Kominka Japan’s My Village Program is an all-volunteer effort to help mitigate the population decline in Japan’s rural villages. Volunteers from across Japan have effectively volunteered to introduce you to villages where they and their minka reside.
Realtors and akiya bank managers can only tell you so much about a particular area. What’s the elementary school like? Where is the nearest ATM? What’s the best way to heat my water? Do you need 4-wheel drive to live here? What’s the weather like in January? How far away are the nearest doctors? How fast is the Internet? Do cellphones get a good
reception?
These and many other questions can be answered by contacting one of our My Village program participants. They will tell you the pluses and minuses of the communities they live in, with “insider” information that real estate companies likely don’t have and, in some cases, would be unlikely to share if they did!
If you find an area that interests you, a place where you might want to locate a minka and settle down, you can contact one of our volunteers and they would be happy to answer any questions you might have. You might even be able to arrange a meet-up; depending upon their availability they might even help guide you around the community, suggest local minka that might be available for purchase and, in general, provide invaluable information that will enable you to make a decision about your minka-future!
A big THANK YOU to all of our My Village volunteers! If you would be interested in volunteering yourself and your village, please feel free to
contact us!