Last Updated on February 5, 2015

The Israel Housing Crisis

In 2013 and  2014 the Israel housing market slowed down.  Prospective buyers where waiting for the much talked about Zero VAT tax bill to come into effect in 2014.  The bill was finally rejected and now buyers cannot wait any longer.  The latest wave of anti-Semitic attacks especially in Europe, has encouraged Aliyah 2015 especially from France. Consequently the demand for suitable housing and prices will increase.

We conducted a survey to establish the current real-estate needs and  trends among Israel’s English speaking oleh community.

Here are the results:

Conclusions

From this housing survey we are able to conclude that within the Anglo community 2015 was a busy year, and:-

• 40 per-cent of the Anglo community  have spent or will spend between 1million and 2 million shekels on their property purchase.  But, at the same time, 30 per-cent of the community have less than 1 million shekels to spend and there is a clear need for dwellings that fits this price tag.
• The Sharon region is out.  Property prices are just too high.  Haifa and the north are gaining popularity with almost 30 percent of the Anglo community choosing to buy and live  there.  Ashkelon and Tiberias are also gaining popularity
• 85 percent of the community will be living in the dwelling that they purchase so buying an income property is on the back burner at this time.
• Mostly we want a 2 or 4 bedroom dwelling with 2 bathrooms.
• First time home-owners (in the 25 – 34 age group) and retirees in the 65+ age bracket make up 45 percent of the market but the majority of purchases are coming from the  45 – 54 year old age bracket who are married for 10 years or more.
• Lastly, 60 percent of us have a mortgage and more than 25 percent of us also get extra assistance from our parents to purchase a home in Israel.

So can I get a 2 – 4 bedroom dwelling with 2 bathrooms for less than 1,000,000 shekels anywhere in Israel? The answer is YES. Take a look at the properties we found