While Tokyo has a reputation as being an expensive place to live, there are actually quite a large number of possibilities open for foreigners coming to study in Japan. A large percentage of Japanese university students study in the Tokyo area so there’s a wide Shrutee and Tomo variety of student housing available, from dormitories to private apartments. While Yoshida does not provide any sort of housing for students, we can definitely help you with your housing search.
When you arrive in Japan, there are a number of hotels and inns that are a short commute away from the school, especially near big train stations such as Ikebukuro, Shinjuku and Ueno. Several are listed on our housing options page.
For short stays in Japan, a guest house is often the easiest option. Students live together with other foreigners and Japanese. The monthly rent includes the use of a furnished room, internet connection(WiFi), a shared kitchen and often all utilities also. Some are quite large with up to fifty people living in one building but others are small with only five or six people living together. When you arrive you can investigate the possibilities and see what works best for you.
After finding housing, students who come to Japan on a student visa will need to register at the local civic center within 14 days after arrival in Japan. You will need to bring your residence card. Once you’ve received a residence card (zairyuu-card), which can be used as a means of identification in lieu of your passport. : Application form(PDF-30.2kb)
Moving-Out, Moving-In:
When you move out to another city or ward, you must submit a moving-out notice and receive a moving-out certificate before you proceed with moving in to your new address in another city or ward. A moving out certificate will be issued free of charge. After moving in, the certificate must be submitted to the new municipal office to complete the moving-in notification. Soon after you moved, please tell us your new address.
Guest houses and dormitories provide affordable short-term or long-term accommodation for many students. Guest houses provide rooms in small houses, from three rooms and up, with shared kitchen and bath facilities. Rooms in dormitories are typically the cheapest but afford very little privacy.
- Guest House 1965 – small guest house in Tokyo. 1965 helps the transportation expenses to Yoshida Institute (using Arakawa-line).
- OAKHOUSE – guest house and apartment rental agency. Earn Oakhouse PAO points you can use when moving in! Register as an Oak Member now and get 10,000 PAO points (1 PAO=1 yen)!
- Soleil Waseda – It’s a five minutes’ walk from our school.Clean, Safe & Convenient(Ladies only)
- Sakura House – guest house and apartment rental agency.
- Borderless House – Let’s room share with Japanese! – Location: More than 60 places inside Tokyo area.
- Fujimi House – Monthly furnished Guest house(with private bed room) in centrally located in Tokyo.
- Only one support – guest houses around Yoshida Institute.
There are also listings for guest houses and rooms in apartments shared with other foreigners in two free weekly magazines, Tokyo Notice Board.
- Homestay in Japan – has registered host families waiting in Japan.
Students planning to live in Japan for a long time can rent an apartment on their own but the process is somewhat complicated. A typical strategy for finding an apartment is to first explore various places that are a convenient commute away from school and visit real estate agents in the area. Information on apartments is only provided in Japanese so it’s best for beginning students to wait a while before trying to rent an apartment on their own.
The following two companies will be able to handle phone calls in English(or Multilingual).
- Fontana – Short term rental real estate company with no key money or guarantor required! All apartments are fully furnished. Move-in today with only first month’s rent and 1 month refundable security deposit.
- Kimi Information Center – apartment listing service.
- Fujimi House – Monthly furnished private rooms in Tokyo.
The Yoshida Institute is located in the western part of Tokyo, near Shinjuku and Ikebukuro. When you first arrive you’ll most likely need to spend a short amount of time in a hotel or inn until you get settled. There are a large number of hotels nearby and the ones below are some of the more affordable choices. Booking in advance is recommended but you can always reserve a room at the Welcome Inns Reservation Desk at Narita Airport when you arrive.
- Kimi Ryokan – a modern Japanese-style inn popular with foreigners
- Taito Ryokan – very inexpensive inn near Asakusa
- New Koyo Hotel – backpacker’s hotel with a mixture of Western-style and Japanese-style rooms.
- Tama Ryokan – small Japanese-style inn in Takadanobaba, a 20 minute walk to school.
- House Ikebukuro – modern Japanese-style inn in Ikebukuro
The Welcome Inns network also runs an online reservation service where you can look up hotels and make reservations.
