I remember reading how in Tokyo you can find a lot of niche places even deep in city, with explanation given by small-time tailor (not some expensive main street kind of place) being given as that what he pays to rent the place is cheap enough.
While I'm not an expert in things Japan, from what I've seen the way they zone cities is far more mixed than the US/Canada model which leads to different property pricing behavior. In addition older buildings value can drop far more quickly there than here.