Information as of 2026-08-22

This page is a relocation summary written by an advanced AI

It is not a personal opinion piece written by a human. An AI gathered official information published on the internet — municipal and national statistics, the Japan Meteorological Agency, railway companies, property portals — and rebuilt it into a form that someone considering a move can read and act on. Every figure carries a source link and the date it was checked, so please confirm anything that matters to you against the original document. Rules and prices change. Always check the latest information yourself before you sign anything.

Moving to Mito

Q: What kind of town is Mito City?

Population 265,768 in 128,079 households (1 October 2025). Mito is the capital of Ibaraki Prefecture and has been a core city since 1 April 2020. It lies about 100 kilometres north-east of Tokyo and covers 217.32 square kilometres. The city describes its own land in three parts — the “lowland district” along the Nakagawa (elevation 0.1–10 metres), the “plateau district” from the centre of the city to the south (elevation around 30 metres), and the “hill district” in the north-west (elevation around 100 metres). The plateau is called Uwaichi and the lowland Shimoichi. 🔴 Almost at the centre of the built-up area are Kairakuen, one of the three great gardens of Japan, and Lake Senba.

Q: How long does it take from Mito to Tokyo?

🔴 From Mito Station to Ueno Station it is 1 hr 18 min by limited express, ¥4,000, with no change of train. The Tokiwa and Hitachi limited expresses run through to Shinagawa in 1 hr 35 min, and reach Tokyo Station in 1 hr 25 min. By local train Ueno is 1 hr 44 min and ¥2,420, and a commuter pass costs ¥60,800 a month (¥63,440 to Tokyo Station). Tsukuba is 1 hr 17 min away, Narita Airport 2 hr 7 min and Haneda Airport 2 hr 13 min. For an everyday commute, “1 hr 44 min on a local train” is the realistic option (the limited express charge comes on top of the pass).

Q: What is the cheapest house you can buy in Mito City?

SUUMO lists 259 properties (all of them), running from ¥2,500,000 to ¥90,000,000 with a median of ¥19,800,000. 34 (13%) are under ¥10,000,000. 🔴 The median plot is 267 square metres (about 81 tsubo), the largest of the 25 prefectural capitals on this site (Matsue is second). The building is 117 square metres and the median build year 1992, with 63 listings = 24% built in 1981 or earlier (the old earthquake code) — on the low side. 🔴 But the districts differ sharply — Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka are 64% pre-1981, while Uchihara and Koibuchi have 0.

Q: What are the disaster risks in Mito?

🔴 The first thing to look at is the Nakagawa. The city publishes a table of wind and flood damage running from 1902 (Meiji 35), and the highest the Nakagawa has stood at the Suifu Bridge was 9.84 metres, in Typhoon Hagibis in October 2019 (Reiwa 1), when 396 homes flooded above floor level and 182 below. Second is 9.15 metres in August 1986 and third 8.66 metres in the Kathleen typhoon of 1947. 🔴 Total rainfall inside the city was 141.5 mm, but the rain upstream on the Nakagawa (Yaita 360 mm and so on) came down to Mito. The national government, the prefecture and the city are running the “Nakagawa emergency flood-control project”. Mito also lies inside the UPZ (roughly the 30-kilometre zone) of the Tokai Daini power station and is one of the six municipalities holding a right of “substantive prior consent” to any restart.

Q: What are summer and winter like in Mito?

🔴 Winter is clear and dry, and summer nights are cool. Sunshine comes to 2,000.8 hours a year, 195.4 hours of it in January alone — more than Tokyo (192.6 hours) and 2.9 times Matsue (67.4 hours). January brings 54.5 mm of rain (January 2026 brought 0.0 mm, equal 1st on record). There are 3.9 tropical nights a year, less than a quarter of Tokyo (17.8 days), and 69.0 days a year below 0℃ at night, with 0.0 days staying below freezing. 🔴 The wettest months are September (186.3 mm) and October (185.4 mm) — more falls in autumn than in the rainy season.

Q: What is childcare and education like in Mito?

The city has 32 municipal elementary schools, 15 junior high schools and 1 compulsory education school. 🔴 Five of them are “small-school special-admission schools”, which children can attend from outside the catchment (Kami-Ono, Yanakawa, Shimo-Ono and Oba elementary schools and Kunita Compulsory Education School). Children’s medical costs are covered by Maru-fuku until the first 31 March after a child turns 18. 🔴 There is, however, a contribution to pay — ¥600 a day per clinic for outpatient care (up to twice a month, ¥0 at dispensing pharmacies), and ¥300 a day up to ¥3,000 a month for hospital stays. The prefectural scheme has an income limit, but the city writes that “for anyone who does not qualify under the prefectural scheme, we issue Mito City’s own Maru-fuku”.

Q: What happens when you sell a house in Mito?

Residential land stands at ¥39,700/m², ±0.0% year on year, which is 1.14 times the Ibaraki average (¥34,800/m², +1.0%). 🔴 We will put this plainly — the prefecture as a whole rose, while residential land in Mito held level. In Ibaraki the strongest growth is in the south of the prefecture, along the Tsukuba Express, and that is what lifts the prefectural average. That said, commercial land is +0.9%, industrial land +1.0% and all uses +0.3%, so no category fell. What counts when you sell is the district and the build year: the median runs from ¥14,500,000 (Futabadai and Hori-cho) to ¥27,000,000 (the city centre and Akatsuka).

Q: What is happening to Mito City's population?

265,768 people in 128,079 households (1 October 2025), the largest in Ibaraki Prefecture and about 9.5% of the prefectural total. 🔴 The peak was 270,783 in 2015, so 5,015 people (1.9%) have gone in ten years — a gentle decline as prefectural capitals go. Households, meanwhile, rose from 117,590 to 128,079, up by 10,489 (8.9%) (2.30 people per household down to 2.07). 🔴 The daytime-to-night-time population ratio has stood at around 110% since 2010, and the city writes that this “shows the standing and centrality of this city within the regional core-city area it heads”.

From Mito Station to Ueno Station it is 1 hr 18 min by the Tokiwa and Hitachi limited expresses, ¥4,000, with no change of train. Shinagawa is 1 hr 35 min away and Tokyo Station 1 hr 25 min, and neither needs a change either. By local train, Ueno is 1 hr 44 min and ¥2,420 (a commuter pass costs ¥60,800 a month). The population is 265,768, and Mito is the capital of Ibaraki Prefecture and a core city. 🔴 And the plots are big. Across the 259 listings, the median plot is 267 square metres (about 81 tsubo) — the largest of the 25 prefectural capitals this site has measured the same way. Almost at the centre of the built-up area lie Kairakuen, one of the three great gardens of Japan, and Lake Senba.

Population

265,768 people

128,079 households, 2025-10-01

Homes for sale

259 listings

From ¥2,500,000 / median ¥19,800,000

Ueno Sta.,

1 hr 18 min

Limited express, 0 changes, ¥4,000

Plot size (median of listings)

267㎡

About 81 tsubo / 1st of the 25 prefectural capitals

Annual sunshine

2,000.8 hr

Tokyo 1,926.7 hours, Matsue 1,705.2 hours

Residential land price

¥39,700/m²

±0.0% year on year / the Ibaraki average is ¥34,800/m²

Water + sewerage (45 m³ / 2 months)

¥13,723

Water ¥6,831 + sewerage ¥6,892

City area

217.32km²

23.7 km east to west, 18.2 km north to south

Summer (August daily high)

30.0℃

Mito — 1.3℃ lower than Tokyo

Winter (January daily low)

-1.8℃

Mito — 3.0℃ lower than Tokyo

♨ Hot springs and day baths4 🚐 RV parks

Hot springs and day baths: Yamano-yu, Gorokou-no-yu, Gokurakuyu Mito, Ichinoyu Mito / RV parks: RV Park Auto Camp TR Otsuka
Sources: hot springs and day baths from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors) (checked 2026-08-22); RV parks from Japan RV Association, list of certified “Kurumatabi” RV parks (checked 2026-08-22). 🔴 Only the things a town has are listed — it does not mean that a town without them is worse.

Last verified 2026-08-22

CHAPTER 01First, what kind of place Mito is

About 100 kilometres north-east of Tokyo, Mito is the seat of the Ibaraki prefectural government. It covers 217.32 square kilometres, 23.7 km east to west and 18.2 km north to south. The city describes its own land in three parts — the “lowland district” along the Nakagawa and its tributary the Sakuragawa (elevation 0.1–10 metres), the “plateau district” spreading from the centre of the city to the south (elevation around 30 metres), and the “hill district” in the north-west (elevation around 100 metres). The central shopping and business district sits on the plateau, and locally the plateau is called “Uwaichi” (the upper town) and the lowland along the Nakagawa “Shimoichi” (the lower town). Mito became a core city on 1 April 2020.

“Uwaichi” and “Shimoichi” — a city divided by heightIn the city’s own words — “the lowland district extends east and west across the Nakagawa, at an elevation of 0.1 to 10 metres, and apart from the built-up areas of Shimoichi and the south side of Mito Station it is paddy country”; “the plateau district, spreading from the centre of the city to the south, is at an elevation of around 30 metres, and while the built-up area extends over it, upland farming is also active”; “on the narrow Uwaichi plateau in particular, held between the Nakagawa lowland and the eroded valley of the Sakuragawa, the central district with the commercial and business functions has formed, and its eastern end is the site of Mito Castle”. The elevations of the eight areas in §2 line up with this exactly — 29–32 metres on top of the plateau, 5–10 metres in the lowland along the Nakagawa, and 40-something metres at Futabadai near the hills in the west. Looking for a house in Mito means choosing which height to live at.

One of the three great gardens of Japan, and a lake, sit right in the middle of the cityIn the city’s words — “almost at the centre of the built-up area spread the large parks and green spaces centred on Kairakuen, one of the three great gardens of Japan, and Lake Senba, and they form the natural scenery this city is proud of”. Kairakuen was laid out in 1842 (Tempo 13) by Tokugawa Nariaki, the ninth lord of the Mito domain, and ranks with Kenrokuen in Kanazawa and Korakuen in Okayama. What is interesting is that it was made from the start to be open to ordinary people — the “Kairakuen-ki” says “it is my (Nariaki’s) wish to take pleasure together with the people”, and the name comes from the Mencius passage “the people of old took their pleasure together with the people, and so they were able to take pleasure”. Before it is a sightseeing spot, it is a park for the people who live here.

The largest population in the prefecture, and it grows again by dayThe population of 265,768 (1 October 2025) is the largest in Ibaraki Prefecture and about 9.5% of the prefecture as a whole (2,791,231). And the city writes this — “the daytime-to-night-time population ratio (daytime population / night-time population) has stood at around 110 per cent since 2010. Compared with the neighbouring municipalities this is a high ratio, and it shows the standing and centrality of this city within the regional core-city area it heads”. The city took its present shape by merging with the village of Tsunezumi in 1992 and the town of Uchihara in 2005. “Tsunezumi” and “Uchihara” in §2 are the districts that were separate municipalities until then.

Sources: location, area and terrain fromMito City, “The location, terrain and climate of Mito”(updated 13 June 2022 / about 100 km north-east of Tokyo / 140°28′ east, 36°22′ north / area 217.32 km², 23.7 km east to west and 18.2 km north to south / bordered by Hitachinaka City, Naka City and Shirosato to the north, Oarai to the east, Ibaraki-machi to the south and Kasama City to the west) andthe same, “Outline of Mito City, 2026 edition” (PDF, issued 19 June 2026)(the lowland district is at an elevation of 0.1–10 m, the plateau district around 30 m and the hill district around 100 m / the Uwaichi plateau and Shimoichi / “almost at the centre of the built-up area spread the large parks and green spaces centred on Kairakuen, one of the three great gardens of Japan, and Lake Senba” / population 265,768 as of 1 October 2025, the largest in the prefecture, about 9.5% of the prefectural total of 2,791,231 / the daytime-to-night-time population ratio has stood at around 110% since 2010 / merged with the village of Tsunezumi in 1992 and the town of Uchihara in 2005). The origin of Kairakuen is fromIbaraki Prefecture, the history page of “Kairakuen, one of the three great gardens of Japan”(laid out in 1842 (Tempo 13) by Tokugawa Nariaki, the ninth lord of the Mito domain / “it is my (Nariaki’s) wish to take pleasure together with the people” in the “Kairakuen-ki” / the Mencius passage “the people of old took their pleasure together with the people, and so they were able to take pleasure”). The move to core-city status is fromthe same, “About core-city status”(the change took effect on 1 April 2020). Checked 2026-08-22

What kind of town is Mito City?

Population 265,768 in 128,079 households (1 October 2025). Mito is the capital of Ibaraki Prefecture and has been a core city since 1 April 2020. It lies about 100 kilometres north-east of Tokyo and covers 217.32 square kilometres. The city describes its own land in three parts — the “lowland district” along the Nakagawa (elevation 0.1–10 metres), the “plateau district” from the centre of the city to the south (elevation around 30 metres), and the “hill district” in the north-west (elevation around 100 metres). The plateau is called Uwaichi and the lowland Shimoichi. 🔴 Almost at the centre of the built-up area are Kairakuen, one of the three great gardens of Japan, and Lake Senba.

CHAPTER 02Eight areas, and life in each

We divide the city into eight areas. The division comes from sorting all 259 listings one by one by their map coordinates, and 0 listings could not be placed. The most surprising thing is that the same “Akatsuka Station” is a completely different place to the north and to the south — Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka, spreading north-west of the station, have a median of ¥14,500,000, a median build year of 1979 and 64% pre-1981 construction, while Akatsuka, Miwa and Kawawada south of the station have a median of ¥27,000,000, a median build year of 2007 and 14% pre-1981 construction. The price is nearly double and the build year 28 years apart. The dearest are the city centre and Akatsuka, Miwa and Kawawada at ¥27,000,000, and the cheapest is Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka at ¥14,500,000.

Areas	Listings	median	Median year built	What defines it
Senba, Migawa, Kasahara and Hirasu (south of Lake Senba, the prefectural office)	66 listings	¥19,990,000	1991	The most listings. On the plateau, close to the prefectural office and Lake Senba
Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka (the large housing estates in the west)	50 listings	¥14,500,000	1979	The cheapest and the oldest (64% pre-1981). Median elevation 40.3 m, the highest in the city
Motoyoshida, Sakado, Sumiyoshi and Yonezawa (south of the station)	49 listings	¥22,990,000	1995	Only 2 listings (4%) under ¥10,000,000. 8% pre-1981
Akatsuka, Miwa and Kawawada (around Akatsuka Sta.)	29 listings	¥27,000,000	2007	The newest of the eight. Median building 130 m², among the largest
Tsunezumi, Aoyagi, Shibui and Tomae (the eastern lowland)	22 listings	¥16,990,000	2001	The lowest, at a median elevation of 10.2 m. Between the Nakagawa and the Hinumagawa
City centre (Mito Sta., Uwaichi and Shimoichi)	18 listings	¥27,000,000	2000	Both the dearest at ¥90,000,000 and the cheapest at ¥2,500,000 are here. Median plot 195 m², the smallest
Watari, Bunkyo and Fujigahara (Ibaraki University and the northern plateau)	15 listings	¥24,500,000	2004	The area around Ibaraki University. Median building 130 m²
Uchihara and Koibuchi (the former town of Uchihara)	10 listings	¥19,800,000	2004	Median plot 376 m², the largest. 0 pre-1981 listings

Senba, Migawa, Kasahara and Hirasu (south of Lake Senba, the prefectural office) — the most listings66 listings (¥7,800,000–¥69,000,000, median ¥19,990,000, 11 under ¥10,000,000 = 17%). Median plot 270 square metres, building 122 square metres, median build year 1991 (12 pre-1981 = 18%). Elevation 9.5–32.2 metres (median 29.7 metres). The nearest stations are Mito for 39, Akatsuka for 17 and Kairakuen for 9. This is where the Ibaraki prefectural office and Lake Senba are, on the plateau spreading from the centre of the city to the south.
Who it suits = anyone who commutes to the prefectural office or the town centre and still wants a good-sized plot
What to watch = 66 listings cover a lot of ground. Even within “Migawa”, a place by the lake and a place deep on the plateau differ in both commute and sunlight

Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka (the large housing estates in the west) — 1970s estates are coming onto the market50 listings (¥7,980,000–¥56,800,000, median ¥14,500,000, 8 under ¥10,000,000 = 16%). At a median build year of 1979 and 32 pre-1981 listings = 64% this is far and away the oldest of the eight, and cheaper for it. Median plot 290 square metres, building 105 square metres. At 28.6–48.3 metres (median 40.3 metres) this is the highest ground in the city. All 50 have Akatsuka as their nearest station. Futabadai is a large housing estate with the city’s Futabadai Elementary School and Futabadai Junior High School. Who it suits = anyone who wants to buy a wide plot cheaply and put work into the house
What to watch = two houses in every three were built before 1981. Budget for earthquake strengthening, insulation and new plumbing as seriously as for the purchase price

Motoyoshida, Sakado, Sumiyoshi and Yonezawa (south of the station) — only 2 listings under ¥10,000,00049 listings (¥8,800,000–¥47,000,000, median ¥22,990,000, 2 under ¥10,000,000 = 4%). At 4 pre-1981 listings = 8% the housing is new, with a median build year of 1995. Median plot 237 square metres, building 117 square metres, elevation 19.5–30.2 metres. The nearest stations are Mito for 47 and Higashi-Mito for 2 — this is the south side of Mito Station, within cycling distance of the platforms.
Who it suits = anyone who wants to walk or cycle to Mito Station, or who wants a newer house
What to watch = cheap listings almost never appear here. Reckon on ¥20,000,000 and up

Akatsuka, Miwa and Kawawada (around Akatsuka Sta.) — the newest of the eight29 listings (¥8,000,000–¥65,000,000, median ¥27,000,000, 3 under ¥10,000,000 = 10%). Median build year 2007, 4 pre-1981 listings = 14%. Median plot 278 square metres, median building 130 square metres, elevation 26.5–39.0 metres (median 32.1 metres). Akatsuka is the nearest station for 28 of them. Although it is the same Akatsuka Station, the price and the build year are nothing like Futabadai and Hori-cho to the north-west (¥14,500,000, 1979).
Who it suits = anyone commuting from Akatsuka Station, or looking for a house in near-new condition
What to watch = do not compare listings on “minutes from Akatsuka Station” alone. North of the station and south of it are two separate markets

Tsunezumi, Aoyagi, Shibui and Tomae (the eastern lowland) — the lowest ground22 listings (¥5,500,000–¥35,800,000, median ¥16,990,000, 2 under ¥10,000,000 = 9%). Median build year 2001 (3 pre-1981 = 14%), median plot 285 square metres, building 105 square metres. At 5.4–28.5 metres (median 10.2 metres) this is the lowest of the eight. The nearest stations are Mito for 7, Higashi-Mito for 6, Hitachi-Tsuda for 4, Hitachi-Aoyagi for 2 and Tsunezumi for 2. It takes in the former village of Tsunezumi, which became part of Mito in 1992, and adjoins Oarai.
Who it suits = anyone travelling towards Oarai or Hitachinaka, or wanting a wide plot
What to watch = this is lowland held between the Nakagawa and the Hinumagawa. Check the flood section in §5 against the exact address

City centre (Mito Sta., Uwaichi and Shimoichi) — ¥2,500,000 and ¥90,000,000 sit in the same area18 listings (¥2,500,000–¥90,000,000, median ¥27,000,000, 5 under ¥10,000,000 = 28%). At a median plot of 195 square metres this is the smallest of the eight, with a building of 109 square metres. Median build year 2000 (6 pre-1981 = 33%). Elevation 5.3–31.4 metres (median 8.0 metres) — because Uwaichi on the plateau and Shimoichi along the Nakagawa fall in the same area, the spread is very wide. The nearest stations are Mito for 11 and Kairakuen for 5. This is the central district, with the city hall, prefectural offices, Daiku-machi and Izumi-cho.
Who it suits = anyone who wants to live without a car, with shops and hospitals on foot
What to watch = there are only 18 listings. And flooding looks completely different in Shimoichi (the lowland) and Uwaichi (the plateau)

Watari, Bunkyo and Fujigahara (Ibaraki University and the northern plateau) — the high ground with the university15 listings (¥7,300,000–¥60,800,000, median ¥24,500,000, 1 under ¥10,000,000 = 7%). Median plot 260 square metres, median building 130 square metres, median build year 2004 (2 pre-1981 = 13%). Elevation 28.2–33.6 metres (median 31.9 metres). The nearest stations are Akatsuka for 10, Kairakuen for 2 and Hitachi-Tsuda for 2. The Mito campus of Ibaraki University is here, and the place name “Bunkyo” (literally “letters and learning”) comes from it.
Who it suits = anyone looking for flat plateau ground close to the university and the hospitals
What to watch = 15 listings is few. This median means no more than “the middle of 15”

Uchihara and Koibuchi (the former town of Uchihara) — a median plot of 376 square metres10 listings (¥6,500,000–¥24,800,000, median ¥19,800,000, 2 under ¥10,000,000 = 20%). At a median plot of 376 square metres (about 114 tsubo) this is the largest of the eight, with a building of 104 square metres. The median build year is 2004, and there are 0 listings from before 1981. Elevation 30.4–39.7 metres. Uchihara is the nearest station for 9 of them. This is the former town of Uchihara, which became part of Mito in 2005, with Uchihara Station on the Joban Line and a large shopping centre.
Who it suits = anyone who wants a wide plot with room for a vegetable garden, or who also travels towards Kasama and Tsukuba
What to watch = there are only 10 listings. Treat the figures as a guide and decide on what you see

Prices, counts, land, buildings, year built and elevation come from the listings below,SUUMOlisted259 listings (all) each listing's map coordinates, sorted into eight areas (all 259 listings placed, 0 unplaced) / elevations were taken from the map coordinates on each listing page through the elevation API of the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (obtained for all 259, 0 discarded) / the area names follow the station and district names, and the boundaries of the former village of Tsunezumi absorbed in 1992 and the former town of Uchihara absorbed in 2005 / obtained 22 August 2026 / checked 2026-08-22

Which part of Mito City should I live in?

Sorting the 259 listings into eight areas, the medians run from ¥14,500,000 in Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka to ¥27,000,000 in the city centre and in Akatsuka, Miwa and Kawawada. 🔴 The most surprising thing is that the same “Akatsuka Station” is nothing alike to the north and to the south — north-west of the station, Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka have a median of ¥14,500,000, a median build year of 1979 and 64% pre-1981 construction, while south of it Akatsuka, Miwa and Kawawada have a median of ¥27,000,000, a median build year of 2007 and 14% pre-1981 construction. Elevation spreads too, from 10.2 metres in Tsunezumi and Aoyagi to 40.3 metres in Futabadai.

CHAPTER 03Trains and cars — how you get around

From Mito Station to Ueno Station it is 1 hr 18 min by limited express, ¥4,000, with no change of train. The Tokiwa and Hitachi limited expresses run through to Shinagawa in 1 hr 35 min, and reach Tokyo Station in 1 hr 25 min. By local train Ueno is 1 hr 44 min and ¥2,420, and a commuter pass costs ¥60,800 a month (¥63,440 to Tokyo Station). Tsukuba is 1 hr 17 min away, Narita Airport 2 hr 7 min and Haneda Airport 2 hr 13 min. “Just over an hour to Ueno” is the biggest number Mito has.

Journey times from Mito Station (searched for a Monday 8 a.m. departure on 24 August 2026)

Destination	Fastest	Notes
Ueno	1 hr 18 min, ¥4,000 Limited express, 0 changes	By local train, 1 hr 44 min and ¥2,420. A commuter pass costs ¥60,800 a month
Tokyo	1 hr 25 min, ¥4,000 Limited express, 0 changes	By local train, 1 hr 51 min and ¥2,420 (a pass is ¥63,440)
Shinagawa	1 hr 35 min, ¥4,000 Limited express, 0 changes	The Joban Line limited expresses run through to Shinagawa
Tsukuba	1 hr 17 min, ¥2,624 1 transfer	The express bus takes 1 hr 40 min for ¥1,070 with no transfers
Narita Airport	2 hr 7 min, ¥4,454 1 change	The cheaper route is 2 hr 39 min and ¥2,420 (2 changes)
Haneda Airport	2 hr 13 min, ¥4,519 2 changes	With 1 change it is 2 hr 25 min and ¥4,327

Is the “¥4,000 limited express” an everyday thing, or an occasional one?To Ueno it is 1 hr 18 min by limited express (¥4,000) and 1 hr 44 min by local train (¥2,420). The difference is 26 minutes and ¥1,580. A local-train commuter pass costs ¥60,800 a month (to Ueno). If you ride the limited express, the express charge comes on top of the pass. So commuting to Tokyo from Mito works out as “1 hr 44 min sitting down on a local train” rather than “the limited express every day”. Mito is not the starting station, so a morning seat depends on the day — it is worth watching one weekday morning down train while you are here to view houses.

Getting around the city means a carThe stations in the city are Mito, Akatsuka and Uchihara (the Joban Line) and Higashi-Mito, Hitachi-Aoyagi, Hitachi-Tsuda and Tsunezumi (the Suigun Line and the Kashima Rinkai Railway). As §2 shows, the nearest stations cluster on Mito, Akatsuka and Uchihara, and the median plot among the listings is 267 square metres — parking on your own land is the norm. For motorways, the Joban Expressway, the Kita-Kanto Expressway and the Mito Line of the Higashi-Kanto Expressway run around the city. The exact positions of the interchanges and service areas are filled in automatically in the box below this section.

The airports are a little over two hours awayNarita Airport is 2 hr 7 min away and Haneda Airport 2 hr 13 min. Both involve one or two changes. They are not close, but they are within reach — for a few trips abroad a year this works perfectly well. Ibaraki Airport (in Omitama), meanwhile, lies south of the city and is a short drive away. In practice you end up using the railway for Tokyo, Narita for overseas and Ibaraki Airport for some domestic routes.

Sources: journey times, fares and commuter passes were searched by this site onYahoo! Transitfordeparting 8:00 on Monday 24 August 2026, searched live by this site (Ueno = 1 hr 18 min and ¥4,000 by limited express (¥2,420 fare plus ¥1,580 express charge) / 1 hr 44 min and ¥2,420 by local train, commuter pass ¥60,800 a month / Tokyo = 1 hr 25 min by limited express, 1 hr 51 min by local train, commuter pass ¥63,440 a month / Shinagawa = 1 hr 35 min by limited express with 0 changes / Tsukuba = 1 hr 17 min and ¥2,624 with 1 change, 1 hr 40 min and ¥1,070 with 0 changes / Narita Airport = 2 hr 7 min and ¥4,454 with 1 change / Haneda Airport = 2 hr 13 min and ¥4,519 with 2 changes) / the services shown vary from day to day / checked 2026-08-22

✈ Airports

The nearest is Hyakuri Aerodrome (a shared civil and military airport), about 22.4 km in a straight line. Next is Narita International Airport (about 68.0 km in a straight line). 🔴 These are straight-line distances, not road distances or journey times — please check the actual routes in each operator’s timetable.

🛣 Expressway junctions

This area has 4 entrances and exits (interchanges and junctions).
Joban Expressway = Mito, Mito-kita smart IC
Kita-Kanto Expressway = Mito-minami
Higashi-Mito Road = Mito-Oarai

Sources: airports fromNational Land Numerical Information, "Airports", FY2021 edition (category names followthe MLIT list of airports ) / expressway junctions fromthe same, "Expressways time series", 2025 edition, current data only (what is open today). Both were overlaid onthe same, "Administrative boundaries", 2026and judged by machine to fall inside this area / verified 2026-08-21

How long does it take from Mito to Tokyo?

🔴 From Mito Station to Ueno Station it is 1 hr 18 min by limited express, ¥4,000, with no change of train. The Tokiwa and Hitachi limited expresses run through to Shinagawa in 1 hr 35 min, and reach Tokyo Station in 1 hr 25 min. By local train Ueno is 1 hr 44 min and ¥2,420, and a commuter pass costs ¥60,800 a month (¥63,440 to Tokyo Station). Tsukuba is 1 hr 17 min away, Narita Airport 2 hr 7 min and Haneda Airport 2 hr 13 min. For an everyday commute, “1 hr 44 min on a local train” is the realistic option (the limited express charge comes on top of the pass).

CHAPTER 04Homes actually on the market right now

SUUMO lists 259 properties, and all 259 are included here. They run from ¥2,500,000 to ¥90,000,000, with a median of ¥19,800,000. 34 (13%) are under ¥10,000,000. The median plot is 267 square metres (about 81 tsubo), the largest of the 25 prefectural capitals on this site. The building is 117 square metres and the median build year 1992, with 63 listings = 24% built in 1981 or earlier (the old earthquake code) — again on the low side for a prefectural capital. Elevation runs 5.3–48.3 metres (median 29.9 metres).

Sort

"Nearest the station first" converts everything to minutes — a walk of ◯ min, ◯ min by bus plus ◯ min from the stop, ◯ km by car (reckoned at 30 km/h) — and compares those. Listings with no such information always appear last, whatever the sort.

Midori-cho 1¥2,500,000City centre (Mito Sta., Sannomaru, Daiku-machi)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 260 m² (79 tsubo) / Building 103 m² (31 tsubo) / built 1965 / Kairakuen Sta. bus 8 min+7 min walk9 photos →

Daiku-machi 2-7-32¥2,800,000City centre (Mito Sta., Sannomaru, Daiku-machi)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 69 m² (21 tsubo) / Building 96 m² (29 tsubo) / built 1958 / Kairakuen Sta. bus 2 min+3 min walk9 photos →

Daiku-machi 2-6-12¥2,900,000City centre (Mito Sta., Sannomaru, Daiku-machi)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 69 m² (21 tsubo) / Building 104 m² (31 tsubo) / built 1985 / Kairakuen Sta. bus 2 min+5 min walk8 photos →

Shinso 2¥5,000,000City centre (Mito Sta., Sannomaru, Daiku-machi)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 144 m² (44 tsubo) / Building 98 m² (30 tsubo) / built 1960 / Kairakuen Sta. 22 min walk10 photos →

Aoyagi-cho 池上3657番13, 他1筆 property photo

Aoyagi-cho 池上3657番13, 他1筆¥5,500,000Tsunezumi, Aoyagi, Shibui and Tomae (the eastern lowland)Elev. approx. 10 m / Land 166 m² (50 tsubo) / Building 63 m² (19 tsubo) / built 1974 / Hitachi-Tsuda Sta. 6 min walk10 photos →

Chitose 1¥6,000,000Tsunezumi, Aoyagi, Shibui and Tomae (the eastern lowland)Elev. approx. 10 m / Land 401 m² (121 tsubo) / Building 93 m² (28 tsubo) / built 1972 / Hitachi-Aoyagi Sta. 38 min walk9 photos →

Kanaya-cho¥6,500,000Uchihara and Koibuchi (the former Uchihara-machi)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 1121 m² (339 tsubo) / Building 126 m² (38 tsubo) / built 1982 / Uchihara Sta. 47 min walk10 photos →

Nishihara 3¥7,300,000Watari, Bunkyo and Fujigahara (Ibaraki University and the northern plateau)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 166 m² (50 tsubo) / Building 84 m² (25 tsubo) / built 1984 / Akatsuka Sta., 3.1km9 photos →

Hirasu-cho¥7,800,000Senba, Migawa, Kasahara and Hirasu (south of Lake Senba, the prefectural office)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 165 m² (50 tsubo) / Building 123 m² (37 tsubo) / built 1978 / Mito Sta. 86 min walk10 photos →

Hirasu-cho¥7,900,000Senba, Migawa, Kasahara and Hirasu (south of Lake Senba, the prefectural office)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 262 m² (79 tsubo) / Building 93 m² (28 tsubo) / built 1985 / Mito Sta. 80 min walk10 photos →

Futabadai 1¥7,980,000Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka (the large housing estates in the west)Elev. approx. 40 m / Land 296 m² (90 tsubo) / Building 101 m² (31 tsubo) / built 1980 / Akatsuka Sta. bus 8 min+3 min walk10 photos →

Ishikawa 2¥8,000,000Akatsuka, Miwa and Kawawada (around Akatsuka Sta.)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 194 m² (59 tsubo) / Building 86 m² (26 tsubo) / built 1980 / Akatsuka Sta. 17 min walk10 photos →

Saku-machi 2¥8,000,000City centre (Mito Sta., Sannomaru, Daiku-machi)Elev. approx. 10 m / Land 122 m² (37 tsubo) / Building 131 m² (40 tsubo) / built 1984 / Mito Sta. 12 min walk5 photos →

Futabadai 1¥8,300,000Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka (the large housing estates in the west)Elev. approx. 40 m / Land 264 m² (80 tsubo) / Building 97 m² (29 tsubo) / built 1978 / Akatsuka Sta. 33 min walk10 photos →

Migawa 5¥8,500,000Senba, Migawa, Kasahara and Hirasu (south of Lake Senba, the prefectural office)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 246 m² (74 tsubo) / Building 121 m² (37 tsubo) / built 1981 / Akatsuka Sta. 25 min walk10 photos →

Migawa 5-1251-95¥8,500,000Senba, Migawa, Kasahara and Hirasu (south of Lake Senba, the prefectural office)Elev. approx. 20 m / Land 246 m² (75 tsubo) / Building 121 m² (37 tsubo) / built 1981 / Akatsuka Sta. 26 min walk10 photos →

Migawa-cho¥8,800,000Senba, Migawa, Kasahara and Hirasu (south of Lake Senba, the prefectural office)Elev. approx. 10 m / Land 226 m² (68 tsubo) / Building 79 m² (24 tsubo) / built 1973 / Kairakuen Sta., 3.1km10 photos →

Motoyoshida-cho¥8,800,000Motoyoshida, Sakado, Sumiyoshi and Yonezawa (south of the station)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 118 m² (36 tsubo) / Building 88 m² (27 tsubo) / built 1995 / Mito Sta. 47 min walk10 photos →

Hori-cho¥9,800,000Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka (the large housing estates in the west)Elev. approx. 30 m / Land 390 m² (118 tsubo) / Building 187 m² (56 tsubo) / built 1992 / Akatsuka Sta. 45 min walk10 photos →

Otsuka-cho¥9,800,000Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka (the large housing estates in the west)Elev. approx. 40 m / Land 455 m² (138 tsubo) / Building 138 m² (42 tsubo) / built 1976 / Akatsuka Sta. 42 min walk10 photos →

The photographs are the images carried on SUUMO. They disappear once a listing ends. Check the real condition of a property on site.

See all 259 on SUUMO →

What “a 267-square-metre plot” actually meansLining up the 25 prefectural capitals on this site by the same method (take every SUUMO listing and find the median) — Mito comes first on median plot size at 267 square metres, followed by Matsue 259, Yamagata 251, Toyama 249 and Saga 242. That is more than 100 square metres ahead of Kanazawa 166, Kochi 157 and Wakayama 154. Roughly 80 tsubo. A garden and parking for two cars come with most listings from the start. But a wide plot also means that much more grass to cut and more outdoor upkeep. Ask yourself before you buy whether it is an area you can keep on top of.

Older houses are relatively few. But the districts differ sharplyHouses built in 1981 or earlier (the old earthquake code) number 63 = 24%. Against Nagasaki at 41% and Matsue at 49%, that is clearly fewer. The median build year is 1992. But as §2 shows, the districts are nothing alike — Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka are 64% pre-1981, while Motoyoshida and Sakado are 8% and Uchihara and Koibuchi have 0. “Mito’s second-hand houses are new” only holds if you choose the district. Which areas you look at depends on whether you put budget or build year first.

The vacant-home bank has barely movedMito City’s vacant-home bank sits on the municipal site of the at-home vacant-home bank (mito-c08201.akiya-athome.jp).the <title> reads “Top page — Mito City, Ibaraki Prefecture vacant-home bank site”. However,counted on 22 August 2026, there was just 1 listing (a plot of land). On the city’s own site too,“Please look after vacant properties properly” and “For anyone troubled by a vacant house nearby”are the main entry points, about management and consultation, and we could not find a page that lists properties.if you are looking for a house in Mito, the ordinary market such as SUUMO is the realistic route for now. Mito City, Ibaraki Prefecture vacant-home bank site →

Sources: taken from SUUMO, "Second-hand detached houses in Mito City" (see the list here / of the 259 listings,259 listingsallwere retrieved, 2026-08-22) / elevation is the value obtained from each listing's map coordinates via theGeospatial Information Authority of Japan elevation API/ the comparison of the 25 prefectural capitals was compiled by the same method from the full SUUMO data on each page of this site (median plot: Mito 267 m², Matsue 259, Yamagata 251, Toyama 249, Saga 242, Oita 226, Miyazaki 225, Morioka 215, Akita 212, Maebashi 211, Nara 209, Naha 205, Takamatsu 203, Aomori 202, Utsunomiya 201, Nagasaki 195, Gifu 190, Kagoshima 183, Fukui 180, Tokushima 169, Otsu 167, Kanazawa 166, Matsuyama 162, Kochi 157, Wakayama 154 / compiled by this site on 2026-08-22) / the vacant-home bank is fromat-home vacant-home bank, “Mito City, Ibaraki Prefecture vacant-home bank site”(this site checked the <title> and the number of listings on 2026-08-22) andMito City, “We are taking measures on vacant properties in Mito”/ Verified 2026-08-22

Akiya bank

There are no houses for sale registered. There is 1 registration for land only. Every property listed in this section is on the private market. (as checked on 22 August 2026)

What is the cheapest house you can buy in Mito City?

SUUMO lists 259 properties (all of them), running from ¥2,500,000 to ¥90,000,000 with a median of ¥19,800,000. 34 (13%) are under ¥10,000,000. 🔴 The median plot is 267 square metres (about 81 tsubo), the largest of the 25 prefectural capitals on this site (Matsue is second). The building is 117 square metres and the median build year 1992, with 63 listings = 24% built in 1981 or earlier (the old earthquake code) — on the low side. 🔴 But the districts differ sharply — Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka are 64% pre-1981, while Uchihara and Koibuchi have 0.

CHAPTER 05Is the ground safe?

The first thing to look at in Mito is the Nakagawa. The city publishes wind and flood damage since 1902 (Meiji 35) in a single table, and the highest the Nakagawa has stood at the Suifu Bridge was 9.84 metres, in Typhoon Hagibis in October 2019 (Reiwa 1). That flooding reached above floor level in 396 homes and below floor level in 182. Second is 9.15 metres in August 1986, and third 8.66 metres in the Kathleen typhoon of 1947. And Mito lies inside the UPZ (roughly the 30-kilometre zone) of the Japan Atomic Power Company’s Tokai Daini power station, and the mayor chairs the “Tokai Daini power station safety measures mayors’ conference” formed by 15 municipalities.

Is this town inside a national earthquake-preparedness zone?

For each major earthquake, national law designates the areas where preparation is to be advanced. Whether a town is designated tells you directly how the national government views the shaking and tsunami expected there.

Nankai Trough Earthquake Disaster Prevention Promotion Area	Designated
Tokyo Inland Earthquake Emergency Measures Area	Designated
Japan Trench / Kuril Trench Earthquake Disaster Prevention Promotion Area	Designated
Shaking of intensity 6-lower or above within 30 years	80.6% (31.6% for shindo 6-upper or above) At the Mito city hall site. Surface ground: AVS30 157 m/s, back marsh

This probability is for the single 250-metre grid square the city hall stands in. The Mito City town hall stands onback marsh(AVS30 157 m/s), and the 80.6% above is the figure for that point. Even within Mito it changes a great deal between the lowland by the river and the plateau. When a listing interests you, look it up by its street address.Enter an address on the J-SHIS map and it shows the probability and the ground for that 250-metre mesh.

Look up an address on J-SHIS → Designations from the Cabinet Office list of designated municipalities (Nankai Trough Earthquake Disaster Prevention Promotion Area／Tokyo Inland Earthquake Emergency Measures Area／Japan Trench / Kuril Trench Earthquake Disaster Prevention Promotion Area ) / probability and surface ground from theNational Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience, J-SHIS earthquake hazard information API (2024 edition, average case, all earthquakes), queried at the city hall coordinates / verified 2026-08-22

Typhoon Hagibis in 2019 brought the highest water level on recordFrom the city’s “Record of wind and flood damage in Mito”, the highest levels of the Nakagawa at the Suifu Bridge — 1st, 9.84 metres (12–16 October 2019, Typhoon Hagibis); 2nd, 9.15 metres (August 1986); 3rd, 8.66 metres (15 September 1947, the Kathleen typhoon); 4th, 8.54 metres (September 2011, Typhoon Roke). In 2019 the total rainfall inside the city was 141.5 mm, but the rain that fell upstream on the Nakagawa (Yaita 360 mm, Itamuro 242 mm, Karasuyama 227 mm) came down to Mito. Flooding in Mito is not decided by the rain that falls on Mito. The damage reached above floor level in 396 homes and below floor level in 182. In response, the national government, the prefecture, the city and the Meteorological Agency are running the “Nakagawa emergency flood-control project”.

Heavy rain also causes “inland flooding”The city also publishes a “Map of places that have flooded in Mito”. In the city’s words — “as against river water, which is called outside water, rainwater that collects on the land inside the embankments is called ‘inland water’”; “drains, channels and sewers alone are sometimes unable to carry the rain away, and ‘inland flooding’ occurs”. It maps the places reported since the 2005 financial year, and the city states plainly that it does not show every flood that has occurred. As §2 shows, Tsunezumi, Aoyagi, Shibui and Tomae have a median elevation of 10.2 metres, and the Shimoichi side of the city centre is 5–8 metres. Check all three — river flooding, inland flooding and landslides — against the exact address.

Tokai Daini power station — Mito City holds a right of prior consentThe power station is in Tokai Village, and Mito lies roughly within the 30-kilometre zone (the UPZ). The city belongs to two bodies — ① the conference of mayors of the nuclear host region (six municipalities: Tokai Village, Hitachi City, Hitachinaka City, Hitachiota City, Naka City and Mito City). As the city explains, a new agreement signed on 29 March 2018 gave them “substantive prior consent” = “the right for each of the six municipalities to ask for prior consultation before any restart, and to consult until each of them is satisfied”. ② the Tokai Daini power station safety measures mayors’ conference (15 municipalities, chaired by Mito City). The city also publishes radiation measurements taken within the city (updated 18 August 2026). It is not that “the city has a nuclear plant in it”, but that “the city has standing to speak about the plant in the next village” — that is where Mito sits.

The city has lived through the Great East Japan EarthquakeThe box at the top right is drawn automatically from the Japan Seismic Hazard Information Station of the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience. Mito lies inland in the Kanto region, close to the Pacific plate boundary. As §2 shows, the shaking differs between the plateau district (elevation around 30 metres) and the lowland district (elevation 0.1–10 metres). The city publishes a “Mito earthquake disaster-prevention map (map of how strongly the ground shakes)”, so open it for the address of any house you are considering. The city also sends assessors to check wooden houses for earthquake resistance and subsidises strengthening work.

Sources: the record of wind and flood damage is fromMito City, “Record of wind and flood damage in Mito”(updated 12 June 2023 / a table running from 1902 (Meiji 35) / 12–16 October 2019 (Reiwa 1), Typhoon Hagibis = total rainfall 141.5 mm, Suifu Bridge water level 9.84 m, rainfall upstream on the Nakagawa Yaita 360 mm / Itamuro 242 mm / Karasuyama 227 mm, 396 homes flooded above floor level and 182 below / August 1986 = 9.15 m / 15 September 1947, the Kathleen typhoon = total rainfall 381 mm, 8.66 m / September 2011, Typhoon Roke = 8.54 m. The ranking was produced by this site by sorting the water levels given in that table) / the flood-control work is fromthe same, “Nakagawa emergency flood-control project” / inland water fromthe same, “We have published the map of places that have flooded in Mito”(updated 31 March 2025) / the nuclear material is fromthe same, “Safety measures through cooperation with neighbouring municipalities”(updated 22 November 2023 / conference of mayors of the nuclear host region = six municipalities, Tokai Village (chair), Hitachi City, Hitachinaka City, Hitachiota City, Naka City and Mito City / a new agreement signed on 29 March 2018 giving a right of “substantive prior consent” / Tokai Daini power station safety measures mayors’ conference = Mito City (chair) and 15 municipalities in all) andthe same, “Preparing for a nuclear emergency”(the radiation measurements were updated on 18 August 2026) / the earthquake map and the strengthening subsidy are fromthe same, “Mito earthquake disaster-prevention map (map of how strongly the ground shakes)”,the same, “We subsidise earthquake strengthening work on wooden houses”/ Verified 2026-08-22

What are the disaster risks in Mito?

🔴 The first thing to look at is the Nakagawa. The city publishes a table of wind and flood damage running from 1902 (Meiji 35), and the highest the Nakagawa has stood at the Suifu Bridge was 9.84 metres, in Typhoon Hagibis in October 2019 (Reiwa 1), when 396 homes flooded above floor level and 182 below. Second is 9.15 metres in August 1986 and third 8.66 metres in the Kathleen typhoon of 1947. 🔴 Total rainfall inside the city was 141.5 mm, but the rain upstream on the Nakagawa (Yaita 360 mm and so on) came down to Mito. The national government, the prefecture and the city are running the “Nakagawa emergency flood-control project”. Mito also lies inside the UPZ (roughly the 30-kilometre zone) of the Tokai Daini power station and is one of the six municipalities holding a right of “substantive prior consent” to any restart.

CHAPTER 06What summer and winter are like

Mito is a city of clear, dry winters and cool summer nights. It gets 2,000.8 hours of sunshine a year, 195.4 hours of it in January alone — more than Tokyo (192.6 hours) and 2.9 times Matsue (67.4 hours). Rain or snow falls on 202.4 days a year, and January brings only 54.5 mm of rain. And there are 3.9 tropical nights a year — less than a quarter of Tokyo (17.8 days). Winter, on the other hand, brings 69.0 days a year below 0℃ at night, which is cold for the Kanto region (days that stay below freezing: 0.0).

Winter is clear. And dryJanuary gets 195.4 hours of sunshine and December 178.0 hours. There are 40.9 completely clear days a year (cloud cover under 1.5), 9.1 of them in January alone. January brings 54.5 mm of rain and December 49.6 mm. And in January 2026 the monthly rainfall in Mito was 0.0 mm — in the Meteorological Agency’s “top ten on record”, that is 1st for the lowest monthly rainfall (tied with December 2024 and December 1973). Washing dries beautifully in winter, and by the same token you will want to think about humidifying and dry skin. Snowfall totals 12 centimetres a year with a deepest cover of 7 centimetres (the record is 32 centimetres in February 1945).

Cool summer nights are a real assetThere are 3.9 tropical nights a year. Against Tokyo’s 17.8, Nagasaki’s 38.3 and Matsue’s 15.4, that is clearly fewer. There are 38.0 days above 30℃ and 3.1 above 35℃. The August daily high is 30.0℃ and the daily low 22.2℃. Recent years, though, have not matched the normals — looking at the annual counts on record, the most days above 35℃ was 19 in 2025 (against a normal of 3.1), the most days above 30℃ was 80 in 2025 (against 38.0), and the most tropical nights was 29 in 2024 (against 3.9). It is only honest to note that it is not as cool as it once was. Even so, this is a place with many more sleepable nights than Tokyo.

Rain is on the light side. The wettest month is autumn, not the rainy seasonAnnual rainfall is 1,367.7 mm, a fifth less than Tokyo (1,598.2 mm). And the wettest month is September at 186.3 mm, followed by October at 185.4 mm — more falls in autumn than in the rainy season of July (141.8 mm). The driest are December at 49.6 mm, February at 53.8 mm and January at 54.5 mm. The record for a single day is 276.6 mm (29 June 1938), and for a single hour 81.7 mm (15 September 1947). The wettest year brought 2,096.8 mm (1920) and the driest 760.5 mm (1984). “Light over the year, but heavy all at once in autumn” — the story of the Nakagawa in §5 is the other side of that pattern.

Source:Japan Meteorological Agency, “Normals for Mito (1991–2020)”(annual mean temperature 14.1℃, daily high 19.2℃, daily low 9.7℃ / annual rainfall 1,367.7 mm (by month: January 54.5, February 53.8, March 102.8, April 116.7, May 144.5, June 135.7, July 141.8, August 116.9, September 186.3, October 185.4, November 79.7, December 49.6 mm) / January daily high 9.2℃, daily low −1.8℃ / August daily high 30.0℃, daily low 22.2℃ / days with rain (0.0 mm or more) 202.4 a year / sunshine 2,000.8 hours a year, 195.4 hours in January, 178.0 in December / completely clear days (cloud cover under 1.5) 40.9 a year, 9.1 in January / total snowfall 12 cm, deepest snow cover 7 cm / 69.0 days below 0℃ at night, 0.0 days staying below freezing, 96.4 days above 25℃, 38.0 above 30℃, 3.1 above 35℃, 3.9 tropical nights) andthe same, "Tokyo"(January sunshine 192.6 hours, 1,926.7 hours a year) / the records are fromthe same, “The top ten values on record for Mito”(lowest monthly rainfall: 1st 0.0 mm (January 2026), equal 0.0 mm (December 2024), equal 0.0 mm (December 1973) / daily rainfall 276.6 mm (29 June 1938) / greatest hourly rainfall 81.7 mm (15 September 1947) / wettest year 2,096.8 mm (1920), driest 760.5 mm (1984) / days with a high of 35℃ or more: 1st, 19 days (2025) / days with a high of 30℃ or more: 1st, 80 days (2025) / nights with a low of 25℃ or more: 1st, 29 days (2024) / deepest monthly snow cover 32 cm (26 February 1945)) / the tropical nights for Nagasaki and Matsue come from the same source as the other pages on this site / checked 2026-08-22

What are summer and winter like in Mito?

🔴 Winter is clear and dry, and summer nights are cool. Sunshine comes to 2,000.8 hours a year, 195.4 hours of it in January alone — more than Tokyo (192.6 hours) and 2.9 times Matsue (67.4 hours). January brings 54.5 mm of rain (January 2026 brought 0.0 mm, equal 1st on record). There are 3.9 tropical nights a year, less than a quarter of Tokyo (17.8 days), and 69.0 days a year below 0℃ at night, with 0.0 days staying below freezing. 🔴 The wettest months are September (186.3 mm) and October (185.4 mm) — more falls in autumn than in the rainy season.

CHAPTER 07Shops, hospitals, schools

The city has 32 municipal elementary schools, 15 junior high schools and 1 compulsory education school (Kunita Compulsory Education School). Five of them are “small-school special-admission schools”, which children can attend from outside the catchment (Kami-Ono, Yanakawa, Shimo-Ono and Oba elementary schools and Kunita Compulsory Education School). Children’s medical costs are covered by Maru-fuku (the medical welfare payment scheme) until the first 31 March after a child turns 18, and the city runs its own Maru-fuku for anyone over the prefectural income limit. There is, however, a contribution to pay — ¥600 a day per clinic for outpatient care (up to twice a month), and ¥300 a day up to ¥3,000 a month for hospital stays.

Type of school	Number	Notes
Municipal elementary schools	32 schools	Sannomaru, Goken, Shinso, Joto, Hamada, Tokiwa, Midorioka and others
Municipal junior high schools	15 schools	First to Fifth, Midorioka, Iitomi, Akatsuka, Migawa, Futabadai, Kasahara, Ishikawa, Senba, Tsunezumi and Uchihara
Municipal compulsory education school	1 schools	Kunita Compulsory Education School (Shimokunii-cho)
Small-school special-admission schools	5 schools	Kami-Ono, Yanakawa, Shimo-Ono and Oba elementary schools and Kunita Compulsory Education School

The “small-school special-admission” scheme works well for people thinking of moving hereThe city presents Kami-Ono, Yanakawa, Shimo-Ono and Oba elementary schools and Kunita Compulsory Education School as small-school special-admission schools, and runs a programme to keep them thriving. In other words, outside the usual rule that your catchment decides your school, there are five you can choose. On the map in §2, Yanakawa, Kami-Ono, Shimo-Ono and Oba lie across the eastern lowland and to the south-east, and Kunita on the northern plateau. Being able to choose where you live because you want a small school is an unusual option for a provincial city. Please check the exact conditions in the city’s guidance.

Children’s medical costs are covered to 18. You do still pay at the deskIn the city’s words — “for outpatient care there is a contribution of up to ¥600 a day per medical institution, for up to two visits a month (no contribution at dispensing pharmacies); for hospital stays there is a contribution of up to ¥300 a day per institution, up to ¥3,000 a month”. Cover runs from birth until the first 31 March after a child turns 18. The treatment of income is distinctive — “Maru-fuku as a prefectural scheme has an income limit”; “for anyone who does not qualify under the prefectural scheme, we issue Mito City’s own Maru-fuku”. Even if income puts you outside it, the city catches you. The shape of the contribution differs from Matsue (fully free to the end of junior high, no income limit) and Wakayama (free at the desk to the end of the school year in which a child turns 18).

Everything you expect of a prefectural capital is hereMito is the prefectural capital and, since April 2020, a core city. The prefecture’s central hospital, a university (the Mito campus of Ibaraki University), a department store and large shopping centres are all inside the city. As §1 notes, the daytime-to-night-time population ratio stands at around 110% — this is the city people come in to, not out of. Uchihara in §2 has a large shopping centre, and Akatsuka and Futabadai have enough shops for daily life to be self-contained. “Almost anything within a 15-minute drive” is what shopping in Mito looks like.

Sources: the number of schools from Mito City Board of Education, “List of municipal elementary, junior high and compulsory education schools”(32 elementary schools, 15 junior high schools, 1 compulsory education school) / the small-school special-admission scheme is fromthe same, “About the small-school special-admission schools (Kami-Ono, Yanakawa, Shimo-Ono and Oba elementary schools and Kunita Compulsory Education School)”(2026-07-14updated) andthe same, “About the programme to keep the small-school special-admission schools thriving” / children’s medical costs are fromMito City, “Medical welfare payments for children (the Maru-fuku scheme)”(updated 17 June 2026 / outpatient care: up to ¥600 a day per medical institution for up to two visits a month, with no contribution at dispensing pharmacies / hospital stays: up to ¥300 a day per institution, up to ¥3,000 a month / cover runs from birth until the first 31 March after a child turns 18 / “for anyone who does not qualify under the prefectural scheme, we issue Mito City’s own Maru-fuku”) / core-city status is fromthe same, “About core-city status”(the change took effect on 1 April 2020) / the daytime-to-night-time population ratio is fromthe same, “Outline of Mito City, 2026 edition” (PDF)/ Verified 2026-08-22

What is childcare and education like in Mito?

The city has 32 municipal elementary schools, 15 junior high schools and 1 compulsory education school. 🔴 Five of them are “small-school special-admission schools”, which children can attend from outside the catchment (Kami-Ono, Yanakawa, Shimo-Ono and Oba elementary schools and Kunita Compulsory Education School). Children’s medical costs are covered by Maru-fuku until the first 31 March after a child turns 18. 🔴 There is, however, a contribution to pay — ¥600 a day per clinic for outpatient care (up to twice a month, ¥0 at dispensing pharmacies), and ¥300 a day up to ¥3,000 a month for hospital stays. The prefectural scheme has an income limit, but the city writes that “for anyone who does not qualify under the prefectural scheme, we issue Mito City’s own Maru-fuku”.

CHAPTER 08What it costs you every year after you buy

Fixed asset tax in Mito is 1.4% (the standard rate) and city planning tax 0.2%, so inside the urbanisation promotion area the two come to 1.6% (the ceiling for city planning tax is 0.3%, so this too is on the low side). These rates are written in the city’s own budget papers as “rate 1.4/100” and “rate 0.2/100”. Water and sewerage come to ¥13,723 for 45 cubic metres over two months (water ¥6,831 plus sewerage ¥6,892). The relocation grant is ¥600,000 for a single person, ¥1,000,000 for a household of two or more, and ¥1,000,000 more for each child under 18, and “having submitted the consultation form by the day before you move” is an essential condition.

Water + sewerage (13 mm meter, two months, tax included)

Category	Standing charge	Usage	Total
Water Base allowance up to 12 m³	¥1,786	¥5,044	¥6,831
Sewerage Base allowance up to 16 m³	¥2,340	¥4,551	¥6,892
45 cubic metres over two months	—	—	¥13,723

Fixed asset tax 1.4%, city planning tax 0.2% — checked in the budget papersThe rates were not given on the city’s pages, so we opened the explanatory papers for the 2026 budget and checked. Fixed asset tax is “rate 1.4/100” on land, buildings and depreciable assets alike, and city planning tax is “rate 0.2/100” on both land and buildings. Inside the urbanisation promotion area that comes to 1.6%. The relief for residential land assesses the first 200 square metres at one sixth of the value (one third for city planning tax), and anything beyond that at one third (two thirds). As §4 shows, the median plot in Mito is 267 square metres, so many houses have land beyond the 200-square-metre mark — a wide plot costs relatively more in tax.

Water and sewerage are on the cheap side for a prefectural capitalForty-five cubic metres over two months costs ¥13,723. Set against the other towns on this site — Kanazawa ¥11,599, Aomori ¥13,817, Wakayama ¥14,187, Matsue ¥15,444, Nagasaki ¥18,050 — Mito is the second cheapest. Meters are read once every two months (monthly for large 40-millimetre-plus connections). And in 2026, as a measure against rising prices, two months of the standing water charge are being waived — the city explains that this applies to the July 2026 bill for anyone read in odd months and the August bill for anyone read in even months, and that no application is needed. Sewerage charges are not covered by the waiver.

You have to act before you move to receive the relocation grantThe amounts are ¥600,000 for a single person and ¥1,000,000 for a household of two or more, with ¥1,000,000 added for each household member under 18 (spouses excluded). It is for people who lived in the 23 wards of Tokyo, or commuted into them from the Tokyo area, and there are conditions on employment, teleworking or starting a business. This is the easiest part to miss — the city writes that “submitting the ‘pre-move consultation form for the relocation grant’ with the required documents by the day before you move is an essential condition of payment”. Finding out after you have moved is too late. Applications are accepted from 1 April 2026 to 10 February 2027, and may close once the budget is used up.

Sources: the tax rates are from Mito City, “We have published an outline of the 2026 budget”, the explanatory budget papers (PDF), Section 1 municipal taxes (fixed asset tax = “rate 1.4/100” on land, buildings and depreciable assets alike / Part 6 city planning tax = “rate 0.2/100” on both land and buildings, ¥1,746,958 thousand) / the relief for residential land is fromthe same, “Special measures on the tax base for residential land”(updated 30 January 2026) / the water and sewerage figures are fromMito City Waterworks and Sewerage Bureau, “Water charge table (calculation table)”(two months, 13 mm connection = standing charge ¥1,786.40 with a base allowance of 12 m³, ¥51.70 for 13–20 m³, ¥181.50 for 21–40 m³, ¥200.20 for 41–60 m³) andthe same, "About sewerage charges"(two months, base charge ¥2,340.80 up to 16 m³, ¥57.20 above 16 up to 20 m³, ¥170.50 above 20 up to 40 m³, ¥182.60 above 40 up to 60 m³), calculated bythis site(water = 1,786.40 + 8 × 51.70 + 20 × 181.50 + 5 × 200.20 = ¥6,831.00 / sewerage = 2,340.80 + 4 × 57.20 + 20 × 170.50 + 5 × 182.60 = ¥6,892.60. Following the city’s worked example, the decimals in the total are dropped) / the waiver of the standing charge is fromthe same, “We are waiving the standing water charge as a measure against rising prices”(updated 30 June 2026) / the relocation grant is fromthe same, “About the Mito City relocation support scheme for 2026”(updated 24 July 2026 / ¥600,000 for a single person, ¥1,000,000 for a household of two or more, and ¥1,000,000 per child under 18 for households with children / “submitting the ‘pre-move consultation form for the relocation grant’ with the required documents by the day before you move is an essential condition of payment” / applications are accepted from 1 April 2026 to 10 February 2027) / the water and sewerage figures for Kanazawa, Aomori, Wakayama, Matsue and Nagasaki were calculated by the same method as on the other pages of this site / checked 2026-08-22

What does owning a house in Mito cost each year?

Fixed asset tax is 1.4% (the standard rate) and city planning tax 0.2%, so inside the urbanisation promotion area the two come to 1.6% (🔴 we checked the city’s explanatory papers for the 2026 budget, which give “rate 1.4/100” and “rate 0.2/100”). Water and sewerage come to ¥13,723 for 45 cubic metres over two months (water ¥6,831 plus sewerage ¥6,892) — cheaper than Aomori ¥13,817, Matsue ¥15,444 and Nagasaki ¥18,050, and above Kanazawa ¥11,599. 🔴 In 2026, as a measure against rising prices, two months of the standing water charge are waived (no application needed).

CHAPTER 09What happens when you want to sell

Residential land in Mito stands at ¥39,700/m², ±0.0% year on year. That is 1.14 times the Ibaraki average (¥34,800/m², +1.0%). We will put this plainly — the prefecture as a whole rose, while residential land in Mito held level. Meanwhile commercial land is ¥92,400/m², +0.9% (1.45 times the prefectural average), industrial land ¥25,200/m², +1.0%, and all uses together ¥53,000/m², +0.3% — no category fell. In Ibaraki the strongest growth is in the south of the prefecture, along the Tsukuba Express, and that is what this gap reflects.

Use	Mito City	Ibaraki Average	City / prefecture
Residential	¥39,700/m² (±0.0%)	¥34,800/m² (+1.0%)	1.14×
Commercial	¥92,400/m² (+0.9%)	¥63,600/m² (+1.0%)	1.45×
Industrial	¥25,200/m² (+1.0%)	¥26,300/m² (+2.2%)	0.96×
All uses	¥53,000/m² (+0.3%)	¥39,900/m² (+1.0%)	1.33×

An unusual shape: the prefecture rises while its capital holds levelIn the other prefectural capitals on this site, the capital usually rises faster than the prefectural average (Aomori city +0.4% against the prefecture’s +0.2%; Matsue city +0.7% against −0.4%). Mito is the other way round, ±0.0% for the city against +1.0% for the prefecture. Ibaraki has a strong market along the Tsukuba Express (Tsukuba, Moriya, Tsukubamirai), 45 minutes from Tokyo. That is what is lifting the prefectural average, while Mito has not moved. You cannot say “the prefecture is rising, so Mito will too.” It is worth knowing that before you buy.

Even so, values are not slippingResidential land ±0.0%, commercial land +0.9%, all uses +0.3%. Not one category has fallen. The residential level of ¥39,700/m² sits in the middle among the prefectural capitals on this site (Kanazawa 92,800, Nagasaki 72,200, Matsue 51,800, Aomori 34,900). “It does not rise much, but it does not fall much either” — that is land in Mito. As §1 shows, its standing as the largest population in the prefecture, with a daytime-to-night-time ratio of around 110%, is what holds the values up.

What counts when you sell is the district and the build yearAs §2 shows, the median runs from ¥14,500,000 in Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka to ¥27,000,000 in the city centre and in Akatsuka, Miwa and Kawawada. The share built before 1981 runs from 0% (Uchihara and Koibuchi) to 64% (Futabadai, Hori-cho and Otsuka). The 1970s estates will come onto the market together over the coming years. That is why they can be bought cheaply, and the same will be true when you sell. Do not assume you will sell for what you paid — keeping a record of the work you have done will help you when the time comes.

Source:Land Information Centerthe Ibaraki page of “[Land price survey] (2026) average prices and year-on-year change by prefecture, municipality and use” (prepared 27 April 2026) (Mito City = residential land ¥39,700/m², ±0.0% / commercial land ¥92,400/m², +0.9% / industrial land ¥25,200/m², +1.0% / all uses ¥53,000/m², +0.3%. Ibaraki Prefecture = residential land ¥34,800/m², +1.0% / prospective housing land ¥12,800/m², +0.5% / commercial land ¥63,600/m², +1.0% / industrial land ¥26,300/m², +2.2% / all uses ¥39,900/m², +1.0%). The residential figures for Kanazawa, Nagasaki, Matsue and Aomori come from the same source as on their own pages / checked 2026-08-22

What happens when you sell a house in Mito?

Residential land stands at ¥39,700/m², ±0.0% year on year, which is 1.14 times the Ibaraki average (¥34,800/m², +1.0%). 🔴 We will put this plainly — the prefecture as a whole rose, while residential land in Mito held level. In Ibaraki the strongest growth is in the south of the prefecture, along the Tsukuba Express, and that is what lifts the prefectural average. That said, commercial land is +0.9%, industrial land +1.0% and all uses +0.3%, so no category fell. What counts when you sell is the district and the build year: the median runs from ¥14,500,000 (Futabadai and Hori-cho) to ¥27,000,000 (the city centre and Akatsuka).

CHAPTER 10Who lives here, and how many

The population is 265,768 in 128,079 households (1 October 2025). That is the largest in Ibaraki Prefecture and about 9.5% of the prefectural total. The peak was 270,783 in 2015, so 5,015 people (1.9%) have gone in ten years — a gentle decline as prefectural capitals on this site go. Households, meanwhile, rose from 117,590 to 128,079, up by 10,489 (8.9%). And the daytime-to-night-time population ratio has stood at around 110% since 2010. This is a city people come in to.

Year	Population	Households	Per household
2005 (Heisei 17 (2005))	262,603 people	104,521 households	2.51 people
2015 (Heisei 27 (2015))	270,783 (the peak)	117,590 households	2.30 people
2020 (Reiwa 2 (2020))	270,685 people	122,598 households	2.21 people
2025 (Reiwa 7 (2025))	265,768 people	128,079 households	2.07 people

People are fewer, households moreOver the ten years from 2015 to 2025, the population fell by 5,015 while households rose by 10,489. People per household went from 2.30 to 2.07. That feeds straight into the demand for housing. As §2 and §4 show, the reason so many houses on 267-square-metre plots are coming to market is partly that the households who lived in big houses are getting smaller. A house built for four, used by two — that is what the second-hand market in Mito looks like now.

Numbers are falling on the edges of the city and rising in the southThe city’s own analysis — “looking at population by district, while the outlying parts of the city show a downward trend, the areas centred on the south are trending upward”. And “there has been no great change in the densely inhabited district (DID)”; “on the other hand, since the population density inside it is trending downward, a gradual doughnut effect is thought to be continuing”. The fact that Motoyoshida, Sakado, Sumiyoshi and Yonezawa (south of the station) are only 8% pre-1981 in §2 is the result of that movement. Live on the side where numbers are growing, or on the side where you can buy cheaply and roomily — that is what the choice in Mito comes down to.

The age structure has changed a great deal in thirty yearsThe city’s figures — over the thirty years from 1990 to 2020, the young population (0–14) fell by 11,786 and its share from 19.4% to 12.8%. The older population (65 and over) rose by 46,621 and its share from 10.3% to 27.0%. The 7th comprehensive plan sets a target population of 265,000 for the 2033 financial year (on the national institute’s projection, a fall of about 7,400 over the ten years from 2023). It is a plan framed as “taking the decline as given, and slowing it” (§14).

Source:Mito City, “Outline of Mito City, 2026 edition” (PDF, issued 19 June 2026), “Table 2, changes in area, population and households” (as of 1 October each year / 2005: 262,603 people, 104,521 households / 2015: 270,783 people, 117,590 households / 2020: 270,685 people, 122,598 households / 2025: 265,768 people, 128,079 households. From 2021 the figures are estimates built on the 2020 census with the change in the resident register added) and, in the same document, “VI The present state of Mito, (1) Population” (265,768 as of 1 October 2025, the largest in the prefecture, about 9.5% of the prefectural total of 2,791,231 / over the thirty years from 1990 to 2020 the young population fell by 11,786, its share from 19.4% to 12.8%, and the older population rose by 46,621, its share from 10.3% to 27.0% / “looking at population by district, while the outlying parts of the city show a downward trend, the areas centred on the south are trending upward” / “a gradual doughnut effect is thought to be continuing” / the daytime-to-night-time population ratio has stood at around 110% since 2010). People per household were calculated by this site from the population and household figures in that table / checked 2026-08-22

Share of foreign residents

1.86%National average 3.26%

Of the 266,703 people living in Mito, 4,964 are foreign residents. That is below the national average (3.26%).
Nationwide, foreign residents make up 3.26% of the population (4,031,159 out of 123,767,642). There are 34 municipalities in Japan where the share passes 10%.

Source: calculated by this site from the municipality-level tables of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, "Population, population change and households based on the Basic Resident Register" (as of 1 January Reiwa 8, published 2026-07-29). The ministry's publication page / verified 2026-08-17

What is happening to Mito City's population?

265,768 people in 128,079 households (1 October 2025), the largest in Ibaraki Prefecture and about 9.5% of the prefectural total. 🔴 The peak was 270,783 in 2015, so 5,015 people (1.9%) have gone in ten years — a gentle decline as prefectural capitals go. Households, meanwhile, rose from 117,590 to 128,079, up by 10,489 (8.9%) (2.30 people per household down to 2.07). 🔴 The daytime-to-night-time population ratio has stood at around 110% since 2010, and the city writes that this “shows the standing and centrality of this city within the regional core-city area it heads”.

CHAPTER 11Community life and the year's events

The year in Mito opens with plum blossom and builds to fireworks and lanterns. The Mito Plum Blossom Festival, from 11 February to late March, has over 120 years of history, and 2026 was the 130th. It is held at Kairakuen (about 3,000 trees of some 100 varieties) and the Kodokan (about 800 trees of some 60 varieties). Summer brings the Mito Komon Festival — in 2026 the Kairakuen fireworks over Lake Senba on 25 July and the main festival on Route 50 on 1 and 2 August. Mito is one of the three great lantern-making places in Japan, and the main festival features the “Mito Komon lantern parade”.

The Kodokan and Kairakuen were built as a pairAs the city explains — Tokugawa Nariaki made “icho isshi” (one taut, one slack) the basis of the Mito domain’s approach to learning, opening the domain school Kodokan as “the place to draw the mind tight” and Kairakuen as “the place to let it loose”. The Kodokan was founded in the eighth month of 1841 (Tempo 12) and was the largest domain school in Japan at the time. Alongside Confucian studies, national learning and martial arts it took in medicine, astronomy and Dutch studies — in effect a full university. It is now a special national historic site, and the main gate, the main hall and the Shizendo are Important Cultural Properties. The two together are component assets of the Japan Heritage “Educational Heritage of Early Modern Japan”, and the city is also working towards World Heritage listing. This is a city that has made learning its backbone.

The Mito Komon Festival — fireworks, lanterns and portable shrinesFrom the city’s notice — the Mito Kairakuen fireworks run 19:30–20:30 on Saturday 25 July 2026, over Lake Senba (postponed to the 26th in bad weather), and are set off by “Nomura Fireworks Co., Ltd., among the finest pyrotechnicians in Japan”. The main festival runs 11:00–21:00 on Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 August 2026, on Route 50 (from the north exit of Mito Station to the Daiku-machi crossing). There is the “Mito Komon lantern parade, using Mito lanterns from one of the three great lantern-making places in Japan” and the “procession of the Mito Furusato Mikoshi, among the largest portable shrines in Japan”, along with float processions, a joint procession of portable shrines and the Mito Komon Carnival. It is a festival that closes the trunk road through the middle of the city for two days.

Each season has its own local eventsSpring brings the Spring Festival in Mito and the Mito Cherry Blossom Festival, summer the Mito Bon Dance, autumn the Mito Roman Sanya Festival (at Nijusanyason Keiganji and the Howaen garden) and Mito Bar Bar Bar (a walk round the restaurants from south of Mito Station to Kamimito), and winter the Isobushi National Competition. Local life is organised through neighbourhood associations, residents’ associations and community centres, and the city puts its community centre pages at the top of that section. Once you move in, do call in at the community centre for your own district.

And then there is “living with Kairakuen”As §1 notes, Kairakuen sits almost at the centre of the built-up area and forms one large park with Lake Senba. It is not somewhere you only go during the plum festival — the city’s Goken Elementary School holds plum-picking sessions there, and the path round Lake Senba is a jogging route. It is woven into everyday life. As the “Kairakuen-ki” puts it, “it is my wish to take pleasure together with the people” — it was a garden for residents from the start (§1). To live in a prefectural capital and cycle from home to one of the three great gardens of Japan is something only Mito offers.

Sources: the plum festival is fromthe official site of the Mito Plum Blossom Festival (Mito Tourism and Convention Association)(the 130th anniversary Mito Plum Blossom Festival = Wednesday 11 February (a public holiday) to Sunday 22 March 2026, at Kairakuen and the Kodokan / “boasting over 120 years of history” / Kairakuen has about 3,000 trees of some 100 varieties and the Kodokan about 800 trees of some 60 varieties / the Kodokan was founded in the eighth month of 1841 (Tempo 12), was the largest domain school in Japan at the time, and is a special national historic site whose main gate, main hall and Shizendo are Important Cultural Properties) / the Mito Komon Festival is fromMito City, “Mito Komon Festival”(updated 13 July 2026 / Mito Kairakuen fireworks = 19:30–20:30 on Saturday 25 July 2026, over Lake Senba, by Nomura Fireworks / main festival = 11:00–21:00 on Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 August 2026 (to 20:00 on the 2nd), on Route 50 from the north exit of Mito Station to the Daiku-machi crossing / “the Mito Komon lantern parade, using Mito lanterns from one of the three great lantern-making places in Japan”, “the procession of the Mito Furusato Mikoshi, among the largest portable shrines in Japan”) / “icho isshi” and the link between the Kodokan and Kairakuen are fromthe same, “Outline of Mito City, 2026 edition” (PDF) / the Japan Heritage and World Heritage work is fromthe same, “Japan Heritage”,the same, “World Heritage” / the seasonal events are fromMito Tourism and Convention Association, “Mito Tabi”, the events pages / dates and contents change from year to year, so please check with the organisers before you set out / checked 2026-08-22

What events does Mito City have?

🔴 The Mito Plum Blossom Festival, from 11 February to late March. It has over 120 years of history, and 2026 was the 130th (11 February to 22 March 2026). It is held at Kairakuen (about 3,000 trees of some 100 varieties) and the Kodokan (about 800 trees of some 60 varieties). Summer brings the Mito Komon Festival — in 2026 the Mito Kairakuen fireworks over Lake Senba on 25 July and the main festival on Route 50 on 1 and 2 August. 🔴 Mito is one of the three great lantern-making places in Japan, and the main festival features the “Mito Komon lantern parade” and “the Mito Furusato Mikoshi, among the largest portable shrines in Japan”.

CHAPTER 12Things nearby that move land prices

Three things bear on land in Mito. ① Flood control on the Nakagawa — after Typhoon Hagibis in 2019, the national government, the prefecture and the city are running the “Nakagawa emergency flood-control project” (§5). ② Tokai Daini power station — the city lies in the UPZ (roughly the 30-kilometre zone), holds a right of “substantive prior consent” over any restart, and also receives the grant for areas hosting power generation facilities. ③ Where Mito sits within Ibaraki — land prices across the prefecture are rising while residential land in Mito holds level (§9). The growth is in the south of the prefecture, along the Tsukuba Express.

Flood control on the Nakagawa is a story for the next ten yearsTyphoon Hagibis in October 2019 flooded 396 homes above floor level and 182 below, and left a record water level of 9.84 metres at the Suifu Bridge (§5). As the city explains — “as flood-control work in the Nakagawa river system, where Typhoon Hagibis of October 2019 caused severe damage, the national government, the prefecture, the city, the Meteorological Agency and other bodies are working together on the ‘Nakagawa emergency flood-control project’”. Its pillars are “advancing multi-layered flood defence” and “advancing further work towards reducing damage”. How land in the lowland is valued will change with the progress of this work. If you are house-hunting in “Tsunezumi, Aoyagi, Shibui and Tomae” in §2, or on the Shimoichi side of the city centre, follow the progress in the “Nakagawa Dayori” newsletter from the Hitachi River and National Highway Office of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

Tokai Daini power station — the city has standing to speakFrom the agreement the city publishes: on 29 March 2018 the six municipalities (Tokai Village, Hitachi City, Hitachinaka City, Hitachiota City, Naka City and Mito City) signed a new agreement with the Japan Atomic Power Company and obtained a right of “substantive prior consent”. It is “the right for each of the six municipalities to ask for prior consultation before any restart, and to consult until each of them is satisfied”. Mito also receives the grant for areas hosting power generation facilities, which in the 2024 financial year went towards building Mito’s new crematorium. That this is an area where public buildings are built with nuclear grant money is a plain fact worth knowing.

The prefectural government and national branch offices are gathered hereMito is the seat of the Ibaraki prefectural government, and prefectural bodies and national branch offices cluster here. The daytime-to-night-time ratio of around 110% in §1 and the largest population in the prefecture in §10 are the result. In the city’s words, “the standing and centrality of this city within the regional core-city area it heads”. Having workplaces inside the city means you can also choose not to commute to Tokyo. The “1 hr 18 min to Ueno” of §3 is an insurance policy, not a requirement.

And three motorways pass around the cityThe Joban Expressway, the Kita-Kanto Expressway and the Mito Line of the Higashi-Kanto Expressway. The Kita-Kanto Expressway is the east–west axis, joining Tochigi and Gunma and running through to the Japan Sea coast at Niigata. Uchihara in §2 lies near both the Kita-Kanto and the Joban expressways, and large shopping and logistics sites gather there. “1 hr 18 min to Tokyo by rail, and north Kanto and Tohoku by car” — that reach in two directions is what holds land in Mito up. The positions of the interchanges are in the box below §3.

Sources: the flood-control work is fromMito City, “Nakagawa emergency flood-control project”(updated 10 April 2023 / “advancing multi-layered flood defence”, “advancing further work towards reducing damage”) / the nuclear agreement is fromthe same, “Safety measures through cooperation with neighbouring municipalities”(the new agreement of 29 March 2018 and the right of “substantive prior consent” / the six-municipality and 15-municipality frameworks) / the grant is fromthe same, “We have published the projects funded by the grant for areas hosting power generation facilities”(updated 2 April 2026; in the 2024 financial year it went to Mito’s new crematorium) / the city’s standing is fromthe same, “Outline of Mito City, 2026 edition” (PDF) / land prices as in §9 / verified 2026-08-22

Is there anything that bears on land prices in Mito?

There are three. ① Flood control on the Nakagawa — after Typhoon Hagibis in 2019 (396 homes flooded above floor level), the national government, the prefecture and the city are running the “Nakagawa emergency flood-control project”. How land in the lowland is valued will change with the progress of that work. ② Tokai Daini power station — the city lies in the UPZ (roughly the 30-kilometre zone), and an agreement of March 2018 gave it a right of “substantive prior consent” over any restart. It also receives the grant for areas hosting power generation facilities. ③ Where Mito sits within Ibaraki — the prefecture as a whole is at +1.0% while residential land in Mito is at ±0.0%. The growth is in the south of the prefecture, along the Tsukuba Express.

CHAPTER 13What this place makes

What a place earns its living from shows up both at your dinner table and in your work once you live there. The amount raised through the hometown tax scheme is a rough measure of how many products a place has that people all over Japan choose.

¥1,009,220,000

Hometown-tax donations received in the 2025 financial year (58,844 donations).
334th of the 1,788 municipalities in Japan, and 10th within Ibaraki Prefecture

What this town names as its own products

These are the items listed by the city’s Agricultural Promotion Division, brand section, under “An introduction to the farm produce and specialities of Mito”, exactly as they appear. The lead role in Mito goes to the plum — the city has formed a “Council for building Mito as a plum-growing area” and writes that it is “working to make the plum, Mito’s principal regional brand, a national brand as farm produce and as food”. Mito-no-ume “Fukuyui” (the original brand grown by the plum section of JA Mito. In the city’s words, “the large, unblemished green plums in particular are traded as premium green plums”. Under the “Mito plum confectionery project”, 12 confectioners in the city make sweets from “Fukuyui” — Ume-dayori (Iinoya Seika), Ume-ichizu (Kamejirushi Seika), Mito Ume Galette (Kimuraya Honpo) and others), Mito natto (the sign that people reach for first when they think of Mito; it is on the city’s list of specialities too), Mito yawaraka negi (tender spring onions), Ibaraki-grown Mito beef (a Mito brand beef created in 2022. It is a cross between wagyu and dairy breeds, raised on the same feed as wagyu. In the city’s words, “because the numbers raised are small, it is not at present handled by butchers and the like” — from the producers’ wish “to see through where and how each life we have raised is consumed”, it is served only at a limited number of restaurants in the city), Mito sesame, Mito green papaya, chèvre cheese (made from goat’s milk), Kazeiro Tsunezumi (the regional brand of the former village of Tsunezumi), MAI NOODLE Hoho-no-sora, rice noodles from Tsunezumi in Mito, sweet potato shochu (Hitori-warai, Futari-warai and Sannin-warai, and Hanamura-saki), Drop Farm’s beauty tomatoes, sweet peppers, for reference, the city also has separate pages for “Mito’s recommended souvenirs” and “Mito-guro” (a dyeing tradition of Mito). And Mito is one of the three great lantern-making places in Japan, whose lanterns are used in the “Mito Komon lantern parade” at the Mito Komon Festival (§11).

This municipality also publishes its own hometown-tax guidance. Mito City hometown tax

Source:Mito City, “An introduction to the farm produce and specialities of Mito” (Agricultural Promotion Division, brand section) = Mito plums “Fukuyui” / Mito plum sweets / Mito yawaraka negi / Mito natto / chèvre cheese / Kazeiro Tsunezumi / MAI NOODLE Hoho-no-sora rice noodles from Tsunezumi in Mito / sweet potato shochu (Hitori-warai, Futari-warai, Sannin-warai and Hanamura-saki) / Mito sesame / Mito green papaya / Drop Farm’s beauty tomatoes / sweet peppers／the same, “Please try Mito-grown ‘Fukuyui’ plums” (updated 5 January 2026) = the “Council for building Mito as a plum-growing area” / “Mito-no-ume ‘Fukuyui’”, the original brand of the plum section of JA Mito / “the large, unblemished green plums are traded as premium green plums” / 12 shops in the city make plum sweets under the “Mito plum confectionery project”／the same, “About ‘Ibaraki-grown Mito beef’” (updated 10 July 2024) = a Mito brand beef created in 2022 / a cross between wagyu and dairy breeds / “because the numbers raised are small, it is not at present handled by butchers and the like” / served only at a limited number of restaurants in the city, from the producers’ wish “to see through where and how each life we have raised is consumed”／the same, the tourism site, “Mito’s recommended souvenirs” and “Mito-guro”/ Verified 2026-08-22

You can support a town without living there

Even if a move is still some way off, you can be involved from today through the hometown tax scheme. Your donation goes straight to the municipality, and you choose what it is spent on. A way to give something back to a place you got to know here.

Support Mito City through the hometown tax →

Source:Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, "Survey on the state of the hometown tax scheme (conducted FY Reiwa 8)", the table of amounts and numbers received (provisional FY Reiwa 7 settlement), tallied by this site. The rank is out of all 1,788 municipalities in that table / verified 2026-08-14

What is Mito known for producing?

🔴 The plum. The city has formed a “Council for building Mito as a plum-growing area” and writes that it is “working to make the plum, Mito’s principal regional brand, a national brand as farm produce and as food”. The brand grown by the plum section of JA Mito is Mito-no-ume “Fukuyui”, and under the “Mito plum confectionery project” 12 confectioners in the city make plum sweets. There is also Mito natto, Mito yawaraka negi (tender spring onions), Ibaraki-grown Mito beef (created in 2022; the numbers raised are small, so it is served only at a limited number of restaurants in the city), Mito sesame, green papaya and chèvre cheese.

CHAPTER 14A message from Mito City

Mito’s comprehensive plan is the “7th Comprehensive Plan for Mito — the Mito Sakigake Next Plan” (adopted March 2024). The city it sets out to become is “Mito, the city that leads the way — raising its children, enjoying its life, moving into its future”. The three founding principles are ① to build a city that raises the children who will lead Mito’s future; ② to build a city of economic growth that delivers a good life for its residents; ③ to build a city of security where everyone can live well. It sets a target population of 265,000 for the 2033 financial year.

A plan that puts children firstIn the city’s words — “towards a city that goes on growing and that people want to live in, while drawing out Mito’s own character and appeal, we will give the highest priority to raising, as a whole city, all the children who will create Mito’s future”. Alongside that it sets “economic growth, beginning with the creation of varied places to work that deliver a good life” and “an environment where people can live securely, through better health promotion, medicine, welfare and disaster preparedness”, and says it will “create a virtuous circle among these three strands and build a city that can look to a bright future”. That “children” comes first in the order is what gives this plan its character.

A target of 265,000 — framed as slowing the declineThe city writes — “on the projection of the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research, a fall of about 7,400 people is expected over the ten years from 2023. However, in light of the role this city is asked to play as the prefectural capital and the leader of the central Ibaraki region, and of the city it aims to become, curbing that decline is necessary if it is to keep developing”. A target of 265,000 for the 2033 financial year means holding roughly the 265,768 of 2025. Alongside it the city sets visitor targets of 7,100,000 for the city as a whole and 1,700,000 for the centre. It does not say it will grow; it says it will hold — and there is honesty in that.

Where to ask, and what this page isEnquiries about moving and settling here go to Mito City’s Appeal of Mito Division, and the city runs a relocation site called “Mito Gurashi”. The relocation grant is handled through the same route. As §8 explains, submitting the consultation form by the day before you move is an essential condition of that grant — do phone them before you settle on a property. This site gathers the city’s official information with sources attached; it does not speak for the city. Schemes, prices and charges change. Please check the city’s own latest pages and offices. And do open the Nakagawa and inland-flooding hazard maps in §5 for the exact address of any house you are considering. In Mito, that is the single most important check when choosing a home.

Sources: the city it aims to become, the founding principles and the target population are fromMito City, “Outline of Mito City, 2026 edition” (PDF, issued 19 June 2026), “City-building in Mito, (2) Features of the 7th Comprehensive Plan” (the “7th Comprehensive Plan for Mito”, adopted in March 2024 (Reiwa 6) / the three founding principles / the city it aims to become, “Mito, the city that leads the way — raising its children, enjoying its life, moving into its future” / a target population of 265,000 for the 2033 (Reiwa 15) financial year / visitor targets of 7,100,000 for the city and 1,700,000 for the centre / on the projection of the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research, a fall of about 7,400 people is expected over the ten years from 2023) / the plan itself isthe same, "Comprehensive plan"(the 7th Comprehensive Plan for Mito — the Mito Sakigake Next Plan, three-year implementation plan for 2026–2028) / the relocation desk and the relocation site are fromthe same, “Promoting relocation and settlement”(the Mito City relocation site “Mito Gurashi”) / checked 2026-08-22

What kind of city is Mito setting out to build?

The comprehensive plan is the “7th Comprehensive Plan for Mito — the Mito Sakigake Next Plan” (adopted March 2024). The city it sets out to become is 🔴 “Mito, the city that leads the way — raising its children, enjoying its life, moving into its future”. The three founding principles are ① to build a city that raises the children who will lead Mito’s future; ② to build a city of economic growth that delivers a good life for its residents; ③ to build a city of security where everyone can live well. 🔴 The target population for the 2033 financial year is 265,000 — framed not as growing, but as holding the present level.

CHAPTER 15A year in Mito

The year in Mito begins with plum blossom. The Mito Plum Blossom Festival runs from mid-February to late March — which falls at the end of the clear, dry season of 195.4 hours of sunshine and 54.5 mm of rain in January. Summer brings the fireworks over Lake Senba on 25 July and the Mito Komon Festival on 1 and 2 August. The wettest months are September (186.3 mm) and October (185.4 mm), the season to watch the typhoons and the Nakagawa (§5). There are 69.0 nights a year below 0℃, but 0.0 days that stay below freezing — cold mornings, but afternoons that always climb above zero: that is winter in Mito.

Season	What there is
Winter (December to February)	January brings a daily high of 9.2℃ and a daily low of −1.8℃, with 69.0 nights below 0℃ and 0.0 days staying below freezing. January’s 195.4 hours of sunshine beat Tokyo (192.6 hours), and only 54.5 mm of rain falls (January 2026 brought 0.0 mm, equal 1st on record). Snowfall totals 12 centimetres a year with a deepest cover of 7 centimetres. The plum festival opens on 11 February
Spring (March to May)	The plum festival runs to late March (to 22 March in 2026). After it come the Mito Cherry Blossom Festival and the Spring Festival in Mito. The wind moves across the plateau, and this is the loveliest season for a walk round Lake Senba
Rainy season (June to July)	June 135.7 mm, July 141.8 mm. The record for a single day is 276.6 mm (29 June 1938) and for a single hour 81.7 mm (15 September 1947). The Mito Kairakuen fireworks are over Lake Senba on 25 July (in 2026). As §5 explains, in heavy rain watch the rainfall upstream on the Nakagawa
Summer (August)	August brings a daily high of 30.0℃ and a daily low of 22.2℃, with 116.9 mm of rain. There are 3.9 tropical nights a year, less than a quarter of Tokyo (17.8 days) — though 2024 brought 29. The Mito Komon Festival is on 1 and 2 August (on Route 50), and the Bon observances fall in mid-August
Autumn (September to November)	This is the wettest part of the year — September 186.3 mm, October 185.4 mm. As §5 shows, the highest water levels recorded at the Suifu Bridge were in October 2019, August 1986, September 1947 and September 2011, all between summer and autumn. September brings the Mito Roman Sanya Festival, and November the autumn colours at Kairakuen. Once the rain drops to 79.7 mm in November, the dry winter begins

Sources: the climate is as in §6 (Japan Meteorological Agency, normals for Mito 1991–2020, and the top ten values on record) / the events are as in §11 (Mito City, “Mito Komon Festival”; the official site of the Mito Plum Blossom Festival; Mito Tourism and Convention Association) / dates and contents change from year to year, so please check with the organisers before you set out / checked 2026-08-22

The information on this site is gathered by an AI that visits primary sources — municipalities, the Japan Meteorological Agency, national statistics — on a regular cycle, and it is updated with a source and a date of verification attached.

What is there to look forward to through the year in Mito?

🔴 It begins with plum blossom and builds to fireworks and lanterns. The Mito Plum Blossom Festival (at Kairakuen and the Kodokan) opens on 11 February; spring brings the Mito Cherry Blossom Festival and the Spring Festival in Mito; the Mito Kairakuen fireworks over Lake Senba fall on 25 July (in 2026); the Mito Komon Festival on 1 and 2 August; the Mito Roman Sanya Festival in September; and the Isobushi National Competition in winter. 🔴 The wettest months are September (186.3 mm) and October (185.4 mm), and once they pass comes the clear winter of 195.4 hours of sunshine in January.

CHAPTER 16The people who run this city

When you are thinking of moving somewhere, who is running the place now, and where they are trying to take it, is something people about to move there want to know even more than the people already living there. This section sets out, with sources, only what Mito City publishes itself. 🔴 As of 22 August 2026, following the official site, I (the AI) could find 4 of the 6 items below. The mayor of Mito is Takahashi Yasushi (confirmed on the city’s own page).

What is published	Published	What you can read
About the mayor	The mayor’s room	Name, career, greeting
Policy address	Basic policy for running the city	What they say they will do this year
List of council members	Could not find one	Who the members are, and their groupings
Council broadcasts and recordings	Could not find one	Whether you can watch the council in session
Searchable minutes	Councils and published minutes: Mito City Disaster Prevention Council	Whether you can search past debates by wording
Master plan	Comprehensive plan	How many years ahead this town has decided

The mayor of Mito CityTakahashi Yasushi. The page carrying that name was last updated2022-06-13.
🔴 Age and gender have not been guessed from the name.Only what is published is reproduced here, as published.Mito City introduction page →

How much of the council can you see?A list of members, live or recorded broadcasts of full sessions, and searchable minutes — where these three are published, you can read a town's debates for yourself before you ever move there.
🔴 The names, photographs and social media of individual council members are not carried on this site. We point you to where you can read them.
Once you have moved, when your own turn to decide comes round is something those three will tell you.

How many years ahead has been decidedIn Mito City,Comprehensive plan. A master plan usually sets outwhat the town has decided to do and by whenand ,where it intends to halt its population decline. 🔴 The period and the population target are not copied out on this site — plans get revised, and a misreading changes the meaning.Please check the official text from the link below.Comprehensive plan →

🔴 What I will not do in this chapter1. I will not guess gender or age from a name. Only what is published appears here. 2. I will not write that anything is good or bad. Only what is being put forward, and where it comes from. 3. I will not compare election candidates.
🔴 And mayors change. This site always records the date it checked (2026-08-22), and reopens the original page each time to confirm by machine that the name is still there. If you notice something has nonetheless gone out of date, please let us know.

Source: allofficial site (Mito City ), followed on 2026-08-22. What this site counted wasonly whether something is published or not ; the content has not been judged / verified 2026-08-22

Who runs Mito City now?

The mayor of Mito is Takahashi Yasushi (confirmed on the city’s “Mayor’s profile” page on 22 August 2026). He took office in May 2011 (Heisei 23) and is in his fourth term. He served on the Mito city council and in the Ibaraki prefectural assembly. In his greeting the mayor writes, “in May 2011 I was entrusted with the recovery and reconstruction after the Great East Japan Earthquake, and took office as mayor”. What this site looks for is six things: a profile of the head of the municipality, a policy statement, a list of assembly members, live coverage of the assembly, a search of the minutes, and a comprehensive plan. 🔴 We make no judgement of good or bad. Only whether something is published or not.

CHAPTER 17Where to go on a day off

Something that never shows up in the numbers you use to find a house, yet bears directly on how happy you are once you live there, is days off. This section counts, by the same measure across every area, the places you can go on a day off in Mito and the places family and friends can stay when they visit. This area currently has 4 hot spring and day bath facilities and 1 RV park. 🔴 All the counts are the numbers registered in the map data (OpenStreetMap) — in reality there may well be more.

What	Number counted, and names
♨ Hot springs and day baths	Yamano-yu, Gorokou-no-yu, Gokurakuyu Mito, Ichinoyu Mito (4 facilities)
🏯 Castles and castle sites	The Yoshida castle site
🎡 Amusement parks, zoos and aquariums	Not found in the map data
🖼 Museums, galleries and memorial halls	The Uchihara Local History and Volunteer Corps Museum, the Joyo Geibun Centre, the Ninomaru Exhibition Hall, the former Mitsukaido Elementary School main building, the Rekishikan history museum, the Mito Peace Memorial Museum, the Mito City Museum and the Kairakuen Park Centre, 10 in all
⛩ Shrines and temples	157 shrines and 54 temples. Those with a Wikipedia entry are Honkoji, Toshogu, Kanzakiji, Wakeikazuchi Kotaijin, Jinnoji, Mito Shrine, Ibaraki Gokoku Shrine and Gionji
🚗 Roadside stations	Not found in the map data
🐕 Dog runs	Not found in the map data
🛣 Expressway service and parking areas	Tano PA (inbound) / Tano PA (outbound)

Somewhere to stay — for family and friends, and for your own travels

What	Number counted
🏨 Hotels and ryokan	41
🏠 Guesthouses and hostels	3
⛺ Campsites and auto-campsites	Not found in the map data
🏕 Glamping	Not found among the campsite or hotel names
🚐 RV parks (overnight in your vehicle)	RV Park Auto Camp TR Otsuka

This table is the result of me (an AI) putting the same question to the map data for every area (areas are retrieved in batches, so the verification date on some pages is a day apart). Facilities not registered on the map are not counted. "Not found" does not mean "there are none" — nor that the town is any the lesser for it.

Sources: the counts and names of facilities fromOpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL) / RV parks fromJapan RV Association, list of certified "Kuruma-tabi" RV parks / roadside stations fromMinistry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, list of "michi-no-eki" roadside stations / the motorway service and parking areas, and the shops inside them, are also from OpenStreetMap (matched automatically against the outline of each site) / checked 2026-08-22

Are there places to go on a day off, and places to stay?

Counting from the map data (OpenStreetMap) and the lists kept by the RV association and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, we found 4 hot spring and day bath facilities, 10 museums and galleries, 1 castle or castle site, 41 hotels and inns, 3 guesthouses, 1 RV park and, for motorway stops, Tano PA (inbound and outbound). There are 157 shrines and 54 temples. 🔴 We could not find a national park, a quasi-national park or a roadside station inside Mito. Kairakuen and Lake Senba, meanwhile, lie almost at the centre of the built-up area and do not fall into those map-data categories (§1 and §11). Facilities that are not on the map are not counted, so in reality there may well be more (see §17 for details).

What I (an AI) was able to find on this town's official site

This site reads the official websites of every area it covers against the same 30 items, scored out of 100, to measure how quickly someone thinking of moving can reach the information they need. We measured Mito City’s official site, and the total came to 72 (measured 22 August 2026).

"Not found" does not mean "there is none." It means I followed the official site and could not find it. Tell us the published page and the next measurement will reflect it.

Area	Score	What was found
Getting started with a move	14 / 20	There is a relocation and settlement page / an advice desk (department, phone number, opening hours) / support schemes give amounts and conditions, and 1 more
Housing	9 / 15	There is an akiya bank; listings carry photographs, price, year built and floor area; completed deals are organised
The money side of living here	9 / 15	Water and sewerage charges are readable from a rate table; child-raising support is specific about amounts and scope; there are explanations of national health insurance tax and fixed asset tax
Disaster information	20 / 20	Hazard maps are published by district; flood, landslide and earthquake are all covered; the year the assumptions were last reviewed is stated; and 2 more
Industry and local produce	10 / 10	A list of local speciality products is on the official site; hometown tax results are published year by year; there are support schemes for businesses and industry
Transport	5 / 10	There is a community bus timetable; fares are stated
Can an AI read it?	5 / 10	Every page carries an updated date; statistics are published as Excel or CSV; open data is published

See all 30 items and the pages used to judge them

3 / 3　There is a relocation and settlement page
Promoting relocation and settlement　Go and see → 0 / 3　There is a dedicated relocation site
Only pages within the official site 3 / 3　A contact point (department, telephone, opening hours)
3 of department, telephone and opening hours were stated　Go and see → 5 / 5　Support schemes state amounts and conditions
Both amounts and conditions　Go and see → 3 / 3　There is trial housing or a trial-stay scheme
(within the relocation page)　Go and see → 0 / 3　Vacancies in trial housing are published
Not found 4 / 4　There is an akiya bank
There is a municipal akiya bank 1 / 4　Listings carry photographs, price, year built and floor area
0 of 1 (0%) had all four items 4 / 4　Completed deals are organised
No completed deals appear in the list 0 / 3　The conditions of use are stated
Not found 1 / 5　Water and sewerage charges are readable from a rate table
There is a water and sewerage page　Go and see → 5 / 5　Child-raising support is specific about amounts and scope
The scope of free and subsidised care is stated down to the age　Go and see → 3 / 3　There are explanations of national health insurance tax and fixed asset tax
Both the rates and the amounts are stated　Go and see → 0 / 2　Tie-ups with banks for mortgages and the like
Not found 5 / 5　Hazard maps are published by district
21 documents by district　Go and see → 5 / 5　Flood, landslide and earthquake are all covered
Flood / landslide / earthquake　Go and see → 3 / 3　The year the assumptions were last reviewed is stated
Revised January 2026　Go and see → 4 / 4　Is it machine-readable (a map system or a text PDF)?
Viewable in a map system　Go and see → 3 / 3　Disasters are announced through more than one channel
Disaster email / disaster app / social media / municipal loudspeakers / TV and radio　Go and see → 5 / 5　A list of local speciality products is on the official site
13 items (the city’s official site)　Go and see → 3 / 3　Hometown tax results are published year by year
11 financial years covered　Go and see → 2 / 2　There are support schemes for businesses and industry
Commerce and industry　Go and see → 2 / 4　There is a community bus timetable
There is a page　Go and see → 3 / 3　Fares are stated
　Go and see → 0 / 3　The date of the last revision is given
Not found　Go and see → 3 / 3　Every page carries an updated date
15 of the 20 pages read　Go and see → 0 / 2　There is a sitemap.xml
Not found 0 / 2　Site search runs on the server side
It was a Google custom search　Go and see → 1 / 2　Statistics are published as Excel or CSV
There is a statistics page　Go and see → 1 / 1　Open data is published
　Go and see →

Compare with other towns → 　For municipalities and local organisations (get in touch here) →

Measurement by this site. The URL of each official site was taken from the municipal information published by Furusato Choice. The score is a score for publishing information, not a score for how good the place is to live / verified 2026-08-22

Compare with other areas

Every page has the same 17 chapters in the same order. Move between them and you can compare the same line.

Areas in the Kanto region

Maebashi (the southern foot of Mt. Akagi)Maebashi City, Gunmalistings576 listings / ¥2,500,000–Hiki District (7 towns)Namegawa, Ranzan, Ogawa and others, Saitamalistings168 listings / ¥2,500,000–Miura (35°C once every three years — the tip of the Miura Peninsula)Miura City, Kanagawa Prefecturelistings59 listings / ¥2,980,000–Utsunomiya (53 min from Tokyo by shinkansen, a town with a brand-new LRT line)Utsunomiya City, Tochigilistings618 listings / ¥1,980,000–

Places you could look at for a similar price

Amagasaki (6 min from JR Amagasaki to Osaka, 19 to Sannomiya)Amagasaki City, Hyogolistings451 listings / ¥2,500,000–Hiki District (7 towns)Namegawa, Ranzan, Ogawa and others, Saitamalistings168 listings / ¥2,500,000–Maebashi (the southern foot of Mt. Akagi)Maebashi City, Gunmalistings576 listings / ¥2,500,000–Saga (37 min to Hakata by limited express; a town on the plain)Saga City, Sagalistings97 listings / ¥2,500,000–

Compare areas by budget and region →

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