Japan Shelves Foreign Property-Buying Curbs, and Conservatives Feel Betrayed

Why This Topic Landed in Japan

The government reportedly decided to shelve long-discussed restrictions on foreign nationals buying Japanese apartments, citing concern that such curbs could "amount to discrimination." Conservative netizens who had expected the Takaichi administration to act treated the move as a betrayal, and the news collided with mounting anxiety over housing prices and a widely shared belief that other countries already regulate foreign property ownership while Japan does not.

Key Reaction Themes

• A sense of betrayal — Many commenters, especially conservatives who had high hopes for the Takaichi government, framed the shelving as a broken campaign promise, noting the ruling bloc holds a two-thirds majority and "still does nothing."
• "It's not discrimination, it's security" — A dominant argument rejected the official rationale, insisting that restricting foreign purchases is a matter of national security and reciprocity, and pointing to Canada and Singapore as countries that already regulate.
• Housing affordability fears — A vocal strand tied the issue to everyday anxiety, warning that speculative foreign buyers are pricing ordinary Japanese out of homes and inflating rents.
• Cynicism about industry and inflation — Some argued the real driver was pressure from the real-estate industry, and that the government quietly benefits from inflated prices through higher tax revenue.

Sources:

• 2ch.sc

What Japanese Netizens Are Saying

Tokyo shelves the purchase restrictions, citing "discrimination"

The government reportedly decided to hold off on restricting foreign nationals from buying apartments, citing the risk that such rules would "amount to discrimination."

Comments:

• "Weren't you the one who put this in your own campaign platform? This isn't discrimination, it's a security issue."
• "These guys really don't do anything. They hold a two-thirds majority and it's still like this — unbelievable."
• "They can't pin it on Komeito anymore, so now it's 'discrimination.' They've run out of excuses."
• "Has anything actually been achieved since Takaichi took over? Whatever happened to 'a strong Japan'?"
• "Canada and Singapore regulate this too — are you calling them discriminatory as well?"
• "It's not discrimination, it's a distinction."
• "In China, Japanese can't buy property, yet Chinese can buy property in Japan. It's the current situation that's abnormal."
• "I can only see a future where investment-driven foreign buyers corner the market and Japanese can't afford homes."
• "If they just made price-gouging illegal instead, no one could call it discrimination against foreigners."
• "They couldn't sell the expensive units if they shut out foreigners, so the industry must have petitioned them. Everyone's chasing short-term money."