Japan’s most expensive residential land is now priced at ¥7,110,000 per square meter. That figure, published by the 国土交通省 (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, known as MLIT) on March 17, 2026, comes from the annual 地価公示 (Chika Kōji, the Official Land Price Survey), which benchmarks a fixed set of reference points across the country as of January 1 each year. The site holding the top position is a parcel in Akasaka (赤坂) 1-chome, Minato-ku (港区), and it has held that rank for nine consecutive years. For foreign buyers trying to orient themselves in Tokyo’s upper market, that number is a useful anchor, but it explains only part of what is happening.

Akasaka 1-chome: Japan’s Priciest Residential Address

The specific parcel, recorded in official survey data as 港区赤坂1丁目14番11号, sits roughly six minutes on foot from Tameike-Sanno Station and is adjacent to the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence and The Okura Tokyo hotel. The surrounding streetscape is notably free of convenience stores and casual dining, a deliberate signal of the district’s character. The site supports a ten-story condominium building.

At ¥7,110,000 per square meter, the tsubo price (坪単価, the traditional Japanese unit of approximately 3.3 square meters, still widely used in real estate appraisals) works out to roughly ¥23,500,000 per tsubo. Year-on-year appreciation at this single point was +20.5% in 2026, up from +10.3% in 2025, a doubling of the rate of gain in a single year.

The official 鑑定書 (appraisal report) attached to the site describes it as a quiet residential district lined with high-grade condominiums, and notes that plans for ultra-high-rise residential towers targeting wealthy buyers are underway in the surrounding area. The appraisal concludes that the site’s status as a premium residential district is expected to continue rising.

Not everyone in the industry finds the ranking intuitive. A real estate professional quoted by Daily Shincho in April 2026 described the top ranking as counterintuitive, noting that the address is not in the most conventionally prestigious neighborhoods, such as Azabu (麻布) or Hiroo (広尾). The explanation lies in proximity to diplomatic infrastructure and the scarcity premium that comes with it.

The Top Five Residential Land Points in Japan: All in Tokyo

All five of Japan’s most expensive residential land reference points in the 2026 Chika Kōji survey are located in Tokyo. Four of the five are in Minato-ku.

| Rank | Location | ¥/sqm | YoY Change |

|——|———-|——–|————|

| 1 | Minato-ku, Akasaka 1-chome | ¥7,110,000 | +20.5% |

| 2 | Minato-ku, Shirokanedai (白金台) 3-chome | ¥5,480,000 | +16.6% |

| 3 | Chiyoda-ku (千代田区), Rokubancho | ¥5,300,000 | +9.7% |

| 4 | Minato-ku, Minami-Azabu (南麻布) 4-chome | ¥4,990,000 | +15.5% |

| 5 | Minato-ku, Minami-Azabu 1-chome | ¥4,760,000 | +17.0% |

Minato-ku’s residential land rose an average of +16.6% across the ward in 2026, compared with +12.7% in 2025, the highest ward-level gain among all 23 wards. The five central wards, Chiyoda-ku, Chuo-ku (中央区), Minato-ku, Shinjuku-ku (新宿区), and Shibuya-ku (渋谷区), averaged +13.0% residential appreciation in 2026, against +12.0% in 2025. The 23-ward average was +9.0%.

According to analysis by Toyo Keizai published March 30, 2026, 20 residential land points in Tokyo now exceed ¥10,000,000 per tsubo. That is up from 13 points in 2025, a 54% increase in the number of ultra-premium sites in a single year. The 2026 Official Land Price data for Tokyo confirms this is the fifth consecutive year of residential land appreciation across the 23 wards.

What the Land Price Data Does Not Tell You About Actual Transactions

The Chika Kōji figures measure land value at specific reference points. They are not transaction prices. The gap between land appraisal and actual sale price for a completed luxury マンション (manshon, Japanese usage meaning a freehold condominium unit, not a mansion in the English sense) can be substantial, and it runs in both directions depending on the building, floor, and view.

The practical transaction ceiling has moved considerably in recent years. A Tokyo penthouse developed by EQT sold for approximately ¥9.5 billion in 2025, reported by the Japan Times as the highest recorded condominium transaction at that point. More recently, social media reporting in early 2026 cited a single residential sale at ¥20 billion, or roughly $130 million at prevailing exchange rates, as the highest recorded residential transaction in Japan’s history. The Azabudai Hills (麻布台ヒルズ) Aman Residences complex in Minato-ku has been consistently cited in connection with the market’s upper boundary.

For buyers working in the ¥300 million to ¥2 billion range, the more relevant reference points are specific buildings and floors. A 2LDK unit at Premist Nanpeidaicho is currently listed at ¥1.03 billion, and a 3LDK at Hill Peak Tokiwamatsu is available at ¥950 million. Both illustrate that the per-unit market for high-specification central Tokyo residences now sits comfortably above nine figures in yen terms.

What Foreign Buyers Need to Understand Before Entering This Market

Foreign nationals can purchase real estate in Japan with no restrictions based on nationality or visa status. Ownership rights are identical to those held by Japanese citizens. That said, several structural factors are specific to non-resident or non-citizen buyers and deserve direct attention.

Mortgage access. Japanese banks extend mortgage financing to foreign nationals, but conditions vary significantly by lender, visa category, and whether the buyer holds 永住権 (eijuuken, Japanese permanent residency). Buyers without permanent residency typically face shorter loan terms, higher required equity ratios, and a smaller pool of willing lenders. At the ¥300 million-plus level, many transactions are cash or involve offshore financing structures. Fixed-asset tax. All property owners in Japan, regardless of nationality or residency, are subject to 固定資産税 (fixed-asset tax, assessed annually by the municipality) and 都市計画税 (urban planning tax, levied in designated urban zones). The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Bureau of Taxation confirmed in March 2026 that FY2026 assessed values are now viewable from April 2026. Fixed-asset tax assessments are revised every three years. With land prices rising at the rates documented above, buyers should anticipate upward pressure on assessed values at the next triennial revision. For a detailed breakdown of acquisition taxes, registration fees, and annual holding costs, the Koukyuu guide to luxury homes in Tokyo: prices, costs, and 2026 tax rules for foreign buyers covers each line item. The statutory disclosure meeting. Every property transaction in Japan requires a 重要事項説明 (juuyou-jikou-setsumei, the statutory pre-contract disclosure meeting), conducted by a licensed 宅建士 (takken-shi, Japan’s licensed real-estate transaction specialist) before contracts are signed. This meeting covers legal encumbrances, building code compliance, management fees, repair reserve fund balances, and dozens of additional disclosures. At most Tokyo agencies, the takken-shi appears only at this meeting. The rest of the engagement, initial consultation, viewings, negotiation, due diligence, is handled by unlicensed salespeople. For buyers making decisions at ¥300 million and above, that structure carries meaningful risk. Earnest money. Once contracts are exchanged, the buyer typically pays 手付金 (tetsuke-kin, the earnest-money deposit, typically 10% of the purchase price). At ¥500 million, that is ¥50 million committed before 登記 (touki, the transfer of legal title recorded at the Legal Affairs Bureau) is completed. Understanding the conditions under which this deposit is forfeited or refunded is not a detail to review for the first time at the signing table.

Why Prices at the Top Are Still Rising

The macro driver is straightforward. Japan’s overall land prices rose +2.8% nationally in 2026, the highest rate since the post-bubble era and the fifth consecutive year of national appreciation. But the national figure understates what is happening in central Tokyo, where the forces concentrating price are more specific.

Inbound tourism has driven commercial land values in districts like Ginza (銀座), where the benchmark site at 4-chome reached ¥67,100,000 per square meter in 2026, up +10.9% year-on-year. The prestige spillover from hotel-adjacent and diplomatically proximate addresses into residential pricing is documented in the official appraisal reports for the top residential sites. The appraisal for the Shirokanedai 3-chome site, ranked second nationally, specifically notes firm demand from wealthy individual end-users for condominium units, with strong interest in development sites with superior transport access.

Foreign end-user demand has also increased, driven partly by the yen’s sustained weakness through 2024 and 2025 and partly by Tokyo’s improving position as a city for internationally mobile professionals and families. For buyers whose primary income or assets are denominated in USD, EUR, or GBP, the effective price of a ¥500 million Tokyo residence has shifted materially over the past three years, even as nominal yen prices have risen.

The concentration of appreciation at the very top of the market, the 54% increase in the number of sites exceeding ¥10 million per tsubo in a single year, suggests that the upper segment is not simply tracking the broader market. It is moving on its own logic, driven by a small number of buyers competing for a fixed supply of addresses that cannot be replicated.

Koukyuu is a private buyer’s advisory for distinguished Tokyo residences in Nishi-Azabu (西麻布), Azabudai Hills, and Chiyoda-ku, focused exclusively on transactions of ¥300 million and above, with a licensed 宅建士 personally handling every stage of the engagement from the first consultation through contract and signing. To begin a private conversation, book a private consultation).