Tokyo tightens screws on home-sharing facilities for tourists amid complaints

Faced with complaints about noise, garbage and other nuisances, municipalities in Tokyo are ramping up inspections of “minpaku” private lodging facilities and imposing restrictions as the number of such properties rises.



The local authorities in the Japanese capital are zeroing in on unregistered providers of such lodging services, with some municipalities using ordinances to mitigate the negative impact on residential neighbourhoods.



Owners are permitted by law to rent out vacant homes or rooms to tourists for up to 180 days per year.



The number of properties used as “minpaku” facilities stood at 31,000 as of May 2025 before rising to over 40,000 a year later.



The national government is shifting away from its previous stance of promoting private lodging, with the agency notifying local governments in June that they can use local ordinances to ban such services if they harm the living environment of local people.



In Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward, which has the largest number of registered facilities, officials conducted inspections of properties on a June weekday when such services are not permitted, with services mostly restricted to weekends.