Now that a property is in line of sight, let’s talk “Who’s going to set up utilities?” and “How am I going to pay utilities and annual property related taxes?”
Our goal at AkiyaMart Direct is to get you keys in hand.
While we don’t provide post-purchase services directly, we have some personal contacts/businesses that can help with below:
- Utility Setup and Payments: Ensuring utilities are set up and ongoing payments are handled.
- Tax Representation: Japan needs to know who your “Tax rep” is. You’ll need someone on the ground to handle property tax related payments
- Renovation and Maintenance: If your akiya needs renovations or on-the-ground support, you need a partner.
It’s important to start figuring out WHO you partner with long-term on this property. Below are quick summaries of people we recommend starting with. Feel free to book a time with them to chat directly.
1. Nostal Homes – Managed by Ryo Takemoto
- Overview:
- Nostal Homes is run by Ryo Takemoto (LinkedIn) who is one our AkiyaMart Direct Agents. Ryo is our Minpaku/Airbnb specialist, but can also assist with light renovations and coordinate with designers, contractors, and exterminators for additional cost.
- Personal note - Ryo’s one of our OG AMD agents, we’ve been partnering with him often + hanging out often in California and Japan. Ryo currently manages our Tokyo and Beppu Akiya rental operations.
- Base Package:
- Utility Setup + Tax Representation: ¥60,000 (approx. $450) one-time
- Ongoing Utility Payments: ¥15,000/quarter (approx. $115)
- Yearly Property Tax Representation: ¥30,000/year (approx. $225)
- Property Acquisition Tax: One-time fee billed separately
- Best For: STR property management and those needing renovation support.
- Schedule a Meeting with Ryo: Calendly Link
2. AkiyaMate (Powered by MailMate) – with John Cross
- Overview:
- We've collaborated with MailMate, a virtual mail and bill pay platform, to bring you AkiyaMate. MailMate receives, summarizes, and translates your Japanese mail with added bill pay for utilities, property taxes, local management fees, insurance, etc.
- Personal note - John’s a hustler, and has been approaching this space with a tech minded + scalable mindset, and has built an impressive team. He knows the utilities space (internet especially) + mail space the best of anyone we know. John manages our Nagasaki Akiya utilities and operations.
- Base Package:
- Utility Setup + Tax Representation:
- Set-up + First year: ¥55,000/year including tax (approx. $375)
- Lots of other goodies--including ongoing payment and liaison services and fiber-optic internet hookup. Check out the AkiyaMate selection here.