There are many theories that deal with the processes of urban formation from the viewpoint of land-use and the location of services. Although it is also important to consider the processes from the viewpoint of land rights, not many studies have attempted this until now. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to consider the formation and the change of the area around Osaka Station through the analysis of transfers in land-ownership.
The analysis in this study had three phases. First, the author investigated the transfer of land-ownership in the study area from 1945 to 1999. There were 4,063 transfers, of which 2,695 were land trades. Immediately after World War II, many lots were bought by individuals from land-owners who had possessed them before the war. The numbers of lots purchased by individuals decreased as time passed.
Many corporations actively bought lots from the late 1960s to the first half of the 1970s and from the mid-1980s to the early-1990s. As these two periods represented booms in land trades, the same phenomena occurred throughout Japan. Moreover, the author believes that urban development around the study area stimulated land trades in the region. As a result, corporations owned 75% of the land in the area by 1999.
Second, the author investigated where the buyers were located and their type of business. Many individuals who bought lots immediately after World War II lived in the same neighborhood. However, many of the real estate companies that bought a large number of lots in the late-1960s were companies that were located in Tokyo. In the late-1980s, real estate companies bought lots again, but this time many were located in Chou Ward, Osaka City. After the bubble economy burst, Tokyo companies again increased their ownership of land.
Third, the author considered the acquisition processes of lots by Hankyu Corporation and Hankyu Realty Co., Ltd (real estate division of the Hankyu Corporation Group). These companies obtained many lots after World War II. Hankyu Corporation owns more than 10% of the land in the area. The lots that these companies own are unevenly distributed within the area. They commonly own many lots in Chayamachi. They have acquired these lots in order to enforce urban redevelopments. In particular, Hankyu Corporation has acquired the lots strategically, by entrusting other companies with their purchase.
The significance of this study is to clarify the changes in land-ownership, which happened before land-use changes. After World War II, the structure of land-ownership in the study area changed from individual-based to one based on corporations. This change is highly likely to influence the development of the area as a business and commercial district. Judging from the number of land trades, the author suggests that the late-1960s were the turning point in that change, and supposes that the corporations that bought lots at that time developed the area.
