LandHousing Co., Ltd.

Company overview

LandHousing comprehensively handles everything from real estate leasing to sales, management, and development. Through a community-focused and attentive approach, we have gained the strong trust of many customers.
Among those customers, there are also many international students. The company mainly supports Thai international students in finding housing. “The catalyst was when a Thai exchange student visited us after being turned away from housing consultations due to language barriers and other reasons. I wanted to somehow be of help, and ultimately I was able to introduce a property. Perhaps due to word of mouth, many Thai exchange students started visiting afterward, so we decided to establish it as a full-fledged business,” said Daigo Hashimoto (executive officer). Eventually, the company established a Thai subsidiary and has developed and expanded a support menu to assist international students with not only finding housing but also with opening bank accounts, entering into mobile phone contracts, and other aspects of daily living.
The ones supporting this international student assistance program are the Thai employees working at bases in Japan and Thailand. Kana is also one of them. “A 'home' is something essential for everyone. I thought a real estate industry involved in that would be stable, and I believed that if I worked in sales, it would be easier to advance my career, so I joined the company,” said Kana. Initially, Kana was in charge of pre-study abroad support at the Thai branch, but later, at the recommendation of her supervisor, she transferred to the Japanese branch. Currently, as a manager, she is serving as the head of the International Business Group responsible for the student support business.

Work-life balance initiatives

“The real estate industry is a job that supports customers' dreams such as entering school, studying abroad, getting a job, and buying a home. That's why, first and foremost, we want to support the dreams of our employees as a company,” said Hashimoto. As the words suggest, LandHousing has a system in place to support employees in whatever they want to do, both personally and professionally.
For example, in the workplace, we are streamlining operations in response to employee suggestions. According to Hashimoto: “The real estate industry still relies heavily on phones, faxes, and paper documents, but our company has actively utilized IT, such as a VR-based viewing system, systems for property owners, and chat tools, reflecting the voices of our field employees.” Kana also proposed a system where, considering overseas communication circumstances, interactions with international clients could be conducted via the company's official social media accounts instead of email. “We managed to carry out the workflow smoothly while minimizing risks during times of trouble" said Kana, revealing her sense of accomplishment. Additionally, there are also businesses that have been commercialized based on employee proposals, such as the trunk room business utilizing vacant buildings.
Meanwhile, to support dreams outside of work, side jobs are also permitted. In addition to comedians and illustrators, there are employees who are active as professional fighters, and it seems that a large number of employees go to watch the matches. In addition, based on the idea that being healthy is essential for doing what you want to do, there is also a system in place that allows for online health consultations with a partner clinic when you are feeling unwell. Since the company covers the expenses, employees can maintain their health without overexerting themselves.

Human resource development initiatives

LandHousing, with its vision of “For the Best Life,” aims to provide total support to its customers. For that reason, Hashimoto says: “We make it a point to actively entrust employees with on-site work and ensure they efficiently become familiar with a diverse range of duties.” At the International Business Group, which is responsible for supporting international students, foreign employees are gathered, allowing for on-the-job training in their native languages. Also, if you have any questions about Japanese or Japanese business etiquette, you can easily consult with Japanese employees, so you can feel at ease.
On the other hand, there is active interaction between departments, providing many opportunities to broaden the scope of work areas. For example, in domestic operations, it is not uncommon for rental, management, and sales representatives to collaborate across departments for the same real estate owner clients. There are also training programs spanning the bases in Japan and Thailand. Employees from the Japan base visit Thailand to learn about interacting with international students and their families, while employees from the Thailand base come to Japan to inspect properties and apply their knowledge to customer interactions in Thailand. Kana, who wanted to “take on many different jobs,” was able to move between departments and locations, and successfully transitioned her career from a sales position at the Thai subsidiary to a sales and marketing position at the Japanese subsidiary.
At the same time, it is possible to raise the level of duties regardless of nationality. Kana, who currently works as a manager, said: “While trying to increase the company's recognition in a marketing position, I developed a habit of thinking about the company's challenges, which led my supervisor to recommend me for promotion to a managerial position. I want to prove that anyone can become a business owner regardless of nationality,” showing her eagerness for further career advancement in the future.

Message from our top executive

Executive officer/representative director at the Thai entity Daigo Hashimoto

Our company plans to enhance our support menu for Thai international students while also starting to provide similar support to international students from other countries. Eventually, we aim to strengthen our services for Japanese people relocating abroad. If you want to bring a different cultural perspective and create new forms of customer contribution, let's work together. Even though it's Japan, don't go on the defensive; fully leverage your strengths and perform actively.

Message from foreign talent

Head of the International Business Group, Corporate Planning Office/Kantaporn Angsombat (Nickname: Kana)(Thai)

I used to have the impression that Japan is a country where competition is fierce and stress easily accumulates, but recently I've felt that more companies are creating comfortable working environments. Also, things that are taken for granted in your home country can be utilized as strengths in Japan. In my case, my natural smile is very helpful in customer service situations. If you have the desire to come to Japan, please come and make that dream a reality!