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Homebuyers’ confidence in Israeli construction companies returns
Posted on 27. Jul, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
More Israel real estate buyers are again purchasing apartments and houses from contractors following the changes in the Israeli Sales Law, which seeks to protect the interests of new apartment buyers. In 2009 and over the course of the first five months of 2010, there is a rising trend in the rate of new apartments bought from contractors compared with 2008, according to a survey by the Contractors’ Association.
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In retrospect: The effect of the global economic crisis on real estate in Israel
Posted on 25. Jul, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
The global economic crisis had a moderate impact on activity in the Israel real estate, building and construction sector, despite earlier concerns and difficulties by contractors and homebuyers to receive credit, according to a July report by Israel’s Housing and Construction Ministry. The report noted though that credit difficulties to a lesser extent still pertain.
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Israeli government passes measures to boost housing availability
Posted on 20. Jul, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
The Israeli government last week approved a series of operative steps which are meant to significantly boost the number of available residential units that will be marketed to the public. The steps, which are specifically targeted to increase the availability and affordability of apartments for young couples, were approved by the ministerial committee on the [...]
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Interest rates in Israel – a look at historical and current data
Posted on 18. Jul, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
In Israel, the rate of interest is announced by the Bank of Israel at the end of every month. These announcements have been made since 1991, and provide the commercial banks with a benchmark for their rates on local-currency unindexed deposits and credit. This rate also affects the banks’ prime rates. In the last few years prime interest has been about one and a half percentage points higher than the interest rate announced by the Bank of Israel. Prime rates are particularly important to mortgages linked to the prime interest rate. A mortgage linked to the prime interest rate based on the Bank of Israel rate is usually taken out for a period of up to 25 years.
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The cost of bureaucracy in Israel
Posted on 15. Jul, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
The bulk of bureaucracy involved in the process of issuing permits in the new construction sector makes up nearly six percent of the purchase price of a real estate in Israel, according to a study by the Israeli Contractors Association. Bureaucratic processes and delays in the approval of construction permits with which a contractor has to deal with, generates an additional cost of NIS 90,000 for the individual buyer to the price of an average four-room apartment at NIS 1,500,000.
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Understanding the Madad – Consumer Price Index
Posted on 14. Jul, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
The Madad, which is the Hebrew for Consumer Price Index (CPI) or rate of inflation, is followed very closely by Israelis since movements in the monthly index affect nearly every aspect in life from salaries, mortgages, housing, transportation costs or prices of fruit and vegetables, and other expenses. In brief, a number of very important income and other expense items of every household are linked fully or partially to monthly or quarterly inflation.
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National Association for Better Housing
Posted on 06. Jul, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
The National Association for Better Housing (Ha’aguda letarbut hadiyur) is a non-profit organization to protect tenants’ rights in apartment blocks. The association has legal advisers specialized in real estate and joint property law, whose services can be used by members in cases regarding tenants’ rights, dispute-resolving in joint property disputes, payment failure of joint building expenses, counseling opposite maintenance companies or opposite constructors and builders.
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Israel Tax Authority wants to levy higher taxes on purchasing groups
Posted on 29. Jun, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
Israel real estate purchasing groups are organized groups of mostly private individuals who join up to buy land rather than through a contractor in order to build one or two buildings mainly for residential purposes and most recently also for commercial use. The Israel Tax Authority is now advancing plans to levy the purchase tax for buyers groups on the apartment and not on the land as is currently the case. What this means is that an individual joining a buyers group will be defined as a buyer of an apartment and not just the land. As a result, purchasing group buyers will need to pay the same taxes as other Israel home buyers.
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Home improvement season is underway
Posted on 24. Jun, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
Traditionally the Israel home renovation season opens its doors with the start of the spring rising to a peak around the Passover holiday and ending with the last days of the summer. For one reason or another home renovations in Israel are most popular around the Passover holiday, when houses are painted or undergo basic refurbishment or in the local jargon shipputz
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Get benefits if you chose to live in south or north of Israel
Posted on 22. Jun, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
The Israeli government is offering a new incentive and benefit program to new immigrants should they decide to make their home outside the country’s large cities in the north or the south of Israel. The new program operated by the Israeli Immigrant Absorption Ministry together with the Negev and Galilee Development Ministry seeks to boost Aliyah of young immigrant families in peripheral cities in the Negev and the Galilee.
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A guide to home insurance in Israel
Posted on 21. Jun, 2010 by Buy-It In Israel Staff.
There are two types of Israel home insurance policies available: structure and contents insurance. A structure insurance plan includes coverage for the structure of your home in Israel for the following major risks: fire, rain, snow, lightning, storm, snow, hail, flood, smoke damage. A contents insurance policy will usually insure against fire, theft, water damage, willful damage, third-party liabilityand employers liability, and generally covers TV’s, video equipment, home computers, faxes and sound equipment, glass surfaces and windows, marble and sanitary ware, silver ware, etc.
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