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D San's Profile
Came to Japan in April, 2001 Vietnamese Graduate Student Housing: Apartment Commute: 15 minutes by train |
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TB -- Can you tell me a little bit about where you lived when you first came to Japan?
D San -- When I first arrived, I was in Osaka studying at the Osaka University of Foreign Studies and lived in an all males' dorm.
TB -- Do you remember how much it cost?
D San -- It was about 20,000 yen a month. But there was no air conditioner. The girls' dorm had air conditioners, and I think their rent was 30,000 yen a month.
TB -- Living without an air conditioner must have been really hard, though! When did you come to Tokyo?
D San -- The year after I arrived. When I first came to Tokyo, I lived in a dorm in Mitaka for 10,000 yen a month.
TB -- And after that?
D San -- After thatﾉI lived in Komagomeﾉthen Tabashiﾉthen Ayase.
TB -- Whoa, you have moved a lot. How do you go about looking for apartments?
D San -- Well, I found the apartment in Komagome through a real estate agent in Ikebukuro. All the others I was introduced to through my school's international relations office.
TB -- Since you've had so many experiences with looking for places and moving, can you tell me about any problems you encountered?
D San -- Well, the international center marked the apartments that allowed non-Japanese students, and we were only allowed to choose from those. There were about 10% of all apartments listed for Japanese students.
Also, when you want to rent a room, having a guarantor is a key point. But unless you have the school guarantee, you can't receive a guarantee unless you are Japanese.
TB -- It's disappointing to hear that it works like that. What did you do about a guarantor for the apartment you live in now?
D San -- I actually went through a guarantee office.
TB -- Was your University guarantor not acceptable?
D San -- I was asked to sign a contract with a guarantee agency designated by the real estate agency. And then, my nationality became a problem. This is just my own personal opinion, but when the real estate agent wouldn't let me move in, I think it was because of my nationality. But that was never said directly, and instead made my conditions to live there strict, and told me that I could not move in because I don't meet those conditions.
TB -- I'm really sorry to hear that. Our company's goal is to help non-Japanese students avoid disappointing situations like that. Thank you so much for talking with me today.
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