Housing snapshot: Apartment sales and rentals across Israel

Here’s our regular roundup of homes bought and sold over the past months to keep you in touch with the realities of Israel’s housing market.

The information on sales was gathered through the Israel Tax Authority’s real estate research database, which shows the final prices paid for properties.

We’ve also included a selection of rental apartments currently on the market from the Yad2 platform.

The latest figures for the housing market show that prices rose by 17.9% over the year to July 2022, compared to July 2021, with the largest increases across towns and cities in the central region. Meanwhile, sales of new homes have dropped, and as interest rates rise, the costs of mortgage borrowing are rising.

1. In Haifa, on Moshe Sharett Street, a five-room (four-bedroom) apartment on the first floor of a five-story building dating to 2009 sold for NIS 1,750,000 ($520,214) in late August. The apartment measures 126 square meters (1,356 square feet) and comes with one reserved parking space.

2. On Herzl Boulevard in the heart of Tiberias, a four-room (three-bedroom) apartment sold in early September for NIS 1,400,000 ($396,806) The apartment covers 139 square meters (1,496 square feet) and was completed this year. The unit is located on the third floor of eight, with 25 apartments in the building.

3. In Beersheba on Yehuda Halevi street, a four-room ground-floor apartment in a building dating from 2001 sold for NIS 1,020,000 ($297,029) in early September. It measures 128 square meters (1,378 square feet) in a 17-story building with 102 apartments in total. There appears to be no outdoor area attached to the apartment.

4. On Hazohar street in north Tel Aviv, a four-room apartment in a building completed this year sold for NIS 5,940,000 ($1,683,595). It measures 102 square meters (1,098 square feet) and is on the first of 11 floors in the building containing 21 apartments in total. There is no reserved parking.

5. In Herzliya, a four-room apartment sold in late August for NIS 8,500,000 ($2,409,184). It is situated on Ramat Yam Street, on the first line to the sea. The apartment measures 139 square meters (1,496 square feet) and is on the second of three floors in a building completed in 2016. There is no reserved parking.

6. In Givatayim on Ben Zion Israeli Street in the center of the city, a four-room apartment changed hands for NIS 4,170,000 ($1,210,801) in September. The unit measures 101 square meters (1,087 square feet) in a building completed in 2011, and is located on the second of eight floors. The apartment comes with a reserved parking space.

7. In Bat Yam, on Rothschild Boulevard, a three-room (two-bedroom) apartment sold in recent weeks for NIS 2,400,000 ($690,846). The apartment measures 85 square meters (915 square feet)and is on the fifth of six floors. The building dates from 1960 and is located at the northern end of Bat Yam, within reasonable distance from the sea.

8. On Ezra Street on the outskirts of the West Bank settlement of Efrat, a six-room (five-bedroom) apartment measuring 250 square meters (2,691 square feet) sold for NIS 3,150,000 ($913,308) in mid-September. Built in 1995, the apartment is on the first of two floors with just three apartments in total.

9. In Ashkelon, on Ma’ale HaGa’at street in the city’s northeastern section, a five-room (four-bedroom) apartment sold for NIS 2,350,000 ($696,296) in late August. The apartment measures 146 square meters (1,572 square feet) and was built in 2015. The apartment is on the fourth floor of 12 and includes a parking space.

Rentals

These few weeks, as universities prepare for the beginning of the new academic year, we are including a selection of small rental apartments available in key university locations including Tel Aviv, Givat Shmuel, Haifa, Beersheba, Jerusalem and Ariel. All prices are per month and generally exclude utility bills, apartment management fees, and local property tax (arnona).

Looking to be close to Tel Aviv University, renters are entering a fiercely competitive market, with many vying for place just to live in the city. The lowest rent we could find last week was NIS 4,200 a month ($1,190) to live on Bograshov street in a studio apartment measuring 30 square meters (323 square feet). It’s a good location in central Tel Aviv, but probably quite a long scoot or cycle up to the university.

Near Bar Ilan University, the most affordable place available for rent at the moment in Givat Shmuel is on Gush Etzion Street with a ground-floor studio apartment for NIS 2,500 ($709) a month. The apartment covers 20 square meters (215 square feet) and comes at least partially furnished.

In Haifa, NIS 1,500 ($425) a month will get you a similar 20-square-meter (215 square feet) studio apartment. The unit is on the ground floor of a six-story building on Hagiborim Street, on the side of the city center closest to the university and the Technion, but still probably a bus ride away.

In Beersheba NIS 2,294 ($650) pays for a two-room (one bedroom) apartment of 40 square meters (431 square feet) on Golomb Street, close to both Soroka Hospital and Ben Gurion University.

In Jerusalem, like in Tel Aviv, students at the Hebrew University are competing with many others who have more to spend for the rentals available. In the Sanhedriya neighborhood on Shaul HaMelech, relatively close to the campus, a 20-square meter ground floor studio is marketed for rent for NIS 2,100 ($595) a month. The unit comes with three square meters of garden.

In the major West Bank settlement of Ariel, on Efrata Road, which is on the side of the city closest to Ariel University, a studio with a semi-separate sleeping area (1.5 rooms) is available for NIS 1,800 per month. The furnished unit measures 25 square meters (269 square feet) and is on the fourth floor.