This research investigated the residence purchasing motives, preference patterns, and backgrounds of Chinese white-collar workers in the Tokyo metropolitan area. Twenty-two Chinese who had purchased a residence were interviewed.

The results showed that economic factors were strong motives in purchasing a residence, especially good cost performance compared with rented housing when the survey respondents expected to live in Japan for a long time. Additionally, the favorable exchange rate due to the appreciation of the RMB meant that the respondents could buy housing at a relatively lower price. Many also pointed out that housing prices were comparatively less expensive in Japan than in big cities in China.

On the other hand, those surveyed had decided to purchase houses on the premise of staying in Japan over the long term even before examining the above-mentioned economic factors. Therefore, when deciding which type of house to purchase, they prioritized the degree of satisfaction while residing in it and the asset value gained when they lived in it for a long period. In terms of the type of housing purchased, many survey respondents preferred to buy new homes because that is the usual Chinese preference. At the same time, many indicated that they were eager to buy single-family detached homes because opportunities to purchase such housing in major Chinese cities are generally limited to the very wealthy. This result shows that psychological factors also play a role in housing preferences.

In addition, as a geographical element, the majority of respondents in the Tokyo area preferred to make purchases in districts with convenient transportation and relatively low home prices. Those surveyed were mainly white-collar workers who had lived in Japan for long periods and were accustomed to Japanese life. Therefore, when considering a purchase area, they would not specifically choose to live in a Chinese catchment area for cultural insulation. Their distribution in residential areas is therefore more dispersed.

The Seto area in Aichi prefecture has long been famous for traditional ceramic production, including decorative ceramicware, since the Kamakura period. However, it has changed its mode of production to a more industrial approach and the use of artificial materials, which has expanded the number of items on offer. Today, the production of industrial ceramics contributes greatly to maintaining the scale of production in Seto.

This study classifies enterprises into three types based on the items produced. The patterns of change in production, forms of transactions with business partners, use of outsourcing, and patterns of geographic distribution of outsourcing enterprises all vary by type of enterprise. The first class of enterprise is categorized as “specialized-1 enterprises.” These enterprises mainly produce overhead wire insulators, which are indispensable for infrastructure maintenance. Orders are stable, and transactions with business partners are comparatively fixed.

The second class of enterprise is “specialized-2 enterprises” producing items other than overhead wire insulators. This type of enterprise places importance on the high added value of a major product rather than on diversification. There is no clear feature in the form of transactions with business partners. Specialized enterprises in general emphasize outsourcing within the Seto area.

The “diversified enterprises” category comprises the third class. They do not specialize in any specific item but focus on multiproduct, small-volume production. As a result, this type of enterprise has many more business partners than specialized enterprises. Additionally, many outsourcing enterprises of these companies are also located in the Seto area, but the outsourcing enterprises of specific processes are distributed throughout Japan. This is because diversified enterprises have many business partners and must deal with a variety of orders, and thus they place greater emphasis on the technical capabilities of their business partners rather than on their proximity.

However, no characteristic feature can be identified for each type of enterprise in the distribution of business partners. This is because no area outside Seto has such an agglomeration of ceramic manufacturers, and the surveyed enterprises form wide transaction linkages with many business partners in various industries beyond Aichi prefecture.

The Seto area is bolstering its reputation because of its diverse collection of industrial ceramic enterprises and its ability to manufacture a wide variety of ceramic products.