TOKYO, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- The number of condominiums units in Japan's market fell 12 percent in 2019 from the previous year as elevated prices reflecting higher labor costs discouraged demand, a research firm said on Thursday.
The number of condos listed for sale in the country in 2019 stands at 70,660 units, the lowest number in 43 years since 49,955 units in 1976, the Real Estate Economic Institute said.
With higher labor costs in the construction industry and rising land prices, the average unit prices increased 0.6 percent to 47.87 million yen (428,000 U.S. dollars), topping the previous record for the third consecutive year, according to the institute.
The institute also said weak demand for condominiums not only exists in the Tokyo metropolitan area but is also slowly spreading to other parts of Japan.
The new condo supply fell 15.9 percent in the region, which also includes Chiba, Kanagawa and Saitama prefectures and constitutes more than 40 percent of the total supply.
The institute forecast the falling trend will continue this year and supply will fall 0.9 percent to 70,000 units.
