Inherited land sits on a planned city-planning road: how do I sell it?

The key point: Even if inherited land sits on a planned ("yoteichi") city-planning road, the land is the heir's, so you can sell it. What moves the price and the method of selling is whether the land is at the "city-planning decision only" stage or has advanced to "city-planning project authorisation". On a planned city-planning road (the area of a city-planning facility), City Planning Act (Act No. 100 of 1968) art. 53 requires the permission of the governor, etc. (within a city, the mayor) to build a building. Art. 54 provides that permission must be granted if the building is two storeys or fewer with no basement, with a main structure of wood, steel frame, concrete block or the like—one that can easily be moved or removed (some municipalities, by practice, allow up to three storeys for sections where the project is not expected soon, but sections where the project is near are excluded). After the city-planning project authorisation (art. 59) is announced, art. 65 further restricts building, etc. in the project area; art. 67 imposes, on a paid transfer of land/buildings, notification to the enforcer and a right of pre-emptive purchase; and art. 68 lets an owner whose expropriation procedure is deferred demand that the enforcer purchase at market value. Finally it proceeds to expropriation and loss compensation under the Expropriation of Land Act, and compensation money for the price may be eligible for the 50-million-yen special deduction under the Act on Special Measures Concerning Taxation art. 33-4 (subject to requirements such as transfer within six months of the first offer to buy). Checking the building restriction is real estate's / an architect's; expropriation and compensation negotiation a lawyer's; ownership-transfer registration a judicial scrivener's; tax such as the 50-million-yen deduction a tax accountant's. We (a real-estate transaction business) handle the brokerage and survey of the sale, connecting you to each as an independent business contracted with separately (no referral fees are exchanged).

For heirs who have inherited a family home or land crossed by a city-planning road's planned line and, worried about the building restriction and future expropriation, are considering selling or using it, this article organises how to check the planned land, what the building restriction contains, how the method changes before and after project authorisation, how to think about price, compensation and tax, and who to refer to—in the order of the law and public materials. This is general information; the individual judgment on the building restriction and on expropriation/compensation/tax rests with the municipality, architects, lawyers, tax accountants and others.

Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd. (四葉不動産株式会社), based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, provides surveys, valuation and brokerage for the sale of inherited real estate. You can consult us from the stage of "there's a red planned line on the cadastral or city-planning map".

What is a city-planning road's "planned land", and where do I check it?

A city-planning road is a road decided under the City Planning Act, and the area where a line (the planned line) has been drawn to build that road in future is the "planned land"—precisely, the area of a decided city-planning facility (a road). Many sections have been decided for decades without the project starting, so "there is a plan but no construction yet" can persist.

Stage	What is happening	Basis of the restriction
City-planning decision	The road's area (planned line) is fixed. The project is undecided	Building restriction under City Planning Act art. 53
City-planning project authorisation	It is authorised and announced to be carried out as a project	Restriction in the project area under art. 65

Whether your land crosses the planned land can be checked at the city-planning section of the municipality where the property is. Many municipalities publish a city-planning map or city-planning information (a web GIS), where you can see a rough overlap of the planned line and your site. But at the map's scale you cannot read the exact intrusion near the boundary, so where the planned line runs through the site and how many square metres it covers is best confirmed at the municipal window against the drawing of the city-planning facility area. Differences in how to sell by type of city planning are also covered, for urbanisation-control-area land, in can I sell inherited urbanisation-control-area land. This article limits its subject to the planned land of a city-planning road (the art. 53 / art. 65 restrictions and expropriation).

Can I build a house on land on the planned land (the art. 53 restriction)?

On a city-planning road's planned land, building is not banned; the restriction is "with permission, you may build a building that can easily be moved or removed". The basis is City Planning Act arts. 53 and 54. Art. 53 provides that a person who builds a building in the area of a city-planning facility or the project area of an urban-development project must obtain the permission of the governor, etc. (within a city, the mayor) (minor acts, emergency measures in a non-ordinary disaster, and acts done as the city-planning project itself are excluded). Art. 54 provides that the governor, etc. must grant permission where the application conforms to the city plan and the building is one of the following.

Building that art. 54 makes a requirement for permission	Content
Storeys	Two storeys or fewer, with no basement
Structure	A main structure of wood, steel frame, concrete block or the like
Purpose	Recognised as able to be easily moved or removed when the project comes

So a sturdy, hard-to-move building such as a three-storey reinforced-concrete one is, in principle, hard to build on the planned land. Some municipalities, by practice, allow up to three storeys for sections where the project is not expected for the time being (each municipality's practice informed by the City Planning Operation Guidelines), but sections where the project is near are excluded. Further, art. 55 lets the governor, etc., where particularly necessary for smooth execution, designate an area of land for which permission may be refused despite art. 54, in which case there is a scheme to respond to the owner's offer to purchase. From a buyer's view it is "land with a rebuild restriction", so it affects price and demand. The judgment on which structure/storeys are actually allowed rests with the architect and the specified administrative agency. How to sell land overlapping other restrictions, such as a cliff or a retaining wall, is organised in selling land with a cliff or a retaining wall.

How does the selling method change before and after project authorisation?

For the same planned land, the restriction and the selling procedure change greatly before and after the city-planning project authorisation (art. 59).

Before authorisation (city-planning decision only), the restriction stops at the art. 53 building restriction and expropriation has not yet begun. The land can be sold as usual, and the buyer plans building within the art. 53 scope. After authorisation (after the project authorisation is announced), art. 65 requires the governor's, etc. permission to change the form/quality of the land, build a building, construct a structure, or install/pile a hard-to-move object (over five tonnes, etc.) in the project area—the restriction tightens.

Issue	Before authorisation (decision only)	After authorisation (after announcement)
Building, etc. restriction	Art. 53 (a building easily removed is permitted)	Art. 65 (land form-change/building, etc. need permission)
Transfer procedure	Ordinary sale	Art. 67 = a paid transfer must be notified to the enforcer, who may pre-emptively buy within 30 days
Purchase demand	In principle none (a designated art. 55 area is separate)	Art. 68 = an owner whose expropriation is deferred may demand purchase at market value

When you try to transfer land/buildings in the project area for value after authorisation, you must notify the enforcer (the State, a prefecture, a municipality, etc.) in writing of the intended price and the counterparty, and the enforcer may buy the land/buildings within 30 days of the notification (art. 67). During that period you cannot transfer to a third party. Transferring without notifying can be subject to a non-penal fine (art. 95). Conversely, the owner may, for land in the project area whose expropriation procedure is deferred, demand that the enforcer purchase at market value in some cases (art. 68). Because the buyer (a general buyer or the enforcer) and the procedure change by stage, confirming at the municipality which stage your land is at now is the starting point.

When selling inherited planned land, how do I think about price, compensation and tax?

The price changes with the depreciation from the building restriction (which structure/storeys you can build) and how far the project has advanced (the certainty of future expropriation). The exit for inherited planned land roughly splits into three.

Exit	Content	Main professionals involved
Sell to a general buyer	Put it on the market at a price factoring in the restriction. After authorisation, the art. 67 notification is a premise	Us (a real-estate transaction business)
Accept the enforcer's purchase / expropriation	After authorisation, receive compensation money for the price by expropriation/purchase	Enforcer / lawyer (compensation negotiation)
Keep and use it	Within art. 53, use it as a single-storey/light building or a car park	Architect

Have a question about your situation?

Tell us about your property search or plans to sell.

Chat on LINEContact us

Where you receive compensation money for the price by expropriation, etc., there may be room to use the "50-million-yen special deduction for expropriation/exchange" under Act on Special Measures Concerning Taxation art. 33-4. Under certain requirements, this deducts up to 50 million yen from the capital gain on the compensation money for the price. The target is, in principle, compensation money for the price; compensation for lost income, expenses, etc. is in principle excluded. There are requirements such as transfer within six months of the first offer to buy from the public-works enforcer; it cannot be used in the same year as the art. 33 special treatment that defers tax by acquiring a replacement asset; and the annual total of special deductions is capped at 50 million yen (art. 36). The classification of the compensation and the deduction's applicability are judged by a tax accountant, and compensation negotiation by a lawyer. We organise the market selling method factoring in the restriction and the exit split by the project's stage (the calculation of the compensation/tax amount itself is each professional's field).

Who do I refer the restriction check, expropriation negotiation, registration and tax to?

Selling a city-planning road's planned land spans separate fields—the building restriction (real estate / architect), expropriation and compensation negotiation (lawyer), registration (judicial scrivener) and tax (tax accountant). What a real-estate company handles is the survey, valuation and brokerage of the property; the rest goes to each qualified professional, as an independent business contracted with separately.

Trouble	Who to refer to
Survey of the planned line / building restriction, valuation, sale brokerage	Us (a real-estate transaction business)
Suitability of buildable structure/storeys (art. 54), judgment on the building plan	Architect / specified administrative agency
Negotiation/dispute over expropriation and loss compensation after authorisation	Lawyer
Ownership-transfer registration, inheritance registration	Judicial scrivener
Filing and applicability of the capital gain such as the 50-million-yen deduction	Tax accountant

These are each independent businesses, contracted with separately. We neither receive nor pay referral or introduction fees. Suitability of the building restriction is the architect's / specified administrative agency's; expropriation/compensation the lawyer's; registration the judicial scrivener's; tax the tax accountant's. Note that if the inherited land is still in the deceased's name, inheritance registration (mandatory from 1 April 2024, Real Property Registration Act art. 76-2) usually comes before the sale, and this is a judicial scrivener's field. We confirm at the municipality where the planned line runs through the site and how much it covers, and whether it is decision-only or post-authorisation, and take consultations from arranging the selling method and the exit. For how to proceed with inherited real estate see also the consultation desk for inherited real estate.

Consult Yotsuba Real Estate about selling inherited land on a city-planning road's planned land—initial consultation is free

In your message, write "city-planning road planned land" and include the property's location (municipality), the range the planned line covers (as far as you know), whether it is decision-only or post-authorisation now, and whether inheritance registration is done. Without presuming it is or is not sellable, we begin with the survey of the planned line and building restriction, and arranging which parts to refer to the building, expropriation, registration and tax professionals.

Frequently asked questions

Q. Can I sell inherited land on a city-planning road's planned land?
A. The land is the heir's, so you can sell it. What moves the price and the method is whether it is decision-only or has advanced to project authorisation. If decision-only, you sell on the market factoring in the art. 53 restriction (a building easily removed is permitted); after authorisation, art. 67 notification/pre-emptive purchase, the art. 68 purchase demand, and finally expropriation/compensation are involved. Confirming which stage it is at now at the municipality is the starting point.

Q. Can I build a house on the planned land? Is three storeys impossible?
A. With art. 53 permission you may build in some cases. Art. 54 says the governor, etc. must grant permission if the building is two storeys or fewer with no basement, with a main structure of wood, steel frame, concrete block or the like, that can easily be moved or removed. A sturdy reinforced-concrete building and, in principle, three storeys are hard to build, while some municipalities, by practice, allow up to three storeys for sections where the project is not expected soon. The actual possibility is judged by the architect and the specified administrative agency.

Q. Will future expropriation lower the tax?
A. Where you receive compensation money for the price by expropriation, etc., there may be room to use the 50-million-yen special deduction for expropriation/exchange under Act on Special Measures Concerning Taxation art. 33-4. The target is, in principle, compensation for the price; compensation for lost income/expenses, etc. is in principle excluded. There are requirements such as transfer within six months of the first offer to buy, and it cannot be used in the same year as the art. 33 tax-deferral for a replacement asset. The applicability and the classification of the compensation are judged by a tax accountant. This article shows only the framework.

Q. After authorisation, can I sell to an ordinary buyer?
A. You can, but a procedure is added. After the project authorisation is announced, when you try to transfer land/buildings in the project area for value, you must notify the enforcer in writing of the intended price and the counterparty, and the enforcer may buy them within 30 days of the notification (art. 67). During that period you cannot transfer to a third party, and transferring without notifying can be subject to a non-penal fine (art. 95). The judgment on notification and expropriation/compensation is a lawyer's; the procedure is confirmed at the enforcer's window.

Sources

The following public materials are starting points. Laws are amended, so check the current text, paragraph, item, enforcement date and latest amendment on e-Gov Law Search. The range the planned line covers, the project's stage, and the practice under art. 54 (whether three storeys is allowed, etc.) differ by municipality, so confirm with the city-planning section of the municipality where the property is. All were consulted on 1 November 2026. They do not guarantee the suitability of an individual building restriction or the application of expropriation/compensation/tax. The sources below are in Japanese.

• e-Gov Law Search: City Planning Act (Act No. 100 of 1968; art. 53 = permission to build in the area of a city-planning facility, etc., art. 54 = standards for permission [two storeys or fewer, no basement, easily-removed structure], art. 55 = special provision on the standards / purchase, art. 59 = authorisation of a city-planning project, art. 65 = restriction on building, etc. in the project area, art. 67 = notification and pre-emption on a paid transfer of land/buildings, art. 68 = demand to purchase land, art. 95 = non-penal fine)
• e-Gov Law Search: Act on Special Measures Concerning Taxation (Act No. 26 of 1957; art. 33 = special treatment where a replacement asset is acquired on expropriation, art. 33-4 = 50-million-yen special deduction for expropriation/exchange, art. 36 = cap on the annual total of special deductions)
• e-Gov Law Search: Expropriation of Land Act (Act No. 219 of 1951; the procedural law that is the basis for expropriation/loss compensation in a city-planning project)
• e-Gov Law Search: Real Property Registration Act (Act No. 123 of 2004; art. 76-2 = duty to apply for inheritance registration [in force 1 April 2024])
• National Tax Agency Tax Answer, "Special treatment when land or a building is sold by expropriation, etc." and Q&A (the target, requirements and relation to other special treatments of the 50-million-yen deduction. Consulted 1 November 2026; applicability rests with the competent tax office)
• Each municipality's city-planning map / city-planning information (city-planning GIS), and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's "City Planning Operation Guidelines" (how to check the planned line, and the practice under art. 54, differ by municipality. Consulted 1 November 2026)

This article provides general information and does not guarantee the suitability of an individual building restriction, the establishment of expropriation/compensation, or the application of a tax special treatment. Suitability of the building restriction and the building plan is the architect's / specified administrative agency's; negotiation of expropriation/loss compensation a lawyer's; inheritance and ownership-transfer registration a judicial scrivener's; filing of the capital gain such as the 50-million-yen deduction a tax accountant's.

Joji Uramatsu (浦松 丈二), Representative Director and licensed real estate transaction specialist, Yotsuba Real Estate Co., Ltd. (四葉不動産株式会社). We provide surveys, valuation and brokerage for the sale of inherited real estate. Author profile

Updated: 1 November 2026