Business Apr. 16, 2008 - 03:11AM JST ( 0 )

TOKYO —

The number of new condominiums put up for sale in the greater Tokyo area in fiscal 2007 dropped 17.9% from the previous year to a 14-year low of 58,156 units, a private think tank said Tuesday. Higher land and construction costs raised retail prices, resulting in a sales slump and a lower supply of new condominiums in the year that ended in March, the Real Estate Economic Institute said.

For fiscal 2007, the average unit price stood at 46.98 million yen, up 9.3% from the previous year. The average price jumped 16% in central Tokyo amid rising land prices.

The number of condominiums that remained unsold at the end of March came to 10,837 units, topping the 10,000-unit mark for the first time since fiscal 1992 on a fiscal year-end basis.

In Osaka and surrounding areas, new condominium supply fell 7.6% to 28,592 units.

In March alone, new supply in the greater Tokyo area fell 17.8% from a year before to 4,490 units.

JCN