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  • Hello world! Here's the thing.

  • I moved from Vancouver, Canada,

  • to Tokyo, Japan.

  • In Canada, I used to make more money,

  • yet my quality of life is somehow better across the Pacific ocean.

  • This is largely in part due to the cost of living being cheaper for my family.

  • How could this be, in one of the most expensive cities in the world

  • Well the first thing you need to know about the cost of living reports

  • about Tokyo you see touted in the news,

  • is that it was probably from the likes of the Mercer Report,

  • or the Economist Intelligence Unit, which I'll quote

  • "The survey itself is a purpose-built Internet tool

  • designed to help human resources and finance managers

  • calculate cost-of-living allowances and build compensation packages

  • for expatriates and business travellers."

  • In other words, those reports are meant for high-flying business people,

  • with the expectation that they can live their same New York lifestyle

  • in any one of the comparison cities.

  • The report is pegged to the US dollar

  • and it's for a basket of goods that you would never buy if you lived like a local.

  • What this means is that while a currency of a country might go up and down,

  • making it cheaper or more expensive in any given reporting year,

  • if you're a local, this would have way less of an effect on you.

  • Currency fluctuations are a big reason why Tokyo

  • was not even in the top 10 one year,

  • then the most expensive city the next.

  • So what is the reality for the average Japanese family?

  • Is it expensive living in Japan, living in Tokyo?

  • So, I went to the statistical agencies of both Canada and Japan,

  • and boy, did I have fun with charts.

  • If you love stats, get ready for an action packed video!

  • I just love scrolling through them. So much data!

  • Haha, I'm messing with all of you.

  • I did in fact look at all these charts,

  • but I realized that in the end,

  • there were a few major differences that were the most important to point out.

  • In general, housing in major Japanese cities is cheaper than in Canada,

  • especially if you consider homes within a 30-60 minute commuting distance to the core

  • and the number of people living in the cities.

  • But why?

  • A couple important factors are housing sizes and zoning.

  • Japanese homes are smaller, so they cost less.

  • The average new Japanese home is about 1,000 square feet, or about 100 square metres,

  • whereas it's about double that at 2,000 square feet, or 200 square metres, in Canada.

  • It's not only the overall size of housing though,

  • it's the available configurations.

  • In Japan, you can get housing as small as 10 square metres,

  • which is roughly 100 square feet,

  • up to really, any size you want.

  • This means that people are more able to sacrifice the size of their living space

  • in order to get closer to where they want to be.

  • This also makes it so that you don't need to get roommates or tenants

  • in order to afford a particular space.

  • This variety in housing sizes is largely aided by zoning laws,

  • which are less restrictive in Japan.

  • Zoning, if you're not all into urban planning,

  • is the set of rules that say what kind of buildings

  • can be built in certain zones,

  • and what they can be used for.

  • Japanese zoning laws are mostly controlled at the national level,

  • and allows for homes to be built almost anywhere

  • on practically any size or shape of land.

  • This permits the housing market

  • to self-solve and build the types of buildings

  • that fit the demands of any particular area.

  • So all told, for a budget between $1,000 and $2,000 Canadian a month,

  • a family can either afford to buy or rent

  • an apartment or stand alone home

  • within a 30-60 minutes commute of the downtown core of Tokyo.

  • Oh, right, silly me, using Canadian figures.

  • In the default global currency, the U.S. dollar,

  • this is roughly between $750 and $1,500 a month.

  • Another part of the housing equation is utilities,

  • like energy, water, and gas.

  • While Japan is much more expensive than in Canada,

  • Japanese use less in all of these categories,

  • meaning the end amount of money spent isn't much different.

  • So the great thing about living in the Tokyo area,

  • is you don't need to own a car.

  • The public transportation system is such

  • that it'll probably be easier to take a train to work.

  • Also, most employers will pay your transportation fees.

  • But what about shopping?

  • Wouldn't a car be good for that?

  • Most of the things you need,

  • from grocery stores, to household goods, to doctors,

  • are within walking or biking distance.

  • On top of that, getting things delivered is generally free or very affordable.

  • And delivery is so extensive,

  • that unless you're shopping for something specialized,

  • if you really wanted to,

  • you don't have to leave the house for many things.

  • For example, I used to love to go to the giant electronic store Yodobashi Camera in Akihabara.

  • It's many, many floors or electronic goodness,

  • But when you can get free, same day delivery,

  • it's actually more expensive and time consuming to leave the house.

  • So I hardly go any more.

  • So with company subsidized public transit and cheap deliveries,

  • the Japanese person's budget for transportation

  • is significantly less than the Canadian person's.

  • Now in some rural places, owning a car would be a necessity,

  • but then housing would be much more affordable,

  • and in some cases, it's near free.

  • The downside to Japan's public transportation

  • is that it's pricey.

  • You get good quality, but you pay for it.

  • For example, if I want to travel to the other side of town and back,

  • I'd be looking to spend about $10 to $15 US dollars.

  • And if you add some family members to that equation,

  • getting somewhere can easily be more expensive than a restaurant meal.

  • Even though a car is not a necessity for most living in Tokyo,

  • about half of all households own a vehicle,

  • but it's generally more of a luxury than a necessity.

  • Elementary school in Japan starts at grade 1,

  • so when children are 6 years old.

  • Children younger than that fall under the daycare or preschool system.

  • In Vancouver, I was regularly paying about $800 US dollars a month.

  • And this was even for unlicensed facilities run out of people's homes.

  • In Edogawa, on the Eastern edge of Tokyo,

  • the maximum amount for a licensed daycare

  • for 0 to 2 year olds is $500 US dollars a month.

  • This fees drop as income does, all the way to zero.

  • More importantly, past 2 years old,

  • that price more than halves, to $200 USD a month.

  • And if you have multiple kids under elementary school age,

  • your second kid's price will be dropped in half.

  • And even, even more amazingly

  • there's a have two get the rest free policy.

  • All additional kids enrolled are completely paid for by the government.

  • In general, I would say the quality of care was excellent.

  • I think we did luck out with our teacher,

  • who remained with my son's class for the entire 3 years he attended.

  • But again, since these are publicly regulated facilities,

  • not home-based businesses,

  • I think the quality of care is much more consistent that what I found in Vancouver,

  • where it can be a huge struggle to get anyone to take care for your child,

  • let alone get a licensed facility.

  • The Japanese facilities also have a school nurse

  • and come with an in-house food program,

  • where food is made fresh on the daily.

  • Field trips were common,

  • there was a good outdoor space to play,

  • and little walks to local parks were frequent.

  • The big downside to childcare programs like this in Japan

  • is the availability of space.

  • Whether your kids can get in or not

  • kind of depends on the need.

  • The more need you have, the more points you have,

  • and the more likely you are to get into a space.

  • Where we were located, there wasn't a problem getting into a privately run but publicly regulated daycare.

  • However, in certain wards of the city,

  • some people have no option but to go to unlicensed facilities,

  • which cost more like $1,000 USD a month.

  • If you can get in, it's great, and affordable.

  • If not, those childcare costs can add up.

  • The next thing I'll talk about isn't a major cost difference,

  • but since the way it's done is a bit different than Canada,

  • and I know quite different than the United States,

  • I thought it'd be good to talk about health care.

  • Japan has universal health care coverage,

  • with all residents required to get health insurance.

  • Although I have read about 10% of people that should get insurance don't.

  • But that's for a different video.

  • If you work as an employee,

  • then your employer will split your monthly premium with you.

  • In effect, you'll pay about 5-6% of your income

  • for the health insurance portion,

  • but double that if you're self-employed like me.

  • Okay, I was going to do motion graphics