Japan · wagaya-japan.com
  5. Akiya banks in Japan: vacant house databases by prefectureReal Estate Japan · resources.realestate.co.jp
  6. Agent commission in JapanReal Estate Tokyo · realestate-tokyo.com
  7. Judicial scrivener guideMailMate · mailmate.jp
  8. Understanding REINS, Japan's real estate networkINA & Associates · app.ina-gr.com
  9. Purchase and sale agreements in JapanLegal Advice Japan · legaladvicejapan.com
  10. Agency commission and brokerage fees in JapanTokyo Portfolio · tokyoportfolio.com
  11. Transaction costs in JapanSmartJDM · smartjdm.com
  12. Japan akiya boom 2026: buying abandoned homes and renovation subsidiesLIC Policy Talks · licpolicytalks.com
  13. What is the real estate brokerage business (takken)Shigyo · shigyo.co.jp
  14. Social media and real estate: private property listings on Facebook Marketplace and the legal ramificationsMS Evans Law · msevanslaw.com
  15. Buying real estate in JapanJapan in Law · japaninlaw.com
  16. Japan's real estate brokerage systemi-interface · i-interface.com
  17. Judicial scrivener in JapanReal Estate Tokyo · realestate-tokyo.com

Decide you would rather hand it to a professional after all? See where to find and compare an agent in Japan, including what one typically charges.

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