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This chapter describes how I considered bank loans while waiting for a reply from the Government Housing Loan Corporation, and how the system change made it easier to finance a second house.

5. Funding from Banks

銀行からの資金調達0
While waiting for a reply from the public housing loan institution, I also tried to get a bank loan in parallel. Here I describe how few banks handled loans for second houses at that time.
▼ My experience with bank loans

Since I hadn’t received an answer from the Government Housing Loan Corporation, I also explored financing from banks in parallel. However, not many banks offer loans for vacation houses (second homes). From what I researched, the banks that seemed usable were about three: Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, UFJ Bank, and Suruga Bank. In the past, local banks in Nasu such as Ashikaga Bank and Tochigi Bank also provided loans, but due to worsening business performance, they stopped lending for vacation houses (Note: Ashikaga Bank started a new second-house loan program in 2005).

Even at the few banks that lend for vacation houses (second homes), the Nasu vacation house itself cannot be used as collateral because it does not receive a collateral valuation. Apparently, vacation houses in Izu, Hakone, and Karuizawa do get collateral valuation, so you may wonder why there is such a difference, but that was the reality at the time. Therefore, if you borrow money from a bank, the only way is to use your primary home as collateral.

If you have a detached house in central Tokyo, banks may be willing to lend even if you still have some mortgage remaining. However, if you own an apartment (condominium) and still have a loan balance, it may be difficult to raise funds. In fact, Kaori applied for loans at three banks—Sumitomo Mitsui, UFJ, and Suruga—but was rejected by all of them. Banks can be surprisingly strict.

But then… from April 2002, the Government Housing Loan Corporation expanded its lending framework, so it was no longer necessary to rely only on bank loans. Unlike banks, the Corporation’s thinking is not “collateral first.” Instead, it determines the loan amount using a build-up method: “I want to build a house with these options, so I want to borrow this much.” What a wonderful approach—truly a financing system that helps make dreams come true.

In other words, if you properly use the Government Housing Loan Corporation, you could say it became “an era when anyone could own a vacation house.” It was a great change even from the viewpoint of stimulating the economy. I can’t help but feel grateful that this change happened right at the time Kaori decided to build a vacation house.

As a kind of “inside tip,” if you were able to borrow money from the Government Housing Loan Corporation, some banks may allow you to refinance into a bank loan. They may lend based on the credibility that you passed the Corporation’s screening. If bank interest rates are more favorable, refinancing can be one option. Moreover, if you successfully refinance from the Corporation to a bank loan during construction, you may be able to make some design changes. With the Corporation, there is an inspection when the building is completed, so the final building must match the drawings submitted for the initial building confirmation. With bank financing, the screening is not that strict. Especially when you work with an architect who builds “while thinking together,” new ideas like “I want to change this part” may arise as construction progresses—so being able to switch to bank financing mid-way could make it interesting because you can boldly adjust the design toward the end.


銀行からの資金調達
If you are fortunate enough to own a home in a city, you may be able to borrow vacation-house funds quickly by using your primary home as collateral. However, if you do so and later cannot repay the vacation-house loan for any reason, your primary home could also be seized—so please be very careful. Ideally, the best approach is to borrow using the vacation house itself as collateral. Then, even if something unexpected happens and you cannot repay, only the vacation house would be subject to seizure.

How to read this story

Each page shows one step of building the vacation house in Nasu, such as land search, meetings with the architect, construction, and daily life after completion.
You can start from any part you like, but reading in order may help you understand the full flow more clearly.

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