All 23 central wards of Tokyo have now passed their own rules restricting minpaku — short-term rentals of homes and apartments to travelers — with Kita Ward the last to join, SoraNews24 reported.
Kita Ward will ban new minpaku in residential areas from January 7 unless the homeowner is present while guests stay. Requiring the owner on site ties the operator to the neighborhood. It also gives neighbors and ward officials someone to complain to.
The rules build on the Private Lodging Business Law, which caps minpaku at 180 nights in a calendar year. Many municipalities have added their own limits on top.
Taito bars weekday guests at new units
Taito Ward tightened its rules on October 1. No new minpaku in the ward may take guests on weekdays, and no new minpaku of any kind may open in areas zoned for residential use only.
The ward is also moving against four owners who run eight minpaku units between them. Operators must report guest numbers and nights in use every two months.
The owners filed no reports for the eight properties between December 2025 and May 2026. Taito has given them about three weeks to submit the documents.
If they fail, the ward says it will publish the owners' names and then force the units to close if the non-compliance continues.
Shinjuku weighs shutting existing units
Shinjuku Ward is looking to go further. It wants legislation that would bar new minpaku in designated areas and force existing ones there to shut down.
In many Japanese neighborhoods, houses and apartments stand close together, and residents keep noise and trash down as a show of mutual consideration. Short-term guests, gone in a few days, have less reason to keep that bargain.
The 23 central wards hold roughly 40 percent of all minpaku in Japan. Other cities are likely to watch how well these measures work, and may shape their own policies on them.
Minpaku grew quickly as a cottage industry before regulation caught up. Foreign tourists, especially families and groups wanting more communal space than hotels offer, have driven much of the demand.