Top of the big era

Tokyo is the most developed city in Asia. Compared with the domestic economic center of Shanghai, Tokyo has twice the population, one third of the area, 6 times the population density and 6 times the total GDP of Shanghai. It is 20 times that of Shanghai.

However, there is one industry in Tokyo that is very miserable.

That is real estate.

Since the real estate bubble burst in the 1980s, Japan's real estate market has been full of snot and tears. Now, 40% of the real estate in Japan has been bought by foreign capital.

Especially the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, Japan.

This is a century-old store for royal weddings and banquets.

Then it was fully acquired by Cerberus, an American capital, and turned into an American restaurant. This is not a big deal, the key is that Cerberus translated means "watchdog".

For the locals, it was a great shame and shame, and those who heard about it burst into tears.

In March of this year, Wall Street capital sensed that the direction of the wind was wrong and withdrew from the Japanese real estate market one after another. In that month, Japanese real estate prices collectively plummeted by 30%.

It's September, and financial markets are increasingly tense.

World giants like Lehman and Merrill Lynch are at risk of bankruptcy, and the core of the financial crisis is real estate. In the past two weeks, property prices have plummeted again by 40%.

Compared with the price of the same period last year, the current Japanese housing market generally has a decline of 60%-70%.

In contrast, the decline in luxury houses is relatively small, only about 40%.

Many are second-hand mansions owned by foreigners.

These foreigners can't survive under the impact of the economic crisis, and they are crying to return to their home countries. Their hometown is about to fall, so how can they be in the mood to enjoy luxury in Tokyo?

Start selling houses collectively.

The three houses that the real estate agency picked for Zhou Buqi are all in the port area, and they are all second-hand luxury houses for sale. This is an international rich area, almost all foreign rich people in Tokyo live here.

One advantage of second-hand housing is that you can move in with your bags.

Even move in ready today.

"There are many high-end residences here, and embassies are here. Another advantage is that Tokyo's colleges and universities are mainly located in the port area." Tang Binchen introduced it to him meaningfully.

Zhou Buqi's eyes lit up, "All universities are here? That's great, so there are many college students?"

Tang Binchen smiled, "Well, a lot."

Zhou Buqi said: "Looking at it now, we have already settled down in the Japanese market, and it is very safe. This can be used as the center of the Asian overseas market, further radiating to South Korea and Southeast Asia. I may come here often in the future. It doesn’t matter if you are not familiar with the place, you must have an assistant. You can start training from college, and the key is to learn Chinese well.”

Because the language was in Chinese, the real estate agent couldn't understand it at all, so he could only have a flattering smile on his face.

This is a bit strange. This Japanese real estate agent is an uncle in his 50s, dressed in suits and leather shoes, and looks more like a successful person than Zhou Buqi.

What Tang Binchen wanted to say was another matter, "I think we can change our thinking about the headquarters building."

"oh?"

"Since 2004, real estate hot money from abroad began to flow into Tokyo. The economy here is developed, the population density is high, and the construction cost is low. It is considered an opportunity to buy a bargain. Then, foreign capital began to promote the heat of Tokyo's real estate market. In the past In recent years, real estate prices in Tokyo have been rising.”

"This is a cliff-like crash."

"Yes, it was the collapse." Tang Binchen nodded, "Japan's economy is deeply tied to that of the United States, and the subprime mortgage crisis has had a great impact on them. In the past few years, driven by foreign capital, Tokyo has developed one piece after another. Real estate projects. Now funds are outflowing, and they are collectively plummeting.”

Zhou Buqi understood what he meant, and said in surprise, "You mean...you mean we won't build it ourselves? Just buy a real estate?"

Tang Binchen said: "I have asked someone to calculate, and it is the most cost-effective to buy directly. Not only does it save time and effort, you can move in as soon as possible, the key price is also low, and the cost price can be won. More importantly, the location."

Zhou Buqi turned to look at him, "Here? Port area?"

Tang Binchen said: "That's right, it is the port area. In the past few years, in the large-scale infrastructure construction, the land in the central area has been taken away. We can only go to the suburbs when we take the land. The cloud computing center and the logistics storage center are infrastructure. It’s okay to put the project in the suburbs, but the headquarters is also in the suburbs, which is a bit out of the mainstream. It’s better to acquire land in the central area, just like Google, Amazon, and Microsoft. Only in the central area can there be the image of a big company. It’s more competitive when recruiting. When you go to a remote suburb, it’s too inconvenient for employees to go to the city to drink sake and entertain after work.”

Zhou Buqi thinks so.

The workplace environment in Japan is different from that in China and Europe and the United States.

In other places, employees can't wait to go home after get off work, stay with their families, and set aside enough time for themselves. But it's different in Japan. When a man goes home after get off work, he will be laughed at by his family.

Are you about to be fired?

Do you have no friends in the company?

Is it because the work is not going well and you are left out by the leader?

Under normal circumstances, employees have to voluntarily work overtime for an hour or two in the company. Then go out to dinner with company leaders or friends in the company, drink some wine, and socialize.

This is considered an important part of socializing in the workplace. Even when men go to a custom place with friends after get off work to have fun, women often understand that it is part of the job.

Honest people who go home to accompany their wives after get off work cannot be tolerated, and they are useless.

So much so that at night, in many small bars, there will be single men drinking alone alone. After drinking until after 11 o'clock, the last subway will get up before they get up and go home.

Because I was afraid of going home too early and being looked down upon by my family.

The social pressure is evident.

This is the important influence of the local environment on the choice of enterprises. If Ziweixing Japan's headquarters were in the suburbs, it would be too out of tune with the local culture.

It should choose a central area with a developed economy and a prosperous entertainment industry, so as to facilitate the entertainment activities of employees after get off work.

This can also reflect a problem - now Tang Binchen is full of confidence!

Tang Binchen must have discovered such a social background a long time ago. He didn't say it because he lacked confidence. If you bought an office building, but the Japanese market didn't start, wouldn't that be a disaster?

Now YikYak is popular, and UC beauty has become a must-have mobile phone software for girls. Ziweixing’s business in Japan has already achieved initial results.

You can buy a building!

Tang Binchen went on to say: "This is the port area, most of the universities are here, and foreigners like to live here. There are great advantages in talents here. It would be a good choice to set up the headquarters here."

Zhou Buqi nodded, "What about the price?"

Tang Binchen said: "Last year, before the subprime mortgage crisis broke out, Goldman Sachs bought the Tiffany Building in Ginza for 37 billion yen. Although it has only 9 floors, it is the most prosperous block in Tokyo. It belongs to Tiffany's." The logo is a building that can be called a work of art. It is only 300 million US dollars. The property prices in Japan are much lower than those in China. Now that foreign capital is fleeing and the property market is depressed, the prices are even lower.”

Seeing him open his mouth, Zhou Buqi came, knowing that he must have made sufficient preparations, "Well, it's a chance to buy the bottom."

Tang Binchen was very happy, and said with a smile: "Yes, I have taken a fancy to an office building on the 12th floor, next to the Tokyo Tower. It was completed in June, and it was cut off after a while. The foreign investment has been withdrawn, and I want to pack it up and sell it. No one has taken over for a long time. If we go, I estimate that $200 million can be eaten."

Zhou Buqi laughed and said, "Are you prepared?"

"A rare opportunity."

Tang Binchen felt a little guilty.

Another 200 million U.S. dollars, which is really too much.

Zhou Buqi asked: "Didn't we buy a piece of land in June and break ground?"

Tang Binchen said: "That's the cloud computing center, and the logistics center on Jingtao. Well... the construction of the building can be stopped, and the loss is not too big."

"You are the president, you handle it." Zhou Buqi waved his hand, he must not know the business here as well as the other party, so he boldly delegated power, "When the time comes, don't forget to reserve an office for me."

Seeing that he agreed, Tang Binchen said happily: "Okay, I will use the best decoration for you!" After a pause, he asked weakly: "Then the funds for buying the house... What do you think?"

This is the core point.

"Go ahead and talk, and I'll send you the money before the end of the month."

Zhou Buqi is now numb.

Although Ziweixing is a high-tech company, among the industries at home and abroad, the largest expenditure is the investment in infrastructure, the construction of cloud computing centers, the purchase of servers in large quantities, the establishment of high-speed networks, and the construction and purchase of various headquarters buildings .

Fortunately, now is the economic crisis, and Japan's real estate has collapsed again.

Now is the best time to buy bottoms.

200 million US dollars can buy a 12-story top office building in the most prosperous area, which is very cost-effective.

Compared with this $200 million real estate business, if Zhou Buqi wanted to buy a mansion for personal living, it was really a trivial business. A total of 3 suites have been prepared, all of which are very good.

One set is Japanese style and two sets are British style.

It is said to be British style, but this is Japan, and the interior of the villa also has many Japanese cultural designs, such as tatami mats, wooden rocking chairs, and minimalist illustrations on the walls.

Zhou Buqi was not ambiguous at all, he gave up the Japanese-style villa and took down the remaining two English-style villas.

A total of only 300 million yen, the total price is less than 4.5 million US dollars.

According to the intermediary, when the two foreigners bought it last year, the cost of a single luxury house was more than 3 million US dollars. This time it was a great bargain.

Zhou Buqi wanted to move in with his bags, but the intermediary was a bit rigid, saying that he needed to sign a contract and there was no rush. But soon, the homeowner was very anxious to make a move, and promised to move in tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.

At this time, a phone call came, and it was from China.

Shen Xiangyang said some bad news, "Zhang Hongguang, the executive vice president of the research institute, is going to leave for Baidu to serve as CTO."