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IrelandJapan's one-and-a-half-story homes bring daily life downstairs
A resident's account puts convenience alongside the report's tax-saving argument, which depends on local rules.
JapanWhy this story? One of ANNnewsCH's most watched videos since yesterday, with 398,054 views.
ANNnewsCH: The news channel of ANN, a Japanese news network led by TV Asahi. 5.1M subscribers and 6.4B views.
低コスト「1.5階建て」住宅 現代の暮らしにフィット 固定資産税抑え収納確保【グッド！モーニング】(2026年11月10日)
Things we can learn from the video
Press to jump
- 0:13The Oyama model home combines high ceilings, three rooms and a living, dining and kitchen area.
- 0:51A short staircase reaches a loft and two rooms above the main level.
- 1:17The builder's "Kura" storage space sits beneath the raised level, with a ceiling limited to 1.4 meters.
- 1:57The report explains potential property-tax savings from low storage ceilings, noting that municipal rules differ.
- 2:26The Saito household uses the low space for storage and its dog, while keeping daily life downstairs.
For the Saito household in Kisarazu, east of Tokyo, the appeal of a one-and-a-half-story house is having everyday life gathered on the ground floor. Even the low-ceilinged storage space has another use: a room for the family dog.
Japan's TV Asahi-operated All-Nippon News Network channel, ANNnewsCH, visits the couple after they moved into a compact home as their children grew older. Saito says the concentrated downstairs layout makes daily living easier.
The November 10 Good! Morning report presents the design as one response to rising housing prices: more storage than a conventional bungalow, without building a full second story.
A model home in Oyama, Tochigi Prefecture, shows how it works. High ceilings open up the main living space, while a short staircase leads to a loft and two rooms. Beneath the raised level sits a broad storage area marketed by builder Misawa Home as "Kura." Its ceiling is limited to 1.4 meters, too low for most adults to stand upright.
That height is central to the financial argument. The report says qualifying low-ceilinged storage can be excluded from property-tax assessment, but explicitly notes that the applicable height rules vary by municipality. A company representative says the accumulated savings can be substantial. The broadcast also puts construction costs between those of a conventional two-story house and a bungalow, rather than presenting this as the cheapest option to build.
Viewers raise practical questions beyond the tax bill: whether higher construction and borrowing costs outweigh savings, how high ceilings affect heating and cooling, and whether crouching to retrieve stored belongings becomes inconvenient. Others discuss wanting smaller homes once children have left, the same everyday consideration illustrated by the Saitos' move.
Published on Trari
Where next?
- Channel
- ANNnewsCH
- Subscribers
- 5,100,000 ▲ 10,000 this week
- Channel views, last 7 days
- 29,206,066
- Channel views, pace per day
- 1,358,333 (on a normal day: 3,445,579)
- Video published
- November 10, 2026
- Video views so far
- 402,539 (less than a day online)
- Video views, pace per day
- 398,053
The numbers
The housing report drew about 398,000 views since yesterday, making it one of Japan's most-watched new news videos over that period.
💡 Test your knowledge
In which Japanese prefecture is Kisarazu, home to the residents featured in the report?
The report visits the Saito household in Kisarazu, Chiba Prefecture.