Tunnel of Light, Tokamachi, Niigata
Photo: Tunnel of Light, Tokamachi, Niigata · Susann Schuster / Unsplash

Murakami City Housing Market Report 2025

Data updated 2026-11-10 · Source: MLIT transaction price survey, 2005 Q3–2026 Q2

Key figures for 2025

Median house price (land + building)
¥4.7M
Residential land per m² (sales)
¥9k/m²
-16.4% over 5 years
Transactions in 2025
61
#19 of 25 areas in Niigata by price per m²

What the data says

A long, slow decline

House prices per m² have been falling for a decade, by about 1.8% a year recently. Prices are low, but resale values are likely to keep easing, so buy here to live, not as an investment.

Lagging Niigata

Per m², houses here are 59% below the Niigata average. Ten years ago the gap was 51%, so Murakami City has been falling behind the rest of Niigata.

Sales are thinning out

Transactions are down about 13% on the previous three years. Fewer sales mean less choice and slower resale, so allow more time to sell later.

What a typical purchase costs

Half of all house sales last year were between ¥2.5M and ¥8.4M. Listings outside that range are either unusual properties or worth a closer look.

A shrinking population

The population fell 10.3% between 2020 and 2025 (−6% for the wider area). More people moved out than in during 2025 (about 7.7 per 1,000 residents), which weakens long-term housing demand.

Many abandoned homes

17.4% of homes were empty in 2023 (15.3% for the wider area), and 12.4% were empty without being for rent, for sale or used as second homes. That is a high share of truly abandoned homes (akiya), a sign of weak demand. Cheap houses are easy to find, but resale can be slow.

Lower earthquake risk

The government's seismic model gives a 4% chance of shaking of intensity 6-lower or stronger in the next 30 years (12% for the wider area). This is low by Japanese standards, although no part of Japan is free of earthquake risk.

Official land prices are still falling

On the government's fixed benchmark sites, which are valued the same way every year, residential land prices changed -1% in the year to January 2026 and -5% over five years. Because these sites don't change, this is the cleanest measure of land value trends.

Some flood or landslide exposure

Of the official land-price benchmark sites here, which sit in typical neighbourhoods, 80% are inside the worst-case flood zone (10% with expected depths of 3 m or more), 10% are in a landslide warning area. Most worst-case flood zones are shallow (under 0.5 m) at the edges, so depth matters as much as the share. Check the hazard map for any specific address before buying.

Living in Murakami City: people, homes and risks

Population 2025
51,480
-10.3% since 2020
Niigata: -6.0%
Net moves in 2025
-397
-7.71 per 1,000 residents
Niigata: -3.08
Vacant homes (2023)
17.4%
12.4% empty and not for rent or sale
Niigata: 15.3%
Median rent (2023)
¥39k
per month, all rented homes
Niigata: ¥49k
Strong earthquake risk
4.1%
chance of shaking of intensity 6-lower or more within 30 years
Niigata: 11.9%
Official land price 2026
¥20k/m²
-0.8% in a year · -5.4% in 5 years
Niigata: ¥28k/m²
Flood exposure
80.0%
of 10 benchmark sites in a worst-case flood zone (10.0% 3 m or deeper)
Niigata: 64.2%
Landslide exposure
10.0%
of 10 benchmark sites in a landslide warning area
Niigata: 2.7%

Check flood, landslide and tsunami zones for a specific address on the government hazard map ↗

Sources: 2025 Census (preliminary), 2025 Internal Migration Report, 2023 Housing and Land Survey (Statistics Bureau of Japan); J-SHIS seismic hazard model (NIED, 2024); Land Price Publication (MLIT). Earthquake probability is measured at the municipal center.

Example sales in Murakami City

Real transactions from the last four quarters, picked near the lower (20th percentile), middle and upper (80th percentile) price points. Locations are shown at district level, as published by MLIT.

House

Lower-priced2025 Q4

¥3.0M

¥15k/m²

  • Hagae
  • Sakamachi · 16 min walk
  • Land 320 m² · floor 200 m²
  • Built 1974 (51 yrs) · Light steel
Typical2025 Q4

¥4.3M

¥34k/m²

  • Matsunamicho
  • Murakami(Niigata)
  • Land 400 m² · floor 125 m²
  • Built 1985 (40 yrs) · Wood
Higher-priced2025 Q4

¥8.0M

¥47k/m²

  • Sankyomachi
  • Murakami(Niigata) · 13 min walk
  • Land 360 m² · floor 170 m²
  • Built 1978 (47 yrs) · Wood
Median transaction price by year
¥0¥2.0M¥4.0M¥6.0M¥8.0M2007200920112013201520172019202120232025
Show data table
YearHouse
2007–
2008¥7.1M
2009¥5.0M
2010¥6.0M
2011¥4.7M
2012¥5.7M
2013¥7.2M
2014¥5.0M
2015¥4.5M
2016¥3.8M
2017¥5.3M
2018¥5.8M
2019¥3.5M
2020¥3.6M
2021¥3.0M
2022¥3.5M
2023¥4.5M
2024¥3.0M
2025¥4.7M
Median price per m² by year
¥0¥20k¥40k¥60k¥80k2007200920112013201520172019202120232025
Show data table
YearHouseLand
2007–¥20k/m²
2008¥56k/m²¥22k/m²
2009¥49k/m²¥28k/m²
2010¥59k/m²¥28k/m²
2011¥37k/m²¥19k/m²
2012¥38k/m²¥16k/m²
2013¥61k/m²¥19k/m²
2014¥40k/m²¥14k/m²
2015¥40k/m²¥20k/m²
2016¥37k/m²¥12k/m²
2017¥33k/m²¥10k/m²
2018¥36k/m²¥15k/m²
2019¥33k/m²¥12k/m²
2020¥32k/m²¥11k/m²
2021¥26k/m²¥11k/m²
2022¥25k/m²¥15k/m²
2023¥32k/m²¥11k/m²
2024¥24k/m²¥12k/m²
2025¥36k/m²¥9k/m²
Price per m² by building age (2021–2025 sales)
¥0¥20k¥40k¥60k¥80k333537394143454749
Show data table
Building age (years)House
33¥40k/m²
39¥63k/m²
50¥14k/m²

Prices near train stations in Murakami City

Sales from 2023–2025, grouped by nearest station.

StationMedian used condo priceCondo price per m²Median house price (land + building)Walk (min)Sales
Murakami(Niigata) (村上(新潟))––¥4.3M1597
Sakamachi (坂町)––¥4.0M1633
Iwafunemachi (岩船町)––¥1.5M1013

How much does a house cost in Murakami City?

The median house sale, including the land, was ¥4.7M in 2025 across 38 sales.

Are property prices in Murakami City going up?

Over the five years to 2025, residential land prices changed -16.4%.

About this data

Figures are medians of real transactions reported to Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) through its quarterly price survey. House prices per m² divide the total price (land and building) by the floor area. Medians based on fewer than 20 sales are not shown. The latest quarters are preliminary and are revised as more survey responses arrive.

Information only, not investment advice.