I don't think there are any 'short commutes' to the suburbs. I had a 20 minute commute, and I only went a few stops on the subway, from Ikebukuro to Shinjuku Even a short commute can be unpleasant because the trains are so jammed. I used to try to stand on the right side of the train on the way to Shinjuku, because that way I could see trees!

You will be living in an apartment, even in the fairly far out suburbs. I only met two people in Tokyo who had a private house. One was quite rich, and even then had no yard at all. The other inherited the house.