Stigmatised Property Introduction Website “Oshima Teru”

Have you ever resided in a stigmatized property? Have you inquired with a real estate agency whether your current or potential residence has been the site of an incident or accident?

The website “Oshima Teru” provides information on stigmatized properties in Japan and abroad. The website identifies stigmatized properties as those where a person has died in an incident or accident, such as murder, suicide, or fire. The website provides the address, room number, and cause of death of former residents.

The website collects information from newspapers and attends murder trials, in addition to featuring contributions from neighboring residents, particularly in cases of lonely deaths. Although the website initially only provided information for properties in the Tokyo area, it has since expanded to cover locations throughout Japan and abroad.

Let’s check your property 

Stigmatised properties in Japanese

https://sp.oshimaland.co.jp/

Stigmatised properties in English 

https://sp.oshimaland.com/

Is the impact of “Oshima Teru” responsible for recent developments?

Until 2021, Japan had no specific guidelines for identifying stigmatized properties. The lack of criteria made it challenging for older adults to relocate, as all fatal accidents, including natural deaths, could potentially be classified as accidents. Lenders were concerned about this issue, leading to the establishment of the Committee on Stigmatized Properties in Real Estate, led by Professor Yasuhiko Nakajo of Meikai University, under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism in February 2020.

After receiving public feedback and engaging in debates, the guidelines were published in October 2021. The guidelines indicate that, in principle, property owners do not have to inform renters of natural deaths, such as falls or aspiration, or unexpected deaths in daily life. Furthermore, the guidelines stipulate that natural deaths, including murder and suicide, do not need to be reported after approximately three years.

Previously, there was an unwritten understanding that there was no need to disclose a murder or suicide that occurred in a residence to subsequent tenants, even if only a month had passed since the incident. However, this practice is no longer acceptable. There have been cases where a real estate agent purposely sent a new employee to live in an accident property without informing the next renter.

The establishment of these guidelines was likely influenced by “Oshima Teru.“