Property listings contain factual information and advertising claims. Rules govern both the information that must be disclosed and misleading representations. Learning these terms helps you read listings and distinguish advertising rules from the separate explanation of important matters before a contract.
This guide covers 20 terms under the real-estate Fair Competition Code (amended effective October 1, 2024), its enforcement rules (amended effective September 1, 2022), and MLIT's Brokerage Act interpretation guidance effective April 1, 2026.
20 listing terms
| Term | Reading | English | What it tells you on a listing | Rule source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 取引態様 | とりひきたいよう | Type of transaction | Whether the advertiser is the seller, lessor, agent or intermediary. The listing must say which, using the words 売主, 貸主, 代理 or 媒介 (仲介). | Rules Art. 9(1) |
| 徒歩所要時間 | とほしょようじかん | Walking time | Time on foot to a station or facility. It is worked out at 1 minute per 80 m of road distance, and any fraction of a minute counts as a full minute. | Rules Art. 9(9) |
| 壁心面積 | へきしんめんせき | Wall-centre floor area | Floor area measured to the centre line of the walls. The tatami count of a room is tied to it (see 畳). | Rules Art. 9(16); Table 6 |
| 畳 | じょう | Tatami mat (room-size unit) | A room size given in 畳 means each mat is at least 1.62 m², counted as the room's wall-centre area divided by the number of mats. | Rules Art. 9(16) |
| 新築 | しんちく | Newly built | Less than 1 year since the building work was completed and never lived in. Both conditions must hold. | Code Art. 18(1)(1) |
| 中古住宅 | ちゅうこじゅうたく | Used detached house | A detached house for sale that is 1 year or more past completion, or that has been lived in. | Rules Art. 3(7) |
| 地目 | ちもく | Land category | The category recorded in the real-property register. If the current use differs, the listing must show the current category too. | Rules Art. 9(19) |
| セットバック | せっとばっく | Setback strip | The strip of a site treated as road under Building Standards Act Art. 42(2). Except for rental housing, a listing of land containing such a strip must disclose it; when the strip is roughly 10% or more of the land area, its area must also be stated. | Code Art. 13; Rules Art. 7(2) |
| 管理費 | かんりひ | Management fee (condominium) | Monthly amount per unit for running the condominium and maintaining common areas (including public charges on common areas, but excluding 修繕積立金). A planned figure must be flagged as planned. If amounts differ between units and displaying every amount is difficult, the minimum and maximum may be shown. | Rules Art. 9(41) |
| 修繕積立金 | しゅうぜんつみたてきん | Repair reserve fund | Monthly amount per unit saved for future repairs, shown separately from 管理費. A planned figure must be flagged as planned. If amounts differ between units and displaying every amount is difficult, the minimum and maximum may be shown. | Rules Art. 9(43) |
| 共益費 | きょうえきひ | Common-area charge (rental) | Monthly charge per unit for running and maintaining facilities or equipment that tenants share. A planned figure must be flagged as planned. If amounts differ between units and displaying every amount is difficult, the minimum and maximum may be shown. | Rules Art. 9(42) |
| 礼金・権利金 | れいきん・けんりきん | Key money / premium | Up-front payments to the lessor such as key money. A listing must not make them look smaller than they are; rental listings state the fact and amount when payable, and advertisements for a sale with a leaseback-and-subletting arrangement state whether one is payable under the lease between the purchaser-owner and the seller or designated operator and, if so, how much. | Code Art. 23(47); Rules Art. 10(2)(2); Tables 8–9 |
| 敷金・保証金 | しききん・ほしょうきん | Security deposit | Deposits such as 敷金 and 保証金. A listing must not make them look smaller than they are; rental and leasehold listings state the fact and amount when payable (and any non-refundable portion in rentals), and advertisements for a sale with a leaseback-and-subletting arrangement state whether one is payable under the lease between the purchaser-owner and the seller or designated operator and, if so, how much. | Code Art. 23(47); Rules Art. 10(2)(2); Tables 1, 3–9 |
| 建築条件付土地 | けんちくじょうけんつきとち | Land sold with a building condition | Land sold on condition that a construction contract is concluded within a set period. Except for rental housing, the listing must state that the object sold is land, the condition's content, and the measures if it is not met (and when a building design plan is shown, the deadline and full refund upon cancellation). | Code Arts. 4(6)(1), 6, 13; Rules Art. 7(1) |
| 現況有姿分譲地 | げんきょうゆうしぶんじょうち | Land sold as-is in lots | Forest, wilderness or similar land (山林・原野等) mainly divided into lots of at least a set size for sale, other than ordinary 分譲宅地 and 売地. | Rules Art. 3(2) |
| 建ぺい率 | けんぺいりつ | Building coverage ratio | Total building area on the site divided by site area. The applicable legal limit must not be stated falsely or in a way that makes it appear less restrictive than it is. | Code Art. 23(30) |
| 定期借地権 | ていきしゃくちけん | Fixed-term leasehold | A leasehold that ends on a fixed date without renewal. MLIT names the existence and content of leaseholds, including fixed-term leaseholds, among the restrictions on use (private-law restrictions) that an advertisement must not misstate. | MLIT guidance on Art. 32 |
| おとり広告 | おとりこうこく | Bait advertising | Advertising a property that does not exist, that exists but cannot actually be the object of a transaction, or that exists but that the advertiser has no intention of trading. The display code prohibits all three. | Code Art. 21 |
| 誇大広告 | こだいこうこく | Exaggerated advertising | A representation that misleads people into thinking a property or its terms are materially better or more advantageous than they are. MLIT's example: advertising “1 km to the station” when the straight-line distance is about 1 km but the actual route is 4 km. | MLIT guidance on Art. 32 |
| 重要事項説明 | じゅうようじこうせつめい | Explanation of important matters | The explanation a transaction specialist gives to a buyer, recipient in an exchange or tenant who is not a licensed broker before the contract is concluded. IT explanations require two-way sound and video, advance provision of the explanation document bearing the specialist's name and its attachments, checks before starting that the recipient can consult them and receive sound/video, and confirmation that the specialist's certificate is visible on screen. | MLIT guidance on Art. 35(1) |
The advertising code is a self-regulatory code run by the real-estate fair trade councils; MLIT's guidance is the ministry's own reading of the Brokerage Act.
How to read a listing in sixty seconds
1. Who is selling?
Check 取引態様 first. 売主 means you would deal directly with the seller; 媒介 means an intermediary is in the middle. It changes who you are talking to and who owes you which duties.
2. What is actually being sold?
Read 地目, the land rights and any building condition together. 建築条件付土地 and セットバック both change what you can do with the plot, and the code requires them to be spelled out.
3. What will it cost every month (and up front)?
For a condominium, add monthly 管理費 and 修繕積立金. For a rental, check monthly 共益費 as well as up-front 礼金 and 敷金. A figure marked as planned is not yet fixed.
4. Can you trust the distance?
Divide the road distance by 80 m and round up. If a listing says “5 minutes”, the road route should be more than 320 m and up to 400 m. This check is our own arithmetic from the rule, not a legal finding.
Note
Which source is behind each term
The advertising code is an industry self-regulatory code binding participating brokers (brokers belonging to a fair trade council's member organisations or participating individually); it is not a statute. The Brokerage Act itself is in force for every licensed broker. Where a term appears in both, we cite the document we opened. For the exact wording of a provision, read the original page linked in the sources, because rules are revised from time to time.
Frequently asked questions
Is the advertising code the same as the Brokerage Act?
No. The Brokerage Act is a statute that applies to licensed brokers. The advertising code is a self-regulatory agreement on how property is advertised, and it fills in details such as walking-time arithmetic and tatami size.
Do I need to memorise the 80 m rule for the exam?
Yes. The advertising-code rules are part of the material covered by the advertising topic. For example, RETIO's 2025 Q47 explicitly tests the Premiums and Representations Act including the Fair Competition Code; Q46–50 are exempted for qualifying registered-course graduates. Distinguish these rules from Brokerage Act Articles 32–34.
Why do some listings say 媒介 and others 仲介?
The code accepts either word for the intermediary role. 媒介 is the statutory term; 仲介 is the everyday one.
Sources
- Federation of Real Estate Fair Trade Councils — 不動産の表示に関する公正競争規約・同施行規則 (Code effective 2024-10-01; Enforcement Rules effective 2022-09-01) (opens in a new tab)rftc.jpSource for terms marked “Display code”, “Display code rules” or “Display code & rules” (with Required Display Items Tables 別表1–10 at https://www.rftc.jp/webkanri/kanri/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/20220901_beppyou.pdf)Accessed October 25, 2026
- MLIT — 宅地建物取引業法の解釈・運用の考え方 (in force from 2026-04-01) (opens in a new tab)mlit.go.jpSource for terms marked “MLIT guidance”Accessed October 25, 2026
- RFTC — 必要な表示事項の一覧表 (opens in a new tab)rftc.jpTables 1, 3–9Accessed October 25, 2026
- RETIO — 2025 exam paper (opens in a new tab)retio.or.jpQ47 and exemption instructionsAccessed October 25, 2026
- MLIT — 建蔽率（法第53条） (opens in a new tab)mlit.go.jpDefinition of building coverage ratioAccessed October 25, 2026