Renting in Osaka

Osaka is not short of flats: the 2023 housing survey counted 204,000 empty homes for rent in Osaka City, and most listings now ask no deposit. Rents are climbing fast, though, about 7–8% a year in at home's figures for August 2026, and a one-bedroom (1LDK-type) in the central wards averages ¥91,000–117,000 a month in rent (SUUMO, July 2026), plus a management fee of about ¥10,000. For a newcomer the hurdles are screening by landlords and guarantor companies, paperwork in Japanese and an upfront bill of roughly three to five months' rent, not a shortage of homes.

Checked 1 October 2026Deposits, contracts and notice periods: Japan rules

Osaka Castle

The situation right now

Supply is ample by the standards of this site. In the 2023 Housing and Land Survey, Osaka City had 294,600 empty homes (16.1% of its 1.83 million dwellings), 204,000 of them empty homes for rent, against 657,900 occupied private rentals; in Osaka Prefecture the number of empty rentals fell 3.9% from 2018. The ward with the most empty homes is Nishinari (25.9% of its housing), followed by Ikuno (22.8%); Kita and Nishi are around 11%. Agents put most listings into shared databases such as at home's ATBB, so one agent can usually show you flats advertised by others.

Asking rents are rising. at home's monthly series for Osaka City put the average flat (rent plus management fee) in an apartment block at ¥73,878 for 30 m² or less, ¥115,604 for 30–50 m² and ¥167,044 for 50–70 m² in August 2026, 7.1–7.9% more than a year earlier and record highs for the smaller sizes. Existing tenancies are far cheaper: the average rent of all rented homes in the city was ¥61,704 in 2023. Building is concentrated in compact new blocks around Umeda, Nakatsu, Fukushima and Tenma, which pushes up asking rents in the centre.

Upfront customs have changed. Osaka was known for a large hoshōkin (guarantee money) with a non-refundable shikibiki deducted at the end; MLIT's 2007 survey found deposits on 72% of Osaka contracts averaging 3.2 months. In our count of 761 one-bed (1LDK and 1DK) listings in seven central wards on at home on 1 October 2026, 90% asked no deposit and 55% no key money; most of the rest asked one month's key money, and fixed sums of ¥100,000–250,000 were rarer. Osaka contracts traditionally carry no renewal fee. The Osaka City Consumer Centre still warns that hoshōkin and shikibiki clauses appear, so read the cost sheet for each flat.

Short lets weigh on some wards. Osaka City has most of Japan's special-zone minpaku: its list of 31 May 2026 held 8,887 certified facilities, 27% of them in Nishinari and about 15% each in Chūō and Naniwa, plus 2,213 lets notified under the national 180-night law. After rising complaints about noise and rubbish, the city stopped taking new special-zone applications and room additions on 29 May 2026; approved facilities may carry on, and 2,817 of them are under priority inspection from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027.

On an ordinary salary the realistic picture is a 1K of 20–30 m² for one person (about ¥70,000–90,000 a month with the fee in the central wards) or a cheaper flat in an outer ward or a suburb such as Toyonaka, Higashi-Osaka or Sakai. Agents say screening takes about one to two weeks from application to keys. Many newcomers start in a share house, a furnished monthly flat or UR housing, which need no guarantor company, and move once they have a Japanese bank account, phone number and payslips.

Behind the scores

DifficultyHard

The same screening as in Tokyo: a guarantor company's approval, an emergency contact in Japan, a Japanese phone number and bank account, contracts in Japanese. In the Ministry of Justice's national survey of 2016, 39.3% of foreign residents who had looked for a home had been refused for being foreign. Homes are not scarce (204,000 empty rentals, 2023). 90% of central one-bed listings ask no deposit (our at home count, 2026-10), which lowers the cost, not the screening. UR and the Anshin Chintai register help. As of October 2026.

CostExpensive

1LDK/2K/2DK in seven central wards: rent ¥91,000–117,000 (SUUMO ward averages, 2026-07) plus a ¥9,000–15,000 fee: ¥100,000–132,000. Pay: Osaka mean for full-time workers, overtime in, bonuses out, ¥376,500 gross (MHLW Wage Structure Survey, 2025-06), about ¥294,000 net of social insurance, income and resident tax: 34–45%, middle 40%; rent alone 31–40%. A median would be lower: 45% on our estimate (national median-to-mean ratio, scheduled pay). Cross-check: our at home count, newer blocks (2026-10), median ¥134,500. As of October 2026.

CompetitionSome

No figure exists for days online or applicants per listing in Osaka. Osaka City had 204,000 empty homes for rent against 657,900 occupied private rentals, and 16.1% of all its homes stood empty, against 10.9% in Tokyo (Housing and Land Survey, 2023). Asking rents rose 7–8% in a year (at home, 2026-08), against 9–10% in Tokyo. The busiest months are January to March, before work and the school year start in April. As of October 2026.

Scam riskOccasional

No dated police or consumer-body warning about rental fraud aimed at flat-hunters in Osaka in the last twelve months. The Kinki Real Estate Fair Trade Council, the industry's self-regulation body for property adverts, last penalised an Osaka City agency for rental bait listings on 10 September 2025; its May 2026 action on misleading TikTok adverts concerned homes for sale. The city consumer centre's rental page (2026-02) covers deposit disputes. As of October 2026.

A side street in central Osaka
A side street in central Osaka

What it costs

TypeTypical asking rentSource
Room in a share houseNot an average: one share-house listing site's page for the Tennōji area (Hituji Fudōsan), read on 1 October 2026. Private rooms in share houses around Tennōji, Abeno and the south of the city listed ¥31,000–70,000, most ¥36,000–46,000; a monthly common-area fee, often covering utilities and internet, comes on top. Usually no key money or guarantor company.¥35,000–50,000 a month(€200–280 a month)Hituji Fudōsan share-house listings, Tennōji area (our count, 1 October 2026), October 2026
Studio (1K or 1R, about 20–27 m²), central wardsRent plus management fee; this is what most single renters take. SUUMO's average rent for 1K/1DK flats in the seven central wards used for the cost meter was ¥62,000–68,000 (July 2026); with a fee of about ¥7,000–13,000 that is about ¥70,000–80,000, or 24–27% of the mean-based net pay of about ¥294,000 used for the cost meter. Newer blocks ask more: in our count of 1K flats in Chūō ward on at home, the typical building asked about ¥87,000 with the fee (30%). City-wide, flats of 30 m² or less averaged ¥73,878 including fees in August 2026, up 7.6% in a year.¥70,000–90,000 a month(€390–510 a month)SUUMO rent averages by ward, Osaka City (2026-07); at home listings, Chūō ward (our count, 1 October 2026); at home rent trends, Osaka City, August 2026, October 2026
Two-bed flat (2LDK, about 50–70 m²)LIFULL HOME'S averages for a 2LDK within ten minutes of a station ran from ¥163,000 in Yodogawa to ¥243,000 in Kita on 1 October 2026; these averages exclude the management fee, which adds about ¥10,000–15,000. SUUMO's averages for the wider 2LDK/3K/3DK band, which includes older layouts, were lower: ¥111,000–190,000 rent only in the seven central wards (July 2026). City-wide, at home's average for 50–70 m² was ¥167,044 including fees in August 2026, up 7.9% in a year.¥160,000–245,000 a month(€900–1,400 a month)LIFULL HOME'S ward rent averages, 1 October 2026; SUUMO rent averages by ward (2026-07); at home rent trends, Osaka City, August 2026, October 2026

Asking rents on the portals; what people actually pay is often lower for older contracts and higher for furnished short lets. Deposits and what can legally be charged on top are on the Japan page. The euro values are there to compare cities: rounded, a month, at the exchange rates of 20 October 2026 (how we convert).

Apartment towers in Osaka
Apartment towers in Osaka

Local tips

Gathered from local forums, city subreddits and expat groups, rewritten in our own words. They are what people who have done this say helped; none of it is a guarantee.

  1. Ask about the ATBB listing before you agent-hop

    Most Osaka flats are registered by the landlord's agent in shared networks such as at home's ATBB, and other agents can show and broker them. If you find a flat on a portal and the listing agent is slow, unhelpful or will not deal with foreigners, another agent, including one that works in English, can usually arrange the same flat. You only pay one agent's fee, capped at one month's rent plus tax.

    Source: at home ATBB service page; at home listings, October 2026

  2. Read the cost sheet, not just the deposit column

    Kansai listings now mostly show 'no deposit', but one-off charges have moved elsewhere: key money of one month is common, and detail pages list items such as fire insurance (for example ¥20,000 for two years), a 24-hour support package, disinfection or cleaning fees, and the guarantor company's first-year fee. Ask the agent for the full estimate (mitsumori) before you apply and ask which items are optional.

    Source: at home listings in central Osaka, 1 October 2026

  3. Check for hoshōkin and shikibiki in older buildings

    The old Kansai system, a large guarantee deposit with a fixed non-refundable deduction at move-out, still turns up, especially with private landlords and older blocks. The Osaka City Consumer Centre advises checking any hoshōkin or shikibiki clause and the move-out terms before signing; a fixed deduction is only unenforceable if it is excessive.

    Source: Osaka City Consumer Centre, rental housing troubles, February 2026

  4. Look up the building on the city's minpaku list

    In Nishinari, Chūō, Naniwa and Ikuno many blocks mix ordinary flats with licensed short lets. Osaka City publishes a downloadable list of every special-zone minpaku, hotel-type and notified short let with addresses; search it for the building before you sign if quiet nights matter to you. New special-zone applications stopped on 29 May 2026, but approved units carry on.

    Source: Osaka City, minpaku and lodging facilities (list as of 31 May 2026)

  5. Use the prefecture's register of landlords who accept foreigners

    Osaka Prefecture's Anshin Chintai search lists homes whose landlords have registered not to refuse foreign residents, and partner agents who handle them. It is smaller than the commercial portals but saves wasted viewings if you have been turned down because you are foreign.

    Source: Osaka Prefecture and Osaka Anshin Sumai council, Anshin Chintai search, 2026

  6. Take your papers to the prefecture before you sign

    Osaka Prefecture's real estate section will look over an explanation of important matters and a draft contract before you sign and tell you what to watch for, by phone on 06-6210-9734 or at the Sakishima Cosmo Tower, weekdays. It also publishes disciplinary actions against licensed agents for five years, which is worth checking for an agency you do not know.

    Source: Osaka Prefecture, real estate transaction consultation, updated July 2026

  7. Compare the suburbs along the commuter lines

    LIFULL HOME'S ward and city averages (rent without fees, flats within 10 minutes of a station) put a 1LDK at about ¥149,000 in Kita ward, ¥108,000 in Suita, ¥95,000 in Amagasaki, ¥91,000 in Toyonaka, ¥85,000 in Sakai ward and ¥83,000 in Higashi-Osaka. Suita lies on the JR Kyoto Line and the Midōsuji Line extension, Toyonaka on the Hankyu Takarazuka Line, Amagasaki on the JR Kobe and Hanshin lines, Sakai on the Nankai lines to Namba and Higashi-Osaka on the Kintetsu lines.

    Source: LIFULL HOME'S rent averages, 1 October 2026

  8. Avoid January to March if you can

    Moves cluster before the April start of the Japanese school and business year, and the Osaka City Consumer Centre times its rental warning for the March–April moving season. Outside the peak you compete with fewer people for each flat and agents have more time to chase landlords on your behalf.

    Source: Osaka City Consumer Centre, rental housing troubles, February 2026

  9. Get advice in English before a dispute grows

    The Osaka Prefecture Foreign Residents Information Center at My Dome Osaka (06-6941-2297) answers questions in 11 languages and Japanese and holds monthly sessions with lawyers and administrative scriveners by appointment. For housing questions in Japanese, the city's Housing Information Center in Tenjinbashi 6-chōme takes walk-in and phone questions and books free specialist legal consultations.

    Source: OFIX information center page; Osaka City Housing Information Center, 2026

Neighbourhoods

  • Kita (Umeda, Nakazakichō, Tenma, Tenjinbashi) higher rents

    The business and shopping hub around Osaka and Umeda stations, with many new compact towers in Nakatsu, Toyosaki and Tenma. Average asking rent across all layouts about ¥97,500 (at home, last three months to 1 October 2026); one of the lowest vacancy rates in the city at 11.1% (2023).

  • Chūō (Namba, Shinsaibashi, Honmachi, Tanimachi) higher rents

    The southern centre and the office district between the two hubs; the highest average asking rent of any ward, about ¥100,200. Around Namba and Nippombashi many buildings include short lets: 1,378 special-zone minpaku were listed here in May 2026.

  • Nishi (Horie, Utsubo, Kyōmachibori) higher rents

    Streets of shops and cafés west of Shinsaibashi and Yotsubashi, on the Yotsubashi and Chūō subway lines; average asking rent about ¥91,500 and vacancy 11.5% (2023).

  • Fukushima mid-range

    Small ward one stop from Osaka station on the JR Loop Line; average asking rent about ¥85,800 across all layouts, with many new 1LDK blocks on the Umeda side and vacancy of 13.0% (2023).

  • Tennōji and Abeno mid-range

    The third rail hub, around Tennōji and Abenobashi stations. Tennōji ward averages about ¥99,800 across all layouts, close to the centre; neighbouring Abeno is cheaper at about ¥77,600.

  • Yodogawa (Shin-Osaka, Nishinakajima, Jūsō) mid-range

    North of the river around the shinkansen station; plenty of studio and 1K stock for commuters and an average asking rent of about ¥73,600. Handy for the Midōsuji Line and the Hankyu lines at Jūsō.

  • Naniwa and Nishinari lower rents

    Naniwa (Ebisuchō, Sakuragawa) averages about ¥80,800 and Nishinari about ¥58,000, the cheapest ward on at home. Nishinari has the city's highest share of empty homes (25.9%, 2023) and the largest number of special-zone minpaku (2,435), so ask about short lets in the building.

  • Outer wards: the east, the north and the bay lower rents

    Higashi-Yodogawa (about ¥59,500), Asahi (¥59,600), Jōtō (¥68,100), Minato (¥68,000), Taishō (¥68,000) and Konohana (¥69,600, next to the Expo site and Universal Studios) are where rents are lowest within the city, mostly on one subway or JR line into the centre.

Here for a weekend first?A weekend in OsakaSightsale plans the sights, free hours, food and day trips.
The Dotonbori canal in Osaka
The Dotonbori canal in Osaka

What landlords ask for

Have these ready as PDFs before the first viewing; in Osaka the flat often goes to whoever sends a complete file first.

  • Residence card (zairyū kādo) and passport. Agents and guarantor companies check your status and the remaining period of stay; a short remaining period can be a reason for refusal until you renew.
  • Proof of income: an employment contract, offer letter or certificate of employment (zaishoku shōmeisho) with your annual salary, or recent payslips; students bring a certificate of enrolment and often proof of funds or a sponsor's details.
  • Approval by a rent guarantor company (hoshō gaisha): an application form, your ID and income details, and often a call to you or your employer. Some companies accept applications in English; MLIT lists those with foreign-language support.
  • An emergency contact in Japan (kinkyū renrakusaki), usually a Japanese-speaking colleague, friend or relative, whom the guarantor company may call.
  • A Japanese mobile number, and a Japanese bank account or credit card for rent by direct debit; a few landlords take card payment for the upfront costs.
  • Your new address must be registered: file the moving-in notification at the ward office within 14 days of moving in, and keep the certificate of residence (jūminhyō) for later renewals and public-housing applications.
  • For UR: proof of income of at least four times the rent (or savings or advance rent instead) and your residence card; for city and prefectural housing: proof of income and of residence or work in Osaka.

Scams typical of Osaka

Scam risk here is rated 2 of 5. No dated police or consumer-body warning about rental fraud aimed at flat-hunters in Osaka in the last twelve months. The Kinki Real Estate Fair Trade Council, the industry's self-regulation body for property adverts, last penalised an Osaka City agency for rental bait listings on 10 September 2025; its May 2026 action on misleading TikTok adverts concerned homes for sale. The city consumer centre's rental page (2026-02) covers deposit disputes. The general patterns, and what to do if you have already paid, are in the scam guide.

  • Bait listings (otori bukken)

    An agency keeps advertising a well-priced flat that is already let or never existed, then offers 'something similar' when you call or visit. The Kinki fair-trade council issued a strict warning and penalty to an Osaka City agency on 10 September 2025 for keeping three rentals on a portal for up to three and a half months after they were let, and in 2020 publicly named two Chūō-ward agencies, with penalties of ¥1 million and ¥700,000, for rental adverts on portals for flats they could not show. Tell-tale signs: the flat 'just went' every time, or you are told to come to the office before they will confirm it is free.

  • Optional extras presented as compulsory

    Estimates in Osaka often add a support package, disinfection, cleaning or key fees on top of rent; one central listing in October 2026 carried a ¥16,500 support plan and a ¥22,000 disinfection charge. Some are written into the landlord's terms, others are extras the agent offers. Ask in writing which items you can decline, and remember the agent's fee is capped at one month's rent plus tax in total.

  • Adverts on social media and messaging apps

    Flats and rooms advertised on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook or in WeChat and LINE groups, often in English or Chinese and aimed at newcomers. The Kinki fair-trade council acted against misleading TikTok adverts for homes for sale in May 2026, and the same pattern turns up for rentals. Check that an agent has a brokerage licence (MLIT search, or the prefecture's list of disciplined agents) and never pay an 'application' or 'holding' fee to a personal account before you have seen the flat and the explanation of important matters.

  • Short lets passed off as homes

    Furnished 'monthly' flats offered informally may in fact be minpaku units, which can be cleared or shut at short notice. Check the address on Osaka City's list of licensed short lets and its illegal-minpaku reporting window, and insist on a written lease if you plan to stay for months.

  • Large move-out deductions

    The commonest Osaka dispute is not fraud but the deposit: cleaning, shikibiki and repair charges taken from a hoshōkin. Since 2020 normal wear is the landlord's cost. Take dated photos at move-in, attend the inspection, and call 188 or the Osaka City Consumer Centre if the bill looks excessive.

How long it takes

Allow two to six weeks from your first viewing to the keys outside the January–March peak. Arrive with a furnished room, share house or monthly flat booked for the first month, register your address at the ward office, then get a Japanese phone number and open a bank account. With those and a certificate of employment, ask one or two agents (one that works in English if you need it) to show flats from the shared listings, view several in a day, and apply for the one you want: the guarantor company and landlord usually decide within about a week. Then sign after the explanation of important matters, pay the upfront costs (typically three to five months' rent), and arrange electricity, gas and water. If you are repeatedly turned down, try UR, the prefecture's Anshin Chintai register or an operator such as a share-house company that does not use a guarantor company.

Where to get help

  • Osaka City Housing Information Center (Sumai Jōhō Center)The city's housing advice desk at Tenjinbashi 6-chōme: walk-in and phone questions on renting, public housing and contracts (06-6242-1177), and free specialist legal consultations by appointment. In Japanese; closed Tuesdays.
  • Osaka Prefecture real estate transaction consultationThe prefecture's licensing section for real estate agents: reviews your explanation of important matters and contract before you sign (06-6210-9734, weekdays) and publishes disciplinary actions against agents. The same page lists the Osaka Prefecture Housing Consultation Office (06-6944-8269) for leases and public housing.
  • Osaka Prefecture Foreign Residents Information Center (OFIX)Information and advice in 11 languages plus Japanese, by phone (06-6941-2297), LINE, e-mail or in person at My Dome Osaka; monthly specialist days with lawyers, administrative scriveners and immigration officials, by appointment.
  • Osaka City Consumer CentreConsumer advice for Osaka City residents, including deposit, shikibiki and move-out disputes; reach it through the national hotline 188. Based at the ATC building in Nankōkita.
  • Kinki Real Estate Fair Trade CouncilIndustry body that enforces the advertising rules for property in Kansai and publishes its penalties against agents for bait and misleading listings; advertising consultation line 06-6941-9561 (phone or fax).
  • Osaka Anshin Sumai councilPrefecture-led council for people who struggle to find housing, including foreign residents: the Anshin Chintai register, residential support organisations and a list of consultation desks by municipality.

Questions people ask about renting in Osaka

How much does a flat in Osaka cost in 2026?

In at home's figures for August 2026, the average asking price (rent plus management fee) in Osaka City was ¥73,878 for a flat of 30 m² or less, ¥115,604 for 30–50 m² and ¥167,044 for 50–70 m², 7–8% up on a year earlier. In the seven central wards SUUMO's average rent for a 1LDK-type flat was ¥91,000–117,000 and for a 1K or 1DK ¥62,000–68,000 (July 2026), plus a management fee of about ¥10,000; newer blocks ask more (a median of ¥124,000 plus fee for 1LDK and 1DK flats of 35–45 m² in our count on 1 October 2026).

Do Osaka landlords still ask for hoshōkin and shikibiki?

Less and less. In our count of 761 central one-bed listings on at home (October 2026), 90% asked no deposit and 55% no key money; most others asked one month's key money. Some older buildings and private landlords still use a guarantee deposit with a fixed deduction, which is valid unless excessive (Supreme Court, March 2011), so read the cost sheet.

Is there a renewal fee in Osaka?

Usually not: renewal fees are a Kanto custom, and MLIT's 2007 survey, the latest official figure, found none in Osaka. Read the cost sheet anyway, since no newer survey exists. Contracts still normally run for two years, so check whether yours is an ordinary lease, which renews unless the landlord has just cause, or a fixed-term lease (teiki shakka), which ends at expiry.

Can a foreigner rent in Osaka without a Japanese guarantor?

Yes: almost all private lets now use a rent guarantor company instead of a personal guarantor, and some take applications in English. UR housing needs no guarantor at all, share houses usually do not use one, and Osaka Prefecture's Anshin Chintai register lists landlords who have agreed not to refuse foreign residents.

Will the minpaku stop free up flats in Osaka?

Not quickly. Osaka City stopped accepting new special-zone minpaku applications and room additions on 29 May 2026, but the 8,887 facilities on its list of 31 May 2026 may keep operating, and the city is inspecting 2,817 of them more closely from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027. Any effect will show first in Nishinari, Chūō and Naniwa, where most are.

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