TOKYO: Prices of newly-built apartments in the Tokyo area rose 1.7% last year, approaching the record highs seen during Japan’s asset-inflated bubble era that ended in the early 1990s, the country’s Real Estate Economic Institute said.
Higher construction costs due to preparations for the Olympics and popularity of high-rise condominiums in formerly industrial waterfront areas helped drive the average apartment price up to 60.84 million yen (US$586,410), the highest since 1990 when it reached a record 61.23 million yen.