These two Tokyo boarding houses are just for anime fans, and they’re looking for new tenants

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If you love anime and you’re looking for affordable housing in Tokyo, your search may be over.

It’s ironic that even though animation occupies a prominent place in Japanese society, there’s very little social aspect to watching anime in the country. You’re unlikely to find coworkers discussing episodes of Attack on Titan during their coffee break or groups of friends getting together at someone’s house to catch the TV premier of the latest series in the Macross franchise. No, in almost all cases, anime fans in Japan consume their media solo.

Two exceptions, though are the residents of Tokyo boarding houses Kisuishou Rokucho and Hermitage Chitose Funabashi, which are collectively referred to as the Ani x Share housing network.

アニ×シェア「chitofuna エルミタージュ」で初の新年会！唐揚げとチンジャオロースを作って、カリオストロの城とまどマギ新編劇場版見て…大満足で終了しました*\(^o^)/* 楽しかったです！ #アニメ #シェアハウス http://t.co/ZJOW5sSGVj
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) January 18, 2015

【定期】『アニメ好きのシェアハウス』メンバー(入居者)募集！秋葉原から15分のTX線『六町駅』、家賃3万円台、期間限定で初月無料！「アニメ・シェアハウス」で検索 https://t.co/yjuITcJVEB
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) January 30, 2016

Located in Adachi and Setagaya Wards, respectively, Kisuishou Rokucho and Hermitage Chitose Funabashi are both currently looking for new tenants. The boarding houses (or “share houses,” as they’re called in Japan) have private bedrooms, but bathrooms, kitchens, and living rooms are shared. A fondness for anime is a prerequisite for moving in, which means that you can expect the common-area TV to almost always be showing something Japanese animation-related.

【定期】『アニメ好きのシェアハウス』女性メンバー(入居者)募集！新宿・渋谷から20分圏内、小田急線『千歳船橋駅』、家賃4万円台、年内は初月無料！おしゃれなアニメシェアハウスは如何ですか…？ https://t.co/gKdxN0vLkg
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) November 29, 2015

You’ll also find plenty of anime touches around the house.

【定期】『アニメ好きのシェアハウス』メンバー(入居者)募集！新宿・渋谷から20分圏内、小田急線『千歳船橋駅』、2月中の予約・入居は初月無料！アニメシェアハウスで検索 apamen.com/list.html https://t.co/qNe5fUueMK
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) February 19, 2016

▼ Shopping list whiteboard

我が家の伝言板。新作に書き換えたぁ〜…(σ´∀`)σ♪ 『アニメ好きのシェアハウス』 ani×share/ apamen.com http://t.co/nUs3EaBWQm
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) August 30, 2015

こんなの作ったぁ〜、前から思ってたけど…(^-^) アニメシェアハウスで検索 apamen.com/list.html https://t.co/1LY6fAp55r
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) February 11, 2016

From the outside, though, there’s nothing unusual about the building.

アニメ好きのシェアハウス(略してアニ・シェア)「千歳船橋」。もう次期完成しますが、只今アニメ好きな入居者募集中！ http://ift.tt/1WPgOFp #シェア#アニメ http://t.co/lPvnui95Cz
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) December 21, 2014

And since your bedroom is private, you can make it as otaku-like, or not, as you want.

【定期】『アニメ好きのシェアハウス』メンバー(入居者)募集！新宿・渋谷から20分圏内、小田急線『千歳船橋駅』、家賃4万円台からアニメ好き同士一緒にシェアしませんか？アニメシェアハウスで検索 https://t.co/PNNbQ9nYKR
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) February 05, 2016

You might imagine mealtime in a house full of anime fans to be nothing more than everyone locked away in their individual rooms while slurping instant ramen, but Ani x Share tenants also get together to cook and eat together in the kitchen/dining area, often while having anime viewing parties.

アニメ好きのシェアハウス『chitofuna エルミタージュ』の新年会 http://t.co/S9T0OEh6wl
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) January 20, 2015

今日はこれから、アニ・シェア新規メンバーのラノベ作家さんと「.hack」見ながらの食事会(^o^)/、すでに準備OKだぜーー！ http://t.co/UbuDti49Z2
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) May 03, 2015

昨日のことですが、アニ・シェア恒例の大掃除&食事会をしました。今回はゲストの女の子も来てもらって大盛り上がりでした(写真撮るのを忘れるほどに…)＼(^o^)／ http://t.co/12J8euF1Wd
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アニ×シェア(アニメ好きのシェアハウス) (@anixshare) May 25, 2015

Many residents are also budding artists with interests in illustration, animation production, or cosplay who regularly exchange tips to help one another with their creative endeavors.

The co-ed Hermitage Chitose Funabashi is a six-minute walk from Chitose Funabashi Station on the Odawara Line, making it within 20 minutes of Tokyo urban centers Shinjuku and Shibuya, as well as student-oriented neighborhood of Shimo Kitazawa. Monthly rent ranges from 60,000 to 80,000 yen (approximately US$500 to $665), which includes utilities, depending on room size.

▼ There’s even a garden for barbeques in the summer.

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Prices at men-only Kisuishou Rokucho are even lower, ranging from 40,000 to 60,000 yen per month, inclusive of utilities. Seven minutes from Rokucho Station on the Tsukuba Express line means that it’s just a 15-minute train ride to the otaku mecca of Akihabara.

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If either of these sound like your dream house, you can find further details, plus application information, on the Hermitage Chitose Funabashi and Kisuishou Rokucho websites, located here and here.

You can’t move into Casey’s place, but you can follow him on Twitter, and if you ask nice, he’d be happy to come over and watch the Patlabor movie together.

Source: Kai-You
Top image: Twitter/@anixshare (1, 2) (edited by RocketNews24)
Insert images: Apamen (1, 2)