SUUMO Kansai 2026 Most Desirable Towns: Umeda 5-Peat, Kusatsu Surges into Top 6
- Umeda No.1 for 5 years running, 1,225 pts, 300+ ahead of No.2.
- Top 5 are all Osaka/Kobe rail hubs (Midosuji + Hankyu-Kobe lines).
- Shiga's Kusatsu enters the Top 6 (9→6) and tops the 'hidden-gem' list the same year.
- Biggest climbers: Honmachi (23→15), Takatsuki (18→12), Karasuma, Himeji.
Recruit's SUUMO Most Desirable Towns 2026 (Kansai edition) is out. Umeda takes No.1 for the fifth straight year with 1,225 points, more than 300 ahead of No.2 Nishinomiya-Kitaguchi (906). The top five are all Osaka/Kobe rail hubs along the Midosuji and Hankyu-Kobe lines. The big story is No.6 Kusatsu in Shiga — up from No.9 a year ago and simultaneously crowned No.1 in the separate 'hidden-gem' ranking. For anyone buying or renting in Kansai, the ranking is a demand-heat map: higher rank usually means steadier resale and rental absorption, but also higher prices and competition. Fast risers (Kusatsu, Takatsuki, Honmachi) are 'rising buzz, price not yet fully priced in.' (Rankings/scores cited with our own commentary; source: Recruit, Mar 2026.)
