Real estate

The Niseko ski property market is heating up

As one of the world’s rising ski destinations, renowned for its powder and the enduring length of its white season, Niseko, Japan, is attracting increasing attention from buyers in Asia and beyond. Jess Ripper, sales director at Niseko Real Estate, is expecting the mountains to move.

Industrial-chic residences at Suiboku Loft, Upper Hirafu

Boulevard: How is the Niseko property market performing? What are your expectations for the next 12 months?

Jess Ripper: The market is coming along quite nicely, and enquiries remain strong. Long-term buyers understand that, given where the yen is at the moment, it’s still cheap to invest in property here. Also, once the US elections wrap up in November, the global markets and buyer sentiment should settle down. So we’re expecting a busy 2024 to 25 winter ahead.

We’ve come out of the other side of the Covid tunnel shining brightly. Last winter was an example of just how intensely Niseko has come back. In terms of visitation, revenue and real estate sales, the numbers are up across the board.

The term “revenge-buying” is a cliche, but it still still applies here. The Japanese market opened a little late and Japan sort of had a feeding frenzy. I think the market is only going to strengthen. This year we’re dealing with a stronger yen. The last two winters have given us clear indications of how the next five years are going to go. Last winter was extremely busy and bookings at hotels have increased at the moment. My gut feeling is that it’s going to be a buoyant in the next 12 to 14 months ahead.

Designer duplex villas, Panorama Niseko, Kutchan

Blvd: What’s the profile of typical buyers in the ultra-prime space? Is the growth potential a key driver, or would you say these buyers’ choices are more lifestyle driven?

Ripper: Niseko has always been primarily a lifestyle destination. The majority of people who are buying property here want to come in and enjoy it with family and friends, whether it’s winter or increasingly more so in the summer, as well. With that, you get a lot of people who demand high specs in the higher-end market, from luxury condos to villas. Anything that has a hot spring definitely has high demand.

The main Hirafu village is where most of the hotels and restaurants are. This will remain the hub of the greater resort area. What we’re seeing now with post-Covid lifestyle investors, is that they’re looking to secure properties outside the village, something with more space, privacy and wide-open views. We’re seeing the arrival of these villa estates, like Panorama Niseko and other developments coming in the next few months. More buyers are interested in the option to buy their own parcel of land and build their own villa.

Nevertheless, most people tend to put their property into the rental pool, where they can receive rental yields for their assets.

Views from a penthouse at Muwa Niseko, Upper Hirafu

Blvd: How much availability is there?

Ripper: The market’s inventory is still sorting itself out. For example, a ski-in, ski-out apartment here in the main Hirafu village has a much larger supply of properties. However, if you’re buying a villa or chalet in the main village, it is much more scarce. That’s why these villa estates, where people can buy land and build a villa, are gaining more attention.

Blvd: What are the the key international buyer markets for Niseko?

Ripper: The demographic for the majority of Niseko has mostly been buyers from Asian countries. Traditionally, that’s been Hong Kong and Singapore, but now it has diversified with the emergence of investors from countries like Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Taiwan, South Korea and of course Mainland China. Buyers in China, in particular, have identified Niseko as a key lifestyle destination.

Blvd: How are buyer and traveller ⁠habits changing? How does Niseko compare to renowned global resorts such as Aspen or Courchevel, in terms of price and attractiveness?

Ripper: People are looking for service, for a holiday estate, for comfort, for facilities and amenities. Their expectations need to be met. When we’re comparing Niseko with other global resorts in Aspen or Whistler, we’d see that the infrastructure in Niseko resorts and its lifts could use some upgrading. They could have better commercial facilities and better entertainment outlets, much like the resorts in Europe or Northern America.

I’ve been to Whistler in summer, and had an amazing experience there. In terms of developing a summer market, that could be an incredible model for Niseko. But developing that sort of network will take time.

The main reason people come to Niseko is the amount and quality of the snow – that light, powdery experience you just can’t get anywhere else in the world. The trip is also easier for people in this part of the world. And Japan is a hot tourism destination just on its own – people come to Japan for an alternative to the same-old western experience.

Blvd: Are there any new developments, such as the forthcoming bullet train, that could potentially reshape the market?

Ripper: The completion of the bullet train from Sapporo is only going to help. Instead of having to fly or drive two hours to get here, it will be a lot easier for International travellers and domestic Japanese visitors to visit.

While there have been a number of new projects in the past three years, others have been affected by a massive semi-conductor factory that’s being built in Hokkaido, which is sucking in a lot of building workers at the moment. In terms of large-scale hotel developments, we’ve noticed that they’ve been a bit quieter compared to their activity in the last couple of years. We’re probably going to see a lot more of these large projects come back in two to three years once contractors become more available.

On the other hand, we’re seeing more single, standalone chalets and villas coming up in the Niseko area, particularly in Hirafu and areas outside the main village.

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