Won't Miss #114 - key money & contract renewal fees

Though it isn't always the case, you often have to pay two months of "gift" money when you first sign a contract and one to three months again every two years when you renew your contract. This is mandatory, though it can be negotiated in some cases. The money is little more than extortion and a way of extracting more money from the tenant. In some cities, this is illegal and there has been much talk of outlawing it all over Japan, but there will always be a way for landlords to get around the law. Since moving is far from cheap in Japan, tenants have a choice between paying these fees or forking out money to move at an expense not appreciably less than some of these required "gifts".

I won't miss this extortion when dealing with rental contracts.

Won't Miss #63 - no room at the inn

Though it isn't nearly as obvious or omnipresent as it once was, many landlords still do not welcome foreigners. When we first arrived about two decades ago, there were signs in real estate agencies (who in Japan arrange for rental contracts) saying, "no foreigners, no pets, and no prostitutes." These days, there aren't as many signs, but the best rental deals (especially cheap places) are often off-limits to foreigners. More often than not, the places that welcome foreigners are those which offer the types of accommodation most Japanese people would not accept like large, shared housing with relatively high rent for the space provided or simply small, expensive places that are less attractive to the Japanese.

I won't miss knowing that if I moved, I'd almost certainly have to deal with a lot of discrimination and have limited options.