Ultra-Luxury Senior Home ‘Sakurabia Seijo’ Revealed with Initial Payments Exceeding 400 Million Yen

Nonfiction writer Hironori Jinno’s “Reporto: Super Luxury Homes for the Elderly” (Diamond Inc.), an in-depth report on “closed retirement homes,” is now on sale.

We present an excerpt and re-edit of the content from the popular book “Report: Ultra-Luxury Senior Homes.”

Ultra-luxury senior homes require extraordinary conditions, such as an entrance fee exceeding 300 million yen. Among them, “Sakurabia Seijo” in Setagaya Ward, Tokyo, which opened in 1988, can be considered a pioneer.

We decided to tour the interior of Sakurabia Seijo. The guide was Mr. Koichi Ishizuka (pseudonym), the head of the customer consultation department. Mr. Ishizuka, who has been with Sakurabia Seijo for 16 years, does not seem like a typical senior home staff member; he gives the impression of a young, refreshing hotel employee.

The customer consultation department is what is known as the sales department. Mr. Ishizuka was assigned to this department two years ago, but prior to that, he was in a department called “Housekeeping,” which directly faced residents and supported their daily lives.

“I was in a department that acted as a sort of concierge for residents, helping out with any issues they had. For example, if a resident couldn’t open a bottle lid, needed something from a high shelf, or needed assistance with changing clothes, we would help with those tasks.”

I was surprised to find that there is a specialized department for miscellaneous tasks. I had assumed that any issues residents faced would be addressed by any staff members who were asked or who noticed the problem, regardless of their department.

While Mr. Ishizuka was showing me around the facility, a female cleaning staff member greeted us cheerfully with a “Hello!” in front of a resident’s room. Even in the elevator, when residents boarded on intermediate floors, Mr. Ishizuka would quickly step out and say, “After you,” which seemed like a scene from a top-class hotel.