# Considering Opportunity in Japan - Any Advice?



## papachongo

:wave: Hi Forum Members

I have just a received a proposal to relocate with my company to Japan and commence employment in Tokyo, from December on wards.

I believe the offer is OK, but I am biasing that on very limited secondary research.

I have over 10 years experience working with high tech systems in hospitals and the proposal is to be based out of Tokyo supporting our customers throughout Japan. The office is in Shibaura, but I will need good access to Tokyo station (as frequent visits to Nasushiobara are expected) and also to HND airport so as to provide the on-site support to other clients.

On the basis of that any advice on locations to base myself would be appreciated. I realise there is a cost against distance vector, but as I will be coming with my wife I would prefer an area that is not too far away for her to enjoy a city life. The proposal offers to cover the rent up to JPY 150,000 for the first 3 years, with me covering the excess. I believe all extra costs, such as fees, will be paid for by the company. Does this sound standard(ish).

The annual salary would be JPY10M + maximum 13% bonus. Does this sound reasonable for the experience I am bringing?

The company would cover 6 months commuting costs, is 6 months the standard?

If anyone can give me some extra information or reassurance that would be really appreciated.

Cheers,


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## larabell

Congratulations... fully paid ex-pat assignments are hard to come by these days.

It seems to me there has been a lot of development in the Shibaura area and Shiodome, which is a bit further North. I don't know how big a place you can get on your budget but if you want to live that close, it's probably doable. If you wanted to go further out but still have ready access to the places you've mentioned, I'd look into stations along the Keihin-Kyuko line. Easy access to HND and a single-transfer at Shinagawa puts you on the Yamanote. Kawasaki seems like a nice place. Just about every station on that line from Shinagawa to Yokohama is pretty much "city life" -- you'd have to go a long way in that direction to be out in the boonies.

BTW, I'm assuming your office is close to Tamachi but Shibaura covers a lot of ground so it might pay to look at a map to see what stations are close to the office. Try maps.google.co.jp and plug in the address of your office (but don't post it here). If the closest station is not Tamachi, feel free to post the station on this thread for more relevant suggestions.

The salary and benefits don't sound too bad. With the company picking up the lion's share of the rent (assuming you don't go wild when picking a place), you should do OK. It's hard to compare details because "high tech" could mean a lot of things and salaries can vary wildly in most tech industries.

It's fairly standard in Japan for companies to pay employee's commuting expenses. It would be unusual for that to stop after only six months but they could be saying that they pay in six-month increments. That's pretty standard, since that's the maximum duration of a commuter pass.

You might want to double-check that the company will cover move-in costs... and that they plan to hook you up with a realtor who speaks English. You can't do hardly anything here, housing-wise, without a realtor but a good one can make the whole house-hunting thing a lot less stressful. But they do soak up about a month's rent for their trouble.


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## papachongo

Thanks for the feedback Larabell.

Yes, I believe the closest station to the office is Tamachi.

I went to Japan just briefly to meet everyone and get an idea of the size to price ratio of apartments. I was pleasantly surprised that they are not as small as I had imagined.

I have asked for clarification on the terms of the relocation costs, at present I believe all the initial estate agent costs will be covered.

So now to investigate where to live


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