Recruit released the “SUUMO Kansai Edition 2024 Ranking of Towns to Live in,” a survey of 4,600 people aged 20-49 living in the Kansai region (Osaka, Hyogo, Kyoto, Nara, Shiga, and Wakayama prefectures).

We looked at what kind of towns made the rankings and explored the appeal of these towns along with the results.

Top 3 are “Umeda” (1st), “Nishinomiya-Kitaguchi” (2nd), and “Kobe-Sannomiya” (3rd) for 3 consecutive years

Umeda,” a major metropolitan area, came in first, followed by Nishinomiya-Kitaguchi, a popular town in the Hanshin area, in second place, and Kobe-Sannomiya, the gateway to Kobe City, in third place.

The top three maintained the same position for three consecutive years from 2022, but what stood out this year was the strength of No. 1 “Umeda,” which was ahead of No. 2 “Nishinomiya-Kitaguchi” by about 300 points, and in the “ranking of towns whose scores jumped up,” it also ranked first, increasing its score by over 100 points from last year.
The growing popularity of Umeda was clearly reflected in the results.

Umeda’s popularity is determined by expectations of the Umekita development and high asset values

Behind the popularity of Umeda lies the development of the city through the “Umekita” redevelopment project on the north side of JR Osaka Station, the largest terminal in western Japan.

Following the first phase of development, which saw the opening of Grand Front Osaka, the second phase of Umekita (Grand Green Osaka) is underway, with a partial preliminary opening scheduled for September of this year.

One of the most anticipated projects is the creation of Umekita Park, an urban park directly connected to Osaka Station. In front of JR Osaka Station, the largest terminal in the Kansai region, a huge park with a vast lawn and a beautifully curved event space with a large roof will take shape. In the surrounding area, hotels, office buildings, and tower condominiums will open one after another, making for an exciting urban plan.

The city’s appeal is not limited to its workplaces, but also includes a lively town and a wealth of cultural and entertainment facilities.
Comparing Umeda and Nishinomiya-Kitaguchi by age group, it is not surprising that support for Umeda among those in their 20s is particularly high.

Although Umeda has a strong business and commercial image, the supply of housing has increased due to the ripple effect of the redevelopment of the Umekita area and the redevelopment of the Fukushima and Nakatsu areas. In the last 10 years, more than 15,000 condominiums have been supplied in Kita and Fukushima wards of Osaka City.

In recent years, an increasing number of young people have come to view housing as an asset value, and the Umeda area, which has not been associated with the image of living in the city, has become more attractive as a “work and live” area, encouraged by the strong desire to live in the city center.

Umeda” rose from second place last year to first place in the “Town (station) that I think is a hole-in-the-wall” survey, which was also conducted at the same time.

Although it seems that “Umeda” and “hole-in-the-wall” do not match each other, the fact that Umeda has a variety of faces, from high-brand stores to traditional restaurants, may contribute to the sense that it is a “can’t-miss” place to live.

Let’s take a look at other cities that also improved their scores.

Esaka, Osaka, came in eighth place (310 points to 342 points), up from 11th place last year.
Esaka is on the Osaka Metro Midosuji Line, which connects directly to the office district in central Osaka, and allows residents to reach Shin-Osaka, Umeda, and Yodoyabashi stations on the Shinkansen bullet train without changing trains.

In addition, “Karasuma” on the Hankyu Kyoto Line has improved significantly from 15th place last year to 12th place (from 238 to 270 points), and “Honmachi” has improved from 18th place to 13th place (from 216 to 256 points).

Each is located in the central area of Kyoto City and Osaka City, respectively, and is a glamorous city with commercial facilities and offices.
These results show that the popularity of these cities are growing for their convenience, such as good transportation access to the city center and commercial facilities.

Nishinomiya City and Kita-ku, Osaka City were the top two municipalities where respondents would like to live

The survey also asked respondents about the municipality in which they would like to live.
Nishinomiya City ranked first. The next most popular were “Kita-ku, Osaka City,” “Akashi City,” “Tennoji-ku, Osaka City,” and “Chuo-ku, Osaka City.

Nishinomiya City” and “Kita-ku, Osaka City,” the municipalities in the city that were the top two in the “Best Places to Live” ranking, still took first and second places.
The first through fifth places are in the same order as last year, but looking at the difference in scores from last year, “Kita-ku, Osaka City” is significantly larger than the other municipalities, with 130 points (997 to 1127).

On the other hand, “Akashi City,” which has been attracting attention for its generous child-rearing measures, maintained its third place this year and continues to enjoy high support.

While “Umeda” was supported by its convenience, longing for the city center, and high property values, “Akashi City” attracted attention for its citizen-oriented services.

In addition to “good local government services for child-rearing,” Akashi City’s appeal items included “good services for nursing care and the elderly,” “good public facilities (libraries, community centers, community centers, etc.),” and other local government policies and living environments. The number of children in the city is also high, with the highest number of children in the city.

In terms of age and life stage, not only support from married couple + children households (2nd place), but also from various groups other than child-rearing families (3rd place), women in their 20s and 30s (2nd place), and men in their 20s and 30s (5th place), all of whom are highly interested in the area.

Many respondents also said that the area is “well-known for its frequent media coverage,” and it appears the ability of the local government to communicate its message is also a factor in increasing the number of people outside of the local community who want to live in the area.

Original Article: 「SUUMO住みたい街ランキング2024関西版」梅田が西宮北口と大差で3年連続1位に！ 本町、尼崎も躍進

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