On March 16, 2024, the Hokuriku Shinkansen was extended from Kanazawa to Tsuruga. Two full years later — how has Fukui Prefecture's real estate market changed?
The station-front now boasts a 120m tower condominium and a Marriott-brand hotel; commercial land has risen for nine consecutive years; and residential land has, for the first time in 30 years, bottomed out. Now linked to Tokyo in as little as 2 hours 51 minutes, the "Shinkansen prefecture" of Fukui is reading transformed — we walk through 2026's latest data.
Hokuriku Shinkansen ridership: 9.9 million in year 10, an all-time high
Per JR West, the Hokuriku Shinkansen's FY2024 (March 14, 2024 – March 13, 2025) ridership reached 9.9 million — an all-time high in the 10 years since the 2015 Kanazawa opening. The +24% YoY jump was driven precisely by the Tsuruga extension.
In just the first month after the extension, ridership between Kanazawa and Fukui hit 723,000. The parallel conventional limited expresses (Thunderbird and others) were up +26% YoY for the same period.
Visitors to Tsuruga City rose +30% YoY, and from the seven prefectures along the Hokuriku Shinkansen line outside Fukui, visits jumped +48% — clear evidence of improved access from distant origins.
2026 published land price: Fukui Prefecture rises for two consecutive years
In the 2026 published land price, Fukui Prefecture posted +0.2% YoY across all uses — two consecutive years of growth.
| Use | Change | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| All uses | +0.2% | Two consecutive years up |
| Commercial | +0.3% | Three consecutive years up |
| Residential | ±0.0% | First flat reading since 1996 — 30 years |
These numbers may look modest nationally. But given that Fukui Prefecture's residential land had been declining continuously for 30 years since 1996, this "bottom" is a historic inflection point.
By area: Fukui City, Tsuruga City, Awara City
Fukui City — commercial up nine consecutive years
Fukui City's commercial land posted +1.9% YoY (vs. +2.3% prior), making it nine consecutive years of growth. The pace has slowed slightly, but the steady upward trend continues. Residential is +0.6%, with growth spreading from the highly convenient centre outward.
The highest-priced commercial site is in front of Fukui Station at ¥450,000/m². High by regional-city standards — reflecting the traffic effects of redevelopment in the land prices.
Tsuruga City — beneficiary of being the terminus
Tsuruga City posted residential +1.3% (vs. +1.0% prior) and commercial +1.5% (vs. +1.3% prior) — accelerating year over year. The terminus effect, plus development around Tsuruga Port and tourism growth, is lifting land prices. Shimizu-cho 2-chome posted +2.9% for residential growth — 5th highest in the prefecture.
Awara City — residential growth #1 in the prefecture
A surprise standout is Awara City, home to JR Awara Onsen Station. Jiyugaoka 2-chome posted +6.4% for residential growth — #1 in the prefecture. The new Shinkansen station has driven a re-evaluation of the area as a residential location, on top of its potential as a hot-spring tourism destination.
| Area | Residential change | Commercial change |
|---|---|---|
| Fukui City | +0.6% | +1.9% (9 yrs ↑) |
| Tsuruga City | +1.3% | +1.5% |
| Awara City | +6.4% (#1 in pref.) | — |
Fukui Station-front redevelopment: three large projects reshape the city
In step with the Hokuriku Shinkansen opening, large redevelopments are running in parallel at Fukui Station's front:
1. FUKUMACHI Block (completed 2024)
A large mixed-use complex on the west side of Fukui Station. Components: a 27-story, ~120m hotel/office tower; a 28-story, ~100m residential tower; and a 9-story parking garage.
The residential tower houses condominium "The Fukui Tower Sky Residence" (118 units), with ¥100M+ "oku-ven" units at the top. Fukui Prefecture's first proper tower condominium.
The hotel tower houses Courtyard by Marriott Fukui. Guest rooms occupy floors 17–28, capturing both business and leisure traffic as a global-brand hotel befitting Hokuriku's gateway.
2. Fukui Station-front Minamidori redevelopment (planned 2028)
A mixed-use development by Hoosiers Holdings. Plans include a 13-story, 170-room hotel; an 18-story, 92-unit condominium; and a 4-story commercial building. The hotel is set to open ahead of schedule in spring 2026.
3. Other surrounding redevelopments
Curufu Fukui Station (a station-direct retail facility) opened on the day of the Shinkansen opening, raising walk-around flow around the station.
The combined cost of these three projects is in the tens of billions of yen. This level of redevelopment concentration in a regional city is unusual — testimony to how powerful a catalyst the Shinkansen opening has been.
Investor view: Fukui real estate risks and opportunities
Opportunities
- Land prices still cheap: Fukui City's top commercial site at ¥450,000/m² vs. Kanazawa Station-front at over ¥1M/m². Compared along the Shinkansen line, "still room to grow"
- ¥30.9B in economic ripple effect: Per the Development Bank of Japan, the Shinkansen extension's economic ripple effect on Fukui Prefecture is ¥30.9B — exceeding Ishikawa's ¥27.9B
- Hotel demand expansion: Marriott's entry raises expectations for capturing future inbound demand
Risks
- Population decline: Fukui Prefecture's population is ~740,000, on a downtrend. Demand ceiling needs to be kept in mind
- Redevelopment cost inflation: Construction-cost increases have caused some delays in project schedules
- Uncertainty around the Osaka extension: The Hokuriku Shinkansen's extension to Shin-Osaka has not even had its route confirmed — projected to be 2040s or later. Until the Tsuruga transfer issue (the so-called "Tsuruga wall") is resolved, the convenience improvement has limits
Takeaways: can Fukui rise above the "Tsuruga wall"?
Two years after the Hokuriku Shinkansen extension to Tsuruga, Fukui's real estate market has steadily turned upward. Nine consecutive years of commercial growth, residential bottoming for the first time in 30 years, and the opening of a station-front tower condominium and Marriott — all fitting examples that "when the Shinkansen comes, the city changes."
That said, from the Kansai region the Tsuruga transfer is still required, and the "Tsuruga wall" continues to brake Fukui's growth. If the Osaka extension materialises, a wave of people from Kansai could flow in — but the timing is unclear.
For investment, medium- to long-term staking around the Fukui Station-front redevelopment area is one option. Compared with Kanazawa, the still-cheap land prices look attractive to investors who can take risk.
A "new Shinkansen station × tourism resource" point like Awara Onsen is another spot to watch for further change.
Disclaimer: This article is a market analysis based on publicly available information; it is not a recommendation to buy or sell any specific real estate. Investment decisions are made at your own discretion.