Latest Development News in Niseko-Hirafu

It's been about 4 months since our previous update on the development market in Niseko and a few things have changed.

Niseko continues to ride the latest development boom with AYA Niseko due to open this coming winter and other developments such as Skye Niseko and The Maples in line for major work this summer and opening in 2018.

At the same time Tokyu Resort are putting more investment into the infrastructure around the mountain, with lift upgrades and the installation of two more magic carpets for GoSnow and Grand Hirafu Snowsports Schools to use for lessons.

After a bumper winter, owners are experiencing great returns and capital gains on both land and property in Niseko.

Ski-in ski-out to the Family Pair lift, AYA Niseko is due to open for Guests on December 15th, 2016 and is now open for bookings. As you can see from the gallery below, construction of this large hotel right next to The Vale Niseko is progressing well.

There are only a handful of units left for sale and with confirmation of a magic carpet right outside the door and GoSnow operating the ski club in the building, it's a great place for beginners to enjoy.

If you're interested in finding out more about the building, check out the virtual tour of the building here and for real estate sales don't forget to jump straight across to Niseko Real Estate's page to grab one of those last few remaining units.

If you fancy booking Niseko's newest property click here for availability and bookings.

A new option on investment has cropped up with HTM, the largest property management company in Niseko. They are selling units in Niseko-Hirafu with a guaranteed return of 5% based on a sale and leaseback model.

The idea is to kill two birds with one stone - offering people a very low buy-in to Niseko while at the same time solving the ongoing issue of staff accommodation.

So with guaranteed returns for 10 years, a townhouse in Niseko at the end of it and the chance to jump on the Niseko bandwagon at a very different price point to anything else, this is probably a unique opportunity in Niseko.

Preliminary interest has been strong and more information can be found here.

Work has begun on redevelopment of the corner block next to Seicomart, formerly home of Abucha 1 and latterly The Niseko Supply Company.

Odin Place: will open in December 2016 and will feature 3 floors of pure retail space...that's right a building in Niseko with no apartments!

At the moment the only details that have been released are that it will contain shops, restaurants and bars in Niseko-Hirafu’s most visible location.

But we heard a rumour that one of those shops will be a Burton shop...coupled with the recent opening of The North Face and Ikeuchi's high-end shop in Hirafu 188 it is great to see more commercial coming into Niseko.

Due to open in time for winter 2018 and right at the top of the village, Skye Niseko has moved into construction phase and if you want to see more you can keep up to date on their Facebook page here.

Units are still for sale and commanding top-end prices for what is likely to be the most talked about development in the village over the next couple of years.

Find out more online at www.skyeniseko.com or contact Craig at Niseko Realty for more information!

For most of mainland Japan it is hard for them to understand why this small town in the Hokkaido countryside has become some of the the most valuable land in the country...not for us of course!

It's not all about apartments in the top of the village, in Niseko there are plenty of other investment options out there.

Perhaps your dream is not to own a small piece of a big property, but to build your own house on your own plot of land.

If that's the case, you could do far worse than something like this. A few minutes outside the main village with protected views of Mount Yotei in a beautiful little development...priceless. Keith at Taiga Projects can no doubt tell you more.

Or maybe you want something a little more "plug and play" in which case you might want to get in touch with Paul at Hokkaido Tracks Resort Properties and see what their latest land and house packages are.

For now information is fairly limited, but the project team from Nisade have got the go ahead on The Maples, which will be a large hotel built over by the Hirafutei Hotel between Hirafuzaka and the Family Run.

Again, construction is set to complete in time for winter 2018 and we'll bring you more when the information is released!

It's not always an upslope though...last time around we reported that work on Go Kisetsu would begin this spring in time for a 2018 opening. The land has been cleared but so far no further work has been done.

Our understanding is that development is on hold while the main builder is confirmed and the build completion date now looks more like winter 2019/20