This week we've gone for range: the cheapest home we've featured yet, a brand-new one, and three in between. One needs a lot of work, and one needs none.

This week runs from deep snow in northern Nagano to the year-round surf beaches of Chiba, with a forest villa on Mt. Fuji's northern slope, a brand-new house on the Shonan coast, and a family home in Japan's golf capital.

Iiyama is a town of about 20,000 people on the Chikuma River in northern Nagano, near the Niigata border. It's officially designated a special heavy-snow area, and that snow is why skiers love it. Since the Hokuriku Shinkansen station opened in 2015, it has also been one of the few deep-snow towns you can reach from Tokyo in under two hours without a car. Last week's Iiyama house is still for sale too, so there are two homes to compare in the same district.

Skiing reached Japan in 1912, when the Austrian officer Theodor von Lerch taught it to soldiers in Takada, just over the Niigata border. Iiyama took it up, soon after and calls itself the birthplace of skiing in Nagano. It's still a ski-making town: Swallow Ski, one of Japan's few remaining ski makers, was founded here and has been building skis for more than half a century.

The sport is part of the town itself. There's a ski jump right in town, the city-run Iiyama Schanze, where local kids train and Olympic jumper Taku Takeuchi, who grew up in Iiyama, runs a national junior competition every October. When the postwar ski boom came, local farm families opened Togari Onsen (1956) and Madarao (1972) and originally ran guesthouses for Tokyo school groups.

Today the choice is wide. Madarao and Togari are within the city, Nozawa Onsen is across the river, and Lotte Arai in Niigata is within reach for a day. The Nabekura area on Iiyama's northern edge is known as a backcountry mecca. All just a short drive away!

The Hokuriku Shinkansen's trains stop at Iiyama, and the fastest reach Tokyo Station in about 1 hour 40 minutes. The local Iiyama Line links the town's smaller stations. For the ski areas and the supermarket runs you'll want a car with winter tyres, though Home #1 is close enough to town to manage much on foot outside winter.

For a town of 20,000, Iiyama has most of the conveniences of a bigger city: chain restaurants, a hardware store, a local pool, supermarkets, hospital, schools and the city hall, most within 1.5 km (1 mile) of Home #1. And the shinkansen station puts Tokyo, Kanazawa and the rest of the line within easy reach. It's an old temple town, with streets of temples and a traditional craft of Buddhist altars. Like most of rural Japan it's aging, with nearly four in ten residents over 65, so expect a quiet, friendly pace and little nightlife.

Snow is the cost that newcomers underestimate. Home #1's snow-melting roof burns kerosene through winter; without one, owners pay for roof clearing or do it themselves, several times a season. Add heating for a big house, fixed asset tax, and winter tyres. On the purchase side, Home #1's agent's fee is ¥462,000 ($2,940).

Iiyama is where we'd point a skiing focused individual who wants a real town rather than a resort, with a shinkansen connection.

The life. This house is in the middle of Iiyama, a small temple town in northern Nagano and one of Japan's snowiest places. The ski areas around town, such as Nozawa Onsen, Madarao and Togari, are a short drive away. Lotte Arai is within reach for a day trip, and there's even a ski jump in town. In summer the same hills are for hiking and cycling. Everything for daily life is close: the elementary school is 176 m (192 yd) away, the city hall about 470 m (500yd), the Red Cross hospital and a Tsuruya supermarket about 1.4 km (< 1 mile). Iiyama Station on the Hokuriku Shinkansen is a 22-minute walk, and the fastest trains reach Tokyo in about 1 hour 40 minutes.

The house. ¥12.0M (about US$76,000) · 7DK, 186.6 m² (2,008 sq ft) · 459 m² (4,944 sq ft) of land, freehold · built February 1984, two floors, wooden · six Japanese-style rooms, one Western-style room and a dining-kitchen · kerosene-heated roof snow melting · mains water and sewer · south-facing, parking for two, roads on two sides. See the listing

The catch. It's a 42-year-old house with seven rooms, and most of them are tatami, so expect to spend on heating, insulation and updating. The snow-melting roof saves you shoveling, but it burns kerosene all winter, which is a running cost to ask about. Iiyama town is quiet and aging, and most shops close early. The agent's fee is ¥462,000 on top of the price.

Who it suits. A skiing family or a group of friends who want a big winter base in a real town, with a shinkansen connection to Tokyo.

The life. Ninomiya is a small, quiet town on the Shonan coast between Oiso and Odawara, about an hour from Tokyo by train. This house was finished in August and built for a beach life: the living room is upstairs for the sea view, there's a 16.5-mat (27m², 290sq ft) roof terrace, an outdoor shower for after the surf, and an entrance big enough to store boards. In winter, Azumayama Park above the town is known for its rapeseed flowers with Fuji behind them, and Hakone's hot springs are a short drive west.

The house. ¥43.9M (about US$280,000) · Ocean View! 3LDK, 106.8m² (1,150 sq ft) · 120.6m² (1,298sq ft) of land, freehold · new build completed August 2026, two floors, wooden · living-dining-kitchen, three bedrooms, walk-in closet · dishwasher, bathroom dryer, two toilets, double glazing windows· certified long-life quality home · parking for two, on a corner with roads on two sides. See the listing

The catch. It's the most expensive home we've featured, and it's a lot of money for 107 m² on a small plot in a new subdivision, not a character house. The station is a 24-minute walk, so it's a car-or-bike life. It runs on propane, which costs more than city gas. On the plus side, the builder sells it directly, so there's no agent's fee, and the long-life certification can mean tax breaks for buyers who qualify.

Who it suits. A surfer or a couple who want a move-in-ready coastal home within an hour of Tokyo, with nothing to fix.

The life. Isumi, on Chiba's central Boso coastline, has become one of the most popular places for people leaving Tokyo, thanks to its year-round surf, fishing ports and relaxed pace. This house is in Ohara, a quiet residential area surrounded by coastal hills, and about an 8-minute walk from the sea. The coastline's surf beaches are up and down the road, and the area is exposed to Japan’s predominant northerly and southerly swells. A supermarket and convenience store are about 1.3 km (0.8 miles) away. Ohara Station on the Sotobo Line has limited express trains to and from Tokyo.

The house. ¥4.8M (about US$31,000) · 4SLDK (2 Floors), 102.7 m² floor size (1,105 sq ft) · 168.6 m² (1,814 sq ft) of land, freehold · built December 1989, wooden structure · exterior repainted about four years ago · south-facing garden · septic tank, mains water, propane. See the listing

The catch. The price is low for a reason, and the listing says so plainly. It's sold as-is and the seller takes no responsibility for defects after the sale. There's termite damage around the washroom window and floor, the house leans slightly, an extension was never registered, and the boundaries aren't marked. Some renovation is needed, and the station is a 28-minute walk. Budget for an inspection before you offer, and for repairs after.

Who it suits. A keen surfer, or someone after a cheap weekend base away from Tokyo by the sea who's happy to fix it up over time.

The life. Narusawa is a small village on the northern side of Mt. Fuji, between Lake Kawaguchi and Lake Saiko. This house is in the Koyodai Century Villa estate, which has its own tennis court, dog run and allotment gardens. Fujiten ski resort, Narusawa Golf Club (3 km/ 1.9 miles) and the Fuji-view onsen Yurari (1.5 km/ 1 mile) are all close, and the village office, post office and a 7-Eleven are a short walk. The big shopping centre in Fujikawaguchiko is 6.8 km (4 miles) away.

The house. ¥11.0M (about US$70,000) · 2LDK, 84.6 m² (911 sq ft) · 299 m² (3,218 sq ft) of flat land, freehold · built July 1991, two floors, light steel frame · two Japanese-style rooms and a mat living-dining-kitchen · reheating bath · septic tank, propane · parking, roads on two sides. See the listing

The catch. Unlike last week's Lake Yamanaka villa, you own the land here, and the estate fee is a modest ¥46,200 ($290) a year. But the land is registered as wilderness (原野), not residential, which can complicate a mortgage, and the building rules are strict: only 20% of the plot can be built on. Short-term rentals aren't allowed, there's a ¥100,000 ($635) fee to transfer ownership in the estate, and the station is 10 km (6 miles) away. The owner still lives there, so viewings need arranging.

Who it suits. A couple or a family who want a low-cost, low-fuss Fuji retreat they own outright, and who'll drive everywhere.

The life. Ichihara, across Tokyo Bay in Chiba, has 33 golf courses, more than any other city in Japan, so there's a course for every level close to home. This house is in Izumidai, a large, planned residential area of wide streets and gardens. Teikyo University Chiba Medical Center is 2.5 km (1.5 miles) away, and the Aqua-Line across the bay puts Haneda Airport within easy driving range.

The house. ¥17.8M (about US$113,000) · 4LDK, 109.1 m² (1,174 sq ft) · 235.1 m² (2,531 sq ft) of land, freehold · built January 2006, two floors, wooden · living room with a double-height ceiling and skylight, wooden deck onto a south garden · two toilets, walk-in closet, water filter · city gas, mains water and sewer · parking for two. See the listing

The catch. It's a suburb, and a car suburb: the nearest station, Anegasaki, is 4.9 km (3 miles) away, and despite the listing's claim of walkable shops, the nearest supermarket it names is 2.3 km (1.4 miles) off. The SECOM security system needs its own contract and monthly fee. It's a sensible house more than a dream one. Being built in 2006, though, it meets today's earthquake rules for wooden houses.

Who it suits. A golfing family, or anyone who wants space, a garden and a younger house within reach of Tokyo, Narita and Haneda.

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See you next Friday

Shogun Homes shares general information about homes in Japan. We are not a licensed real estate brokerage, lawyers, tax advisers or immigration specialists, and we don't take commissions or paid listings. Listings were for sale when we wrote this issue and may have sold or changed since. Prices in US$ are approximate. Confirm details with a licensed professional before you act.

Iiyama is where we'd point a skiing family who want a real town rather than a resort, with a shinkansen home. [REWRITE in your own words: your experience of the snow in this part of Nagano, and who you'd tell to look elsewhere.]

Sources: Iiyama City environment plan (climate figures) · MLIT Iiyama model project (population, shinkansen opening) · Japan Meteorological Agency averages via weather.time-j.net · Hakutaka stops and times · Ichihara's 33 golf courses

Ski history sources: Iiyama City newsletter on Japan's ski history · Swallow Ski, founded in Iiyama · Taku Takeuchi's junior jump event at Iiyama Schanze · Togari and Madarao opening years