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Before / after
Don’t judge a Japanese home by its listing photos.
In Australia, homes are usually cleaned, staged and photographed to sell.
In Japan, a home may be listed before renovation, during construction, or with the previous owner’s belongings still inside, even when renovation is included in the sale price.
The pleasant surprise? What you eventually receive may look nothing like the listing photo.
But there’s a catch: Japanese buyers are used to seeing the potential, and some homes sell before renovation is finished. Overseas buyers may never get to see what that particular property eventually became.
Use the BEFORE / AFTER toggle to see four real Japanese homes, and learn to see beyond the listing photo.
Same property. Same space. Very different first impression.
Real completed renovations, not AI concepts or staging.
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Home No.1 · Exterior, street elevation
Reading a listing photo
What to look at, and what to look past.
Look at the bones, not the finish
Layout, light, ceiling height and how the windows face. Those stay. Wallpaper, flooring and fittings are what a renovation replaces.
Know what a typical renovation covers
Usually a new kitchen, bathroom and toilet, new flooring where needed, new wallpaper and light fittings, and a professional clean. Ask for the exact list.
Notice what cannot change
Orientation, slope, road access, the neighbours and the snow load on the roof. A renovation does nothing for any of them.
Read the label on every listing
On JapanoMa each home is marked Renovated, Renovating, Renovation planned or As-is, so you know which photos show the finished home.
Now look at the listings with new eyes.
Every home on JapanoMa is marked Renovated, Renovating, Renovation planned or As-is. Filter by it in any area.