A Little More Retro. A Life That Feels More Like You.
On an island in the Seto Inland Sea,
Build the life you’ve always imagined.
A real estate company that helps bring your idea of “this kind of life” to life.
Not long ago, many people saw moving to the city, pursuing a better career, and working from morning until night as the natural path in life.
A better job.
A higher income.
A more convenient life.
Yet while pursuing these things, more and more people have begun to ask themselves:
“Is this really the life I wanted to live?”
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way many of us think about how we live and work.
Living closer to nature instead of being tied to the city.
Working in the city during the week and spending weekends at a second home.
Making more time not only for work, but also for family, hobbies, and simply being yourself.
Relocating.
Living between two places.
Starting a small farm.
Restoring and living in an old Japanese home.
“What does a truly happy life mean to me?”
Perhaps more people are asking themselves that question today than ever before.
And we believe that when it comes to creating a life that feels truly fulfilling, one question matters deeply:
Where do you want to live?
Where do you want to call home?
My own journey took a few detours.
I began my career in Osaka, before moving on to Tokyo and later Hanoi, Vietnam.
For years, I focused on work and lived a busy life, always concentrating on what was right in front of me.
Then came the pandemic.
While living in Hanoi, I experienced the city’s strict COVID-19 lockdown. That experience made me stop and reconsider the way I had been living.
I began to think:
“If there’s something I want to do, I should do it while I still can.”
So I left my job and set off to travel the world.
Along the way, I encountered different cultures, ways of life, and ideas about what it means to live well.
After returning to Japan, I built my own camper van and traveled across the country.
I met people living in big cities.
People living close to nature.
People creating their own work in small towns.
People restoring old homes and making them their own.
And throughout those journeys, I came to realize something simple:
There is no single definition of happiness.
After searching for a place that truly felt right for me, I eventually found my way to Ikuchijima, an island in the heart of the Shimanami Kaido.
The Shimanami Kaido still holds a little of the Japan we remember.
The calm waters and beautiful scenery of the Seto Inland Sea.
Lemon groves, mandarin orchards, and farmland.
Small villages nestled between mountains and the sea.
Old Japanese homes that have stood for generations.
And connections with the people who live there.
The Shimanami Kaido still holds landscapes and ways of life that cannot be measured simply by convenience.
Drinking coffee while looking out at the sea in the morning.
Growing vegetables in your garden.
Slowly restoring an old house with your own hands.
Cycling around the island.
Stopping to exchange greetings with your neighbors.
It is a slower rhythm of life—different from the pace of the city.
Since moving to Ikuchijima and beginning my own slightly “retro” way of life, I feel that my life has become richer.
Of course, I don’t believe that going back to the past is the answer.
Cities have their own appeal.
Convenience has its own value.
But perhaps it is worth looking, just a little, at the way people used to live.
Stepping away from convenience, just a little.
Making more time for yourself, just a little.
Perhaps having those choices is important too.
That is what we mean when we say:
“A Little More Retro.”
We don’t just sell houses. We help build lives.
Retro Real Estate is more than a company that simply introduces properties.
- I want to live near the sea.
- I want to restore an old Japanese home and make it my own.
- I want to try farming.
- I want to live between the city and an island.
- I want to raise my family closer to nature.
- I want to start a new business or open a shop on an island.
Everyone’s ideal life is different.
That is why, before asking:
“What kind of house are you looking for?”
We would rather ask:
“What kind of life do you want to live?”
From there, we can explore the right place for that lifestyle—and then help you find the right property.
When needed, we can also help you think through the next steps: restoring and renovating an old home, purchasing farmland, relocating to the islands, maintaining two homes, starting a vacation rental, or launching a new business.
Buying a property is not the goal.
It is only the beginning.
What matters is what kind of life you will build there.
We want to be a real estate company that stays close to you at the beginning of that journey.
Your idea of “this kind of life.”
Living in a traditional Japanese home.
Starting a life with a garden or farmland.
Waking up to the view of the Seto Inland Sea.
Returning to your island home every weekend.
Spending more time with your family.
Starting something new.
“This is the kind of life I’d love to have.”
What that means is different for everyone.
At Retro Real Estate, we value old homes, farmland, island life, and connections with local communities.
Based in Ikuchijima and serving the Shimanami Kaido area, we are here to support each person in finding a place—and creating a life—that feels truly their own.
We don’t just sell houses.
We help build lives.
A life that is a little more retro.
A little richer.
And a little more like you.
Let us help you find the place where that life can begin.
Retro Fudosan (Real Estate) Founder
Genki Otsuka (Real Estate Notary / USCPA)