It looks abandoned, but someone lives here

Along Akasaka Dori, just steps outside a busy subway entrance and a short distance away from the Akasaka Sacas is this old wooden house.  Due to the central location and high cost in Tokyo, I can only imagine that the property itself must be worth the building's weight in silver (or perhaps gold).

Urban Haikyo (or does somebody live in there?)

I come across buildings like this in Tokyo quite often, and wonder does someone live there?  I am pretty sure that this building has not be abandoned, just yet.

Can you believe someone lives here?

I've been driving by this house a couple times a month since I returned to Tokyo in 2007.  It's located near Meiji Dori in Hiroo. It's amazing that it doesn't blow down in a strong wind. Considering Tokyo can be such a modern city, this house disguised as a shack seems very out of place. 

Usually, such eyesores get quickly trampled, disposed of or recycled by progress.  Very few older structures ever seem to survive, get restored and protected.  It seems so arbitrary, but I guess in such a large city there are always a few buildings that slip through the cracks....  It makes me wonder if the property taxes for this house are worth more than the actual house.

If you were wondering, I am absolutely sure that someone does live here. While I was taking this photo, I saw someone walking around inside, and I'm sure it wasn't a ghost...

Haikyo in the Azabu area?

Abandoned ruins in Japan are known as Haikyo.  I especially like the photographs of them in Michael John Grist's blog.  He's gone to the extremes to find these abandoned deteriorating buildings.

The ones that I photographed in this post are of the haikyo that I have come across during my walks around my Tokyo neighborhood.  Most are not really that deteriorated.  They appear abandoned or seldom used.  There are padlocks on the doorways and boarded up windows.  Several appear to have suffered some vandalism.  However, I haven't entered any these buildings, so I can't give much insight.

Here's one I spotted in Minami-Azaubu.  It appears to be some sort of machine shop.  There's a large milling machine in the front, perhaps it's a lathe.  I didn't really take a close look.

Here are two more right next to each other in Minami-Azabu.  These are very close to the posh Moto-Azaubu area.  It looks like there is enough area to park a car in front of the second one.  Usually the property owner would block off access to parking, but perhaps he lives nearby and uses it to park his car?

Finally, here's one I spotted in Shirogane.