About Engawa
The house is the easy part. We handle everything around it.
Engawa was built by people who bought property in Japan from the outside looking in — and found the listings scattered, the data buried, and the process opaque. We put it in one place, in plain English, and stay beside you if you choose to buy.
We aggregate, we don't broker
Engawa lists properties and refers you to licensed local agents. We are not a licensed real-estate broker and never handle contracts, negotiations, or legal steps ourselves.
Flat fee, aligned incentives
Our $5,000 concierge fee never scales with the property price. We earn the same on a ¥2M akiya as a ¥45M mansion, so our only motive is the right home for you.
Data before persuasion
We clearly distinguish listing-source information from estimates and unavailable data. Verified parcel-level hazard reports are not yet available, so we will not present regional baselines as a hazard assessment.
The team
Aya Morimoto
Co-founder · Kyoto
Former machiya restoration project manager. Bilingual, and the person who reads the fine print so you don't have to.
Daniel Hart
Co-founder · London → Nagano
Bought and restored a Nagano kominka as a foreigner, made every mistake once, and built Engawa so you don't repeat them.
Kenji Sato
Agent network lead
Coordinates our network of licensed local agents (takken-gyosha) across all regions and keeps referrals honest.
In their words
4.9/5“The listing detail made it much easier to rule out places that did not fit my plan. Worth every yen of the flat fee.”
Marcus R.
Bought in Gifu · from Berlin
“I don't read Japanese. Engawa sat on every call and translated the contract line by line. My agent did the legal work; they made sure I understood all of it.”
Priya S.
Bought in Fukuoka · from Toronto
“Knowing the fee was flat meant I trusted their advice. They actually talked me down to a cheaper place that suited me better.”
Tom & Lena K.
Bought in Onomichi · from Melbourne
See it for yourself
Start free on the map, or book a consultation when you're ready to talk to a person.