On July 27, the Real Estate Distribution Promotion Center held the inaugural meeting of the “Study Committee for the Spread and Establishment of High-Quality Real Estate Consulting” at Vision Center Akasaka in Nagata-cho.
The committee was formed to examine challenges and potential solutions for promoting high-quality consulting services among small and medium-sized real estate businesses, as expectations for real estate consulting continue to grow in areas such as vacant house management and inheritance planning. In response to the clear emphasis on consulting in the “Program to Combat Vacant Houses by the Real Estate Industry” released in June 2024, the committee was established in collaboration with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Participants included representatives from industry associations, academic experts, and practitioners. Professor Yasuhiko Nakashiro, Dean of the Faculty of Real Estate at Meikai University, was appointed as chairman. He commented, “The real estate consulting skills registration system was launched shortly after the collapse of the bubble economy, but today we are facing similarly transformative changes, such as a super-aging society and population decline.”
Following this, the Center, which serves as the secretariat, presented an overview of current trends in real estate consulting, including the present situation, key issues, and available support measures. The results of a joint survey conducted by the Center and the Ministry targeting real estate professionals and certified consulting masters were shared. The survey highlighted several challenges: the difficulty of earning fees beyond brokerage commissions, the heavy workload requiring broad expertise, and the struggle to make consulting a primary business activity. Based on these findings, three main areas for discussion were proposed: the promotion of consulting services, skill enhancement, and compensation and contract frameworks.
Regarding the promotion of consulting services, the committee emphasized the need to raise public awareness and trust, as consulting remains relatively unknown and clients often lack understanding of its value. For skill enhancement, the importance of reskilling tools and training programs was noted to help consultants meet the diverse demands of their work. In terms of compensation and contracts, the committee discussed the need to establish clear remuneration guidelines and develop support tools to address the difficulty of receiving consulting fees.
Committee members shared their perspectives on these issues. Some raised concerns about the boundaries between consulting and brokerage, while others pointed out the problem of unqualified individuals calling themselves consultants, leading to inconsistencies in skill levels. There were also suggestions to distinguish between “consultation” and “execution,” and to consider building networks of consultants based on their areas of expertise and regional characteristics.
The Center will further organize and refine these issues based on the committee’s input. The next meeting is scheduled for around September 25 and will include presentations by expert members as part of a hearing for practitioners. Several additional meetings will be held thereafter, with the goal of compiling an interim report by the end of the fiscal year. A separate working group will also be established to develop practical support tools.
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