“Michiharu Kimura” has been living alone in welfare housing in Yokohama’s day-laborer district for over a decade after finding it impossible to rent an apartment.
Kimura, who asked to use a psuedonym, is among a growing number of older single people in Japan who are being turned away by landlords because they lack guarantors or family members and are seen as running the risk of falling behind on their payments or even their deaths going undiscovered. They face similar problems being admitted to hospitals and care facilities.
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