The Irony of Tokyo’s Hidden-Gem Rankings: Why Convenient but Slightly Uncool Neighborhoods Get Chosen

A television program recently presented a ranking of Tokyo neighborhoods that people consider hidden gems.

Kitasenju came in first. The neighborhood where I live ranked fifth.

That made sense to me. The two places have a lot in common.

They have excellent transportation and plenty of shopping. They are extremely convenient places to live, but almost no one hears their names and exclaims, “How stylish!”

In short, they are convenient but lack prestige. That is why the rent is affordable.

And I think that is precisely why they are called hidden gems.

The Neighborhood Became More Convenient, but Its Image Stayed in the Past

To begin with, I did not choose this neighborhood because I particularly liked it.

I was born and raised here, so I simply continued living here.

In the past, the transportation was not especially convenient.

Then the subway network expanded, and the local station became a hub served by three lines. Today, I can travel almost anywhere in Tokyo without difficulty.

The area around the station has also developed considerably over the past few years.

Before I knew it, the neighborhood where I grew up had reached fifth place in a hidden-gem ranking.

I had done nothing, yet the neighborhood’s reputation had improved all by itself.

Its image, however, remains stuck in the past.

Shibuya, Ebisu, Omotesando.

Those names alone somehow sound sophisticated.

Kitasenju and my neighborhood do not have that kind of glamour.

If anything, they still carry a slightly unfashionable, provincial image.

Thanks to that image, rents and property prices remain relatively affordable.

In other words, the lack of prestige has become a genuine advantage for residents.

Crossing into Saitama Makes Everything Cheaper

Come to think of it, my younger brother bought a house in Saitama.

It has reasonably good access to central Tokyo and is perfectly convenient for everyday life.

Yet property prices change dramatically simply because it is in Saitama rather than Tokyo.

It is interesting how the image changes the moment you cross the prefectural border.

“I live in Tokyo.”

“I live in Saitama.”

Those two statements carry values that have little to do with the actual convenience of daily life.

People may think they are buying a house, but perhaps they are also buying the image attached to its address.

The Value of Having No Prestige

When you think about it, everyone wants different things from the place where they live.

Some people feel satisfied by living in a fashionable neighborhood.

What matters to me, on the other hand, is convenient train service, easy shopping, and a cost of living that is not needlessly high.

I do not care what other people think when they hear the name of my neighborhood.

Seen that way, it is perfectly rational for places like Kitasenju to receive more recognition.

There is, however, a strange irony here.

A neighborhood becomes a hidden gem precisely because it lacks prestige.

Once it becomes popular as a hidden gem, rents and property prices begin to rise.

Owning your home does not mean the issue has nothing to do with you.

Higher property values may lead to higher property taxes. If commercial rents rise, those costs will eventually be reflected in the prices of goods.

If you have no intention of selling your home, rising land values do not make your life any richer. They simply increase the cost of continuing to live there.

As a result of being recognized as a hidden gem, the affordability that made the neighborhood attractive begins to disappear.

There is considerable irony in that.

Personally, I would like the neighborhood to retain its current convenience while keeping its old image.

After all, I did not choose this place. I have simply lived here since I was born.

At some point, people began calling it a hidden gem.

It is nice to see the value of my property rise simply because I live here, but for someone with no intention of selling, it only means higher taxes and prices.

If possible, I would like the people who create these rankings to leave us alone.

A hidden gem stops being hidden the moment everyone hears about it.