Information about the shelter in Japan?

Answer 1

Answer

Current, modern housing???

Depends where you live and how rich you are. Most people live in houses or apartments. The most notable difference between Japanese housing and western housing is the size cost and total lack of insulation.

Space is the biggest issue in housing. Apartment blocks in cities can be huge. Houses have almost no garden to speak of. Renovation is not big here and in areas the government has changed zoning laws so that if you were to knock your house down and rebuild it you couldn't build one as big. So you can see many houses they should be condemned still being lived in.

Western style is popular so new houses or apartments look a lot like American ones. In most areas there aren't fireplaces or central heating. The floors are often wood look or plain vinyl in most rooms, with one tatami (Japanese style reed flooring). The doorway is where you take off your shoes and is often lower than the rest of the house or has a distinct separation.

Bathrooms are different. Toilets are always separate. There are short, deep baths in a room with a large floor space, so you shower before you get into the bath. Water is usually heated by gas. Cooking is also done by gas in most homes. Kitchens are usually a sink and bench for the gas stove and not much else.

Cupboards are almost non-existent in all rooms except for the bedroom and/or the tatami room. It is usually the length of the wall has one shelf in the middle and is very deep. It is normally used to store the futons (Japanese bedding) during the day. Other fixtures within the home are usually not permanent. Most shelving units are kits.

The bedroom in many homes doubles as another room, often the lounge room. Depending on what type of housing you live in and how many people in your family. In more rural Japan in the larger houses 2 or 3 generations often live together. It was the eldest sons (or more to the point his wife's) duty to care for his parents in their old age. However this is changing.


Most houses are made of wood (chipboard) sometimes with some sort of cladding. They have tile roofs which slant at varying degrees depending on the areas snowfall. Most doors within the house are sliding doors and most light switches are the pull the string in the middle type. The run on 100 or 110 volts. Most doors have doorbells and a peephole.

Wanna be more specific about what information you want as that's all I can think of.