Learn Hardcore Japanese: watasitati ha eki no tikaku ni sunde imasu.

は is the topic-marker particle in Japanese. When used as a particle it’s always pronounced wa, not “ha.” Here it indicates that 私たち (“we”) is the topic of the sentence—what the rest of the sentence is talking about.

Why is there a の in 駅の近く?

の is the genitive (possessive) particle connecting two nouns. It links 駅 (“station”) to 近く (“vicinity/nearby”), so 駅の近く literally means “the vicinity of the station,” or more naturally, “near the station.”

Why do we use に after 近く instead of で?

The particle に marks the location of existence or state with verbs like 住む (“to live”). Although で often indicates where an action takes place, に is used here because “to live” is treated as a state of existence rather than a one-time action.

Why is the verb in the -ている form (住んでいます) rather than the simple present/future?

In Japanese, -ている added to a verb often expresses an ongoing state or continuous condition. So 住んでいます conveys “(we) are living (there)”—a current, ongoing state—rather than a one-time action like “we live” in the simple non-continuous sense.

What is the dictionary form of 住んで and how is the -て form created?

The dictionary (plain) form is 住む (すむ). It’s a godan verb ending in -む, so to make the -て form you change む → んで, giving 住んで. You then attach います to express the continuous state.

Can 私たち be omitted here? If so, when would you include or drop it?

Yes. Because Japanese often omits pronouns when the subject is clear from context, you can simply say 駅の近くに住んでいます if it’s obvious who “we” is. You’d include 私たち when you need to clarify or emphasize that it’s we (not someone else) who live near the station.

How do you read 私たち, 駅, and 近く in kana and romaji?

私たち is read わたしたち (watashitachi)
駅 is read えき (eki)
近く is read ちかく (chikaku)