How To Check If A Japanese Property Has A Sitting Tenant

Why a lease doesn't need to be registered to bind you as the new owner

Under the Civil Code, a lease can in principle be registered and made binding on anyone who later acquires the property (Civil Code Art. 605) — but registering a lease requires the landlord's cooperation, and in practice it is rarely done. For building leases specifically, the Act on Land and Building Leases (借地借家法) fills that gap: once the tenant has been handed the keys and taken possession, the lease is effective against anyone who later acquires the property, registered or not (借地借家法 Art. 31). Moving in is enough.

The practical result is close to the reverse of most other checks in this series: where a mortgage (in 乙区) or a seizure (in 甲区, since it restricts the owner's right to dispose of the property itself — see How To Check If A Japanese Property Has A Seizure) will reliably appear on the registration record if one exists, a real, fully binding tenancy usually will not appear anywhere on the record at all. A blank registration record tells you there is no registered interest — it does not tell you the property is vacant, or that it is free of a tenant with a full legal right to stay.

What happens to the lease, the rent, and the deposit when you buy

When a leased property changes hands and the lease already has that binding effect — which, as above, is essentially automatic for an occupied building the moment the tenant moved in — the buyer steps into the seller's position as landlord by operation of law. You do not need the tenant's consent, and you inherit the lease on its existing terms: the rent, the remaining term, and the obligation to return the security deposit (敷金) when the tenancy eventually ends (Civil Code Art. 605-2, paras. 1 and 4). There is one structural exception worth knowing about: if you and the seller specifically agree that the seller keeps landlord status and leases the property back from you to keep subletting to the tenant — a sale-leaseback arrangement — landlord status stays with the seller until that leaseback itself ends (Civil Code Art. 605-2, para. 2). That is a deliberate deal structure, not something that happens by accident, so check your own sale and any master-lease agreement if one is in play. Separately, even where a lease has not been perfected in the ordinary way, the outgoing and incoming owners can still shift landlord status between themselves by agreement, again without needing the tenant's sign-off (Civil Code Art. 605-3). Outside a deliberate leaseback structure, a sale does not clear the tenancy — it comes with the property.

One step matters for you as the buyer: to actually collect rent or otherwise act as landlord against the tenant, you need the ownership transfer itself registered first (Civil Code Art. 605-2, para. 3). This is a normal part of closing, but it is a reason to make sure the registration is filed promptly rather than treated as paperwork to get to later.

The deposit point is worth sitting with, and it connects to the arrears question below. The deposit secures the tenant's obligations to the landlord, including unpaid rent, so if rent was already overdue at the time of transfer, the seller can apply the deposit against that debt first — you inherit the refund obligation for the remaining net balance, not necessarily the full original deposit. Confirm with your judicial scrivener that the rent ledger and the deposit are reconciled together at closing, and that the net figure actually credited to you reflects any such deduction — otherwise you can end up owing a refund on more than you actually received, or assuming a deposit balance that was already reduced before you bought.

Ordinary lease vs. fixed-term lease — the difference that decides how easily you can end it

This is the single most important thing to establish about an existing tenancy, because the two lease types behave completely differently once you own the property:

• Ordinary lease (普通借家, futsuu shakka): the default type unless the contract says otherwise. It renews automatically. If it has a fixed term, a landlord who wants to refuse renewal must send notice in the window between one year and six months before the term expires (借地借家法 Art. 26); if it has no fixed term, the landlord can terminate by giving notice, but the tenancy does not actually end until six months after that notice (借地借家法 Art. 27). Either way, the landlord also needs "justifiable grounds" (正当事由) to do this at all — a standard that weighs both sides' need for the property, the history of the tenancy, the building's condition, and any offer of compensation to the tenant for moving out (借地借家法 Art. 28). In practice, justifiable grounds are a high bar, and landlords often still end up negotiating and paying the tenant a moving-out payment (立退料) to leave even when they have a legitimate reason. Wanting to move in yourself or redevelop the site is not, by itself, a guarantee you can end an ordinary lease on your own timeline — and even a strong case still runs on the Art. 26/27 notice timeline, not the day you close.
• Fixed-term lease (定期借家, teiki shakka): created under a specific procedure. The no-renewal term has to be set out in a written (or, since a 2022 amendment, electronic) contract, and separately, the landlord must deliver the tenant a distinct written document — or, with the tenant's consent, an electronic record — before signing, explaining plainly that the lease will not renew and ends when the term expires (借地借家法 Art. 38). A verbal explanation alone does not satisfy this: the prescribed document or consented electronic record actually has to be delivered. Skip it, and the no-renewal clause becomes invalid — the lease is read as an ordinary, renewable lease instead, even if the tenant understood it was meant to be fixed-term. There is a second, separate notice to track: for a fixed term of one year or more, the landlord must also tell the tenant the lease is ending, in a notice sent between one year and six months before the term expires (借地借家法 Art. 38). Miss that window, and the end date is not enforceable against the tenant until six months after a later notice is finally given — so even a correctly formed fixed-term lease will not necessarily hand you back the property exactly on its stated end date. Done correctly on both counts, the tenancy ends on the stated date with no renewal right and no need to show justifiable grounds — but a buyer taking over as landlord partway through a fixed term needs to confirm this notice will actually go out in the window, not just that the original contract was set up correctly.

Which type you are buying into changes the entire risk profile of an occupied property, so do not treat "there's a tenant in place" as one uniform fact.

Here is a practical way to check before you commit to an occupied property:

1. Ask directly whether the property is tenant-occupied. Japanese listings often note 入居者あり ("occupied") or 賃貸中 ("currently leased"), but an English summary can drop this detail — ask the agent outright rather than assuming a translation caught it.
2. Request the actual lease agreement (賃貸借契約書), not a summary. You need to see for yourself whether it is 普通借家 or 定期借家, the rent, the remaining term, and — for a fixed-term lease — whether the required advance explanation was delivered as a separate written document (or, with the tenant's consent, an electronic record), not just discussed verbally, and kept on file.
3. For a fixed-term lease whose original term was one year or more, check who is sending the end-of-term notice and when — regardless of how much time is left when you buy. The one-year threshold is based on the lease's agreed term, not the time remaining at closing, so a two-year lease with eight months left still needs this notice. The landlord must send it in the window between one year and six months before the term ends, or the end date is not enforceable against the tenant until six months after a later notice. Confirm whether the seller already sent it, and if not, calendar it yourself as the incoming landlord — you may be inheriting a notice window that is already open.
4. Ask for the rent payment history. A history of unpaid rent (滞納) is a signal about the tenant going forward — but the tenancy relationship transferring to you does not automatically hand you the debt for rent that was already overdue before closing. That receivable generally stays with the seller unless the sale agreement specifically assigns it to you. It can, however, reduce the deposit: read this together with the next step.
5. Confirm the deposit's net amount and how it will be handled at closing. If rent was overdue before the transfer, the seller can apply the deposit against it first — you inherit the refund obligation only for what is left, not necessarily the full original deposit. Get the rent ledger and the deposit reconciled together with your judicial scrivener, so the net figure credited to you is the one you are actually on the hook to refund.
6. Order the registration record anyway, and read all of 乙区 and 甲区. In the rare case a lease actually was registered, it will show in 乙区 — but treat a blank record as inconclusive on occupancy, not as proof the property is vacant.
7. If you plan to move in yourself or redevelop, do not assume you can simply end an ordinary lease. Budget realistic time, and likely a moving-out payment, into your plan rather than a fixed closing-to-move-in date.
8. Loop in a judicial scrivener (司法書士) or a lawyer for anything unresolved. Confirming whether a fixed-term lease was set up and noticed correctly, negotiating a tenant's departure, or reading an unfamiliar lease clause are worth professional input before you commit.

The most common mistake is checking the registration record, seeing nothing in 乙区, and concluding the property is unencumbered — a building lease is one of the few rights that binds a new owner without ever needing to appear there. The second is treating "there's a tenant" as one fact rather than checking which lease type it is, since an ordinary lease and a fixed-term lease put you in very different positions after closing.

What the registry can and cannot tell you here:

• What it shows, on the rare occasion a lease was actually registered: a registered building lease (賃借権) in 乙区, along with its stated terms.
• What it does not show, in the vast majority of cases: whether the property is currently tenant-occupied at all. Because a building lease binds a new owner the moment the tenant took possession (借地借家法 Art. 31), most real, fully enforceable tenancies exist without ever being registered — a blank 乙区 does not mean vacant.
• How to order the record: On Japan Property Research, order the building's registration record for ¥1,500 to rule out the rare registered lease, alongside checking for mortgages and other 乙区 entries at the same time. For occupancy itself, the lease agreement and rent ledger from the seller or agent are what actually answer the question — not the registry.

A few honest caveats. None of this means an occupied property is a bad buy — plenty of buyers specifically want an income property with a tenant already generating rent, and a well-documented fixed-term tenancy can be a straightforward, low-risk hold. The point is to know which kind of tenancy you are inheriting, and to price and plan around it, rather than discovering the details after closing. Our Japan property due diligence checklist covers where this check fits alongside ownership, mortgages, and boundaries.

FAQ

Does a Japanese property's registration record show whether it has a tenant? Almost never. A building lease binds a new owner as soon as the tenant has taken possession of the building (借地借家法 Art. 31), with no registration required. Because registering a lease needs the landlord's cooperation and is rarely done, a blank 乙区 does not mean the property is vacant.

If I buy a tenant-occupied property, do I automatically become the new landlord? In the ordinary case, yes — you step into the seller's position as landlord by operation of law, on the lease's existing terms, without needing the tenant's consent (Civil Code Art. 605-2, para. 1). You do need the ownership transfer itself registered before you can act as landlord against the tenant, such as collecting rent. The exception is a deliberate sale-leaseback structure, where you and the seller specifically agree the seller keeps landlord status and leases the property back from you — there, landlord status stays with the seller until that leaseback ends (Civil Code Art. 605-2, para. 2).

Am I responsible for refunding the tenant's security deposit? Yes, but only its net balance — the deposit secures the tenant's obligations including unpaid rent, so if rent was overdue at the time of transfer, the seller can apply the deposit against that first, and you inherit the refund obligation for what remains (Civil Code Art. 605-2, para. 4). Confirm with your judicial scrivener that the rent ledger and deposit are reconciled together as part of the settlement, regardless of whether the seller actually hands you the net deposit money at closing.

Can I get an existing tenant to move out after I buy the property? It depends heavily on the lease type. A fixed-term lease (定期借家) ends on its stated date with no renewal right — but only if the landlord also sent the tenant the required end-of-term notice in the one-year-to-six-month window before that date (for terms of a year or more); miss it, and the end date is not enforceable against the tenant until six months after a later notice (借地借家法 Art. 38). An ordinary lease (普通借家) renews automatically: refusing renewal on a fixed-term one still needs notice in the same one-year-to-six-month window (借地借家法 Art. 26), and ending an indefinite one takes effect only six months after notice (借地借家法 Art. 27) — and either way, the landlord needs "justifiable grounds" (正当事由) to do it at all, often still requiring a negotiated moving-out payment even when grounds exist (借地借家法 Art. 28).

How do I tell whether a tenancy is fixed-term or ordinary? Ask for the actual lease agreement. A valid fixed-term lease requires a written no-renewal clause plus a separate written document — or, with the tenant's consent, an electronic record — delivered to the tenant before signing, explaining that the lease won't renew (借地借家法 Art. 38); a verbal explanation alone does not satisfy this, and without it the lease is treated as ordinary and renewable even if everyone understood it as fixed-term at the time.

Related guides:

• Leasehold Vs Freehold Property In Japan
• How To Read A Japanese Property Registration Record
• How To Check If A Japanese Property Has A Mortgage
• How To Check If A Japanese Property Has A Seizure
• Japan Property Due Diligence Checklist
• How To Order A Japan Property Registration Record In English

• Civil Code (民法), Article 605 — Perfection of a Real Property Lease — Ministry of Justice, Japanese Law Translation
• Civil Code (民法), Articles 605-2 and 605-3 — Transfer of Lessor Status on Transfer of Leased Real Property — Ministry of Justice, Japanese Law Translation (added by the 2017 Act No. 44 amendment, in force 2020 — confirm against the current in-force text, since MOJ's translation snapshots can lag amendments)
• Act on Land and Building Leases (借地借家法), Article 31 — Perfection of a Building Lease by Delivery — Ministry of Justice, Japanese Law Translation
• Act on Land and Building Leases (借地借家法), Article 26 — Notice Window for Refusing Renewal of a Fixed-Term Ordinary Lease — Ministry of Justice, Japanese Law Translation
• Act on Land and Building Leases (借地借家法), Article 27 — Six-Month Delay Before Termination of an Indefinite-Term Lease Takes Effect — Ministry of Justice, Japanese Law Translation
• Act on Land and Building Leases (借地借家法), Article 28 — Justifiable Grounds Required to Refuse Renewal — Ministry of Justice, Japanese Law Translation
• Act on Land and Building Leases (借地借家法), Article 38 — Fixed-Term Building Leases — Ministry of Justice, Japanese Law Translation
• 民法605条の2、605条の3【賃貸人たる地位の移転、敷金の移転など】 — BUSINESS LAWYERS — practical breakdown of automatic lessor-status succession and the deposit-refund obligation on sale
• Vol.11 定期借家契約の借地借家法38条2項の事前説明に関するトラブル — 全日本不動産協会 (All Japan Real Estate Association) — confirms that omitting the advance explanation invalidates the no-renewal clause and the lease is treated as an ordinary lease
• 定期借家期間満了後の終了通知 — 全日本不動産協会 (All Japan Real Estate Association) — confirms the one-year-to-six-month termination-notice window required for a fixed-term lease of one year or more, and the six-month delay if the landlord notifies late
• Japan Eviction Process: Legal Steps & Just Cause — Landager — English-language overview of the practical difficulty and timeline of ending an ordinary lease in Japan