Pros:
- Location is great, set nicely back from the main street. Kamiyamacho is an excellent part of Tokyo.
- Reasonable amount of space in the house.
- The terrace gets some sun and helps to make things feel less boxed-in.
Cons:
- House is definitely showing signs of age. Not very pretty (green emergency exit signs indoors, bulky plastic bins by the dining table), plastic signs over most vertical surfaces, not entirely tidy.
- Terrace should be an excellent feature but has rotted away and doesn't feel entirely safe in places. It is also directly overlooked by the duplex house on the same plot so as you sit out there, you are separated from a group of strangers eating dinner by a few feet and a single pane of glass.
- Internet connection seems to be a wireless one and is not at all reliable. The TV has Netflix but in practice it's almost impossible to watch it.
- When we were there (late summer) it was overrun with mosquitoes. This made it hard to sit out on the terrace. The windows/mosquito screens are not perfectly fitted so we were also frequently bitten indoors.