Turn “can't buy” into “can choose”.
“On my income, a home in Tokyo is out of the question.” More and more people feel this way. Everything concentrating in Tokyo, a shrinking population, a weak yen and rising prices. But the homes you could choose haven't disappeared.
Because it's used, because it's outside Tokyo — that's exactly what puts a good life within reach. Sumilca reorders listings — including ones you rarely hear about at an agent's counter — around what you care about. In a country prone to disasters, a home search that gives you more options.
WHY NOW
How we choose homes is changing.
Everything in Tokyo
People and jobs crowd into the center, and homes within commuting range keep getting pricier.
Shrinking population
Meanwhile, more and more homes in the suburbs and the regions are waiting for someone to live in them.
Weak yen, rising prices
New-build prices climb, and the gap with incomes keeps widening.
Remote work has spread, and going to the office is no longer an every-day thing. If you go in twice a week, a town 90 minutes away becomes an option. Choosing a home only within daily commuting range is becoming a thing of the past.
Commute times are calculated from real weekday-morning timetables, transfers and waiting included.
How we used to choose
- Start from new builds
- Insist on central, near a station
- Assume a daily commute
How we can choose now
- Consider used homes too
- Look at the suburbs and regions
- Set your commute range by office days
WHAT WE DELIVER
Three things Sumilca sets out to deliver.
Find the homes that were buried
Used homes, suburban and regional homes that rarely get recommended at the counter are ranked on the same yardstick. The order comes from their value to you, not from how much they're advertised.
Used houses, condos and land from multiple listing sites are scored together on one yardstick.
Suggestions shaped to your taste
Not a one-size-fits-all filter: listings are reordered around how you live, what you value and your budget. The more you rate, the more it learns your taste, and the closer the suggestions get to you.
Your ratings teach it which criteria matter to you, and how much.
Choose with confidence in disaster-prone Japan
Earthquakes, floods, landslides. Alongside price and layout, the safety of the land is shown as part of the decision.
Hazard maps from Japan's land ministry and earthquake data from NIED are shown for every listing.
HOW IT WORKS
That list of listings isn't sorted for you.
Lowest price first, newest first. The order is set by the side listing the properties — never by you. So no matter how far you scroll, you never reach your own number one.
Sumilca reorders listings by your own criteria — commute time, disaster risk, budget. For each one it shows the score, and where that score comes from. So the reason behind the ranking is clear, and you can explain it, to yourself and to your family.
HOW IT WORKS
What Sumilca does
Same listings — the order changes the conclusion.
You get stuck comparing when your criteria aren't numbers yet.
Here are three moments where most people stall — and how Sumilca handles each.
Two workplaces, and nothing settles.
Say it's 42 minutes to company A, 38 to company B. Look at listings one at a time, from one side only, and you can't weigh both — so the decision stalls.
TIPPut the travel time to both workplaces on one screen. The listings that land in a range you can both live with show up right away, as numbers.
The more you check disaster risk, the fewer options remain.
Prone to flooding here, shaky ground there. Checking site by site takes effort, and the basis for comparison never lines up.
TIPLay out the type and degree of risk — flood, earthquake — for each listing in the same format. Draw a single line at "this much, I can accept," and the field narrows to a realistic number.
It feels right, but you can't tell your family why.
You feel "this is the one," but if you can't put into words why it ranks where it does, the conversation with your family goes nowhere.
TIPThe criteria you weighed and each listing's score breakdown stay on screen. Show it and say, "budget is second, but commute is first — that's why."
3 STEPS / UI FLOW
Whatever the moment, the steps are the same three.
Choose your criteria
From commute, safety, and budget, choose what to weigh and by how much. That weighting is exactly what the order reflects.
Enter the numbers
Enter workplace addresses and the ceiling for disaster risk you'll accept. One person or two — either works.
Reorder, reasons and all
Every listing is scored on your criteria and reordered. The breakdown behind each score is shown alongside.
PRESET
Sort by two commutes
Enter both workplaces and, comparing both commute times on one screen, bring the listings within a range you can both live with to the top.
Add your commute and compare (free login)Comparing two destinations at once is a Premium feature.
PRESET
Filter by a disaster-risk ceiling
Weigh flood and earthquake risk heavily, push listings past your line down, and narrow to the ones within it.
Try these conditionsPRESET
Sort with reasons you can explain
Reorder with each listing's score breakdown on screen, ready to show your family just as it is.
Try these conditionsYou can show each row's verdict and breakdown to your family as is.
Go find more options.
When the options grow, people who had given up can choose a home again. In a Japan of shrinking population and frequent disasters, Sumilca aims to be a new way to get a home of your own.
There are only three things to do: pick your area, the criteria that matter, and your budget. In a few seconds you get a list sorted by your own criteria, with the reason behind every score. No name or email, no fee. You can add your commute destination after logging in (free). Start with just one — the criterion you can least give up.